Differentiation Strategies for Franchise Companies
With the growing number of franchise offerings recently it is difficult for the smallest franchise companies to compete. They generally do not have the advertising budgets to pick and choose which markets the franchise prospects will be calling from. Many rely solely on Internet Marketing; unfortunately 80% of such leads are not so good. On top of this obstacle they must compete with sales departments of larger franchise companies, which have lots of experience.
For smaller franchisors it is imperative that they are able to differentiate between other franchisors in their price category and sub industry sectors. Below is a listing of my franchise company’s differences between other franchises. I recommend that you read this and think about your business and see if it gives you ideas of how you can differentiate your company from your next nearest competitors. Read each item and have a legal pad in hand, write down those items, which apply if any and any ideas that you think of as you read them. Remember while reading this that our business model, a mobile care wash franchise, will differ from your business so you will end up with much different items when completed. This exercise will assist you in brainstorming and thinking of ways you can distance yourself from the larger and more aggressive sales tactics of larger companies.
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We are the only Franchise which:
Requires no inventory and/or purchases from franchisor on an on-going basis
Provides you with customers when you start without charging you a percentage fee.
Has a flat rate royalty and no percentage of gross sales
Has no competition that is organized at the unit level franchise
Requires no location in the car wash industry
Franchises mobile car wash trucks
Has a founder running day to day operations who has run one of these units for twenty years
Allows you to put an unlimited number of units in your exclusive territory without paying more in up front franchise fees
Has a written policy of helping non-profit groups at the franchise level
Pays your family a $10,000 cash death benefit and helps them run your franchise until next of kin is trained. We do not terminate your franchise if you die.
In the past two years is not a copy of an existing franchise system
Has a mobile headquarters that travels from franchise area to franchise area
At a franchisor level has given twenty percent of our total earnings to charities
Has a founder who wrote his own hundred and ninety page legal disclosure documents and had it registered in three working days
Has a founder who is on the board of directors of the American Association of Franchisees and Dealers, a franchisee’s rights group
Has a founder who co-authored a book about franchising during his first year as a franchisor; “Franchising 101”
Has a founder who owns one hundred percent of his company and works seventeen hours a day.
Has a written policy about drunk driving and a termination clause for it
Is experimenting with a one hundred percent electric service vehicle in the automotive industry
Provides entire turn-key units in case of emergency for franchisees
Has a great business name that has been around for twenty years before we franchised
Maintains fully functional special event fundraiser trailers in every major metropolitan area where we franchise
Is experimenting with a air cushioned powered mobile service vehicles
Employees the Bonzai and Blitz marketing methods to new and existing franchises
Provides new franchisees with a comprehensive data base of possible customers in there exclusive territory as well as an aerial view photo and complete storyboard and marketing map
That makes you give up “Your right to fail” upon signing of the franchise agreement
Wrote a book on “Community Fundraising”
Has Founder who personally wrote the Franchise Operations Manuals from actual experience
Lists all possible competitors in a data base before you start your franchise
Gets your business license, fictitious business name statement, pays your initial liability insurance payment and your initial health care insurance payment
Will prepare a business plan for you so that you may apply for an SBA loan. We are 7-A eligible in the SBA program
Lance Winslow IV
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