Introduction

Business ventures need to be complemented with excellent consultation. The more sources of information a business person has, the more efficiently they can undergo the process. Being part of a franchise is a wise decision, but many hours of research are needed for the appropriate acquisition of knowledge. Even after the process has commenced, a good business-minded person will realize that they constantly need to learn more through experience and through the consultation of others.

Why they are needed

Getting a qualified franchise attorney is a suggested component of the franchise process. Look for an attorney that specializes in franchise law and has spent some time working with the franchise industry. Not only should they know franchising very well, but they also need to know your particular state’s franchising rules, laws, and regulations. It is also suggested that the selected attorney is not affiliated with the franchisee’s franchisor.

Good law consultation is needed at every level of the franchise process. Franchisors may have a team of legal advisors and franchisees usually have at least one source of legal counsel.

What they can help with

Franchise attorneys will aid a person with understanding legal issues and documents and guard them from making costly mistakes. Documents (especially in the beginning of the venture) are filled with technical terms and may not be easily understood by all, so having someone to serve as an interpreter is a wise decision.

Franchising is associated with a series of involved and complex laws. The system also involves many different players on varied levels. The enterprise is much easier handled along with the help of a specialized counselor.

A prospective franchisee will need to analyze particular franchises to theorize what will be the best fit for them. A franchise attorney will be able to research each franchise according to their business record and reputation within the industry.

Specifics

As aforementioned, a franchise attorney will help you through the entire franchise process. The following is a list of some of the components they will help you with:

–Review of the Uniform Franchise Offering Circular
–Negotiation with the franchisor
–Preparation of shareholder agreement
–Negotiation of leases
–Help with dispute resolution
–Review of renewal agreements
–Transactions

Franchise attorneys can be found by:

–Referral from other attorneys
–Referral from the American Bar Association
–Referral from the International Franchise Association

Franchise Fetch delivers franchise opportunities to the public. We have businesses offering franchises in many industries. Check out our Web site to see all of the occasions we have to offer.

Is being first to market really that important? I believe that the amount of energy and time purporting this myth is somewhat unnerving in that being first to market is not always so great. Indeed, I have been first to market many times and yes, no one can deny that often that is a total advantage. But it is also somewhat costly to chase hunches and the cost to build a prototype that crashes and burns is not so funny, especially when the future of your company hangs in the balance.

As a veteran of the high stakes game of entrepreneurship, I completely concur with the comments that First to Market should not be the primary goal. You see it costs money, lots of it, or lots of grass-roots hard work to do a test market roll-out and introduce a new product or in my case “a new service” and after refining your techniques someone else can come into the market without having to pay for all the mistakes and hard-knocks and not have to worry too much about getting kicked in the teeth from having to straddle between non-existent regulations, while competing with the old guard (industry association status quo) with all their little political connections.

Now if you have your act together and have done it a few times, being first to market can be a good thing, but all eyes are on you and if you screw it up (Zap Mail - FedEx example), well they will never let it down.

In 1997 I was in Las Vegas for the International Franchise Association (elite club meeting) and everyone who is anyone in the Industry was there and yes many household names. But one thing that I got the most out of was the “mini-round table” seminar only 20 people in the room, all founders of franchise companies and up to bat was the International Marketing Team from Dominoes Pizza, Tom Monahan appeared to be quite proud of them in fact.

Well to make a long story short they discussed why they did not desire and preferred not to be “first to market” because if you went into a country and put in a few outlets, example; Nairobi, Kenya for instance. No one knew what a Pizza was. What is this thing with cheese on top and all these food items melted in place? See the point. They indicated they wanted to be second or even third to market.

Why? Well after the first company (ies) spent all the money offering discounts, advertising and free-sample marketing, they simply came in competed head to head in the “Enterprise Rent-a-Car” style and took massive market share, since people already knew what a Pizza was and they knew who to market better and followed time-tested efficiency strategies refined from over 10,000 previous outlets. Yah!

L. Winslow is a Economic Advisor to the Online Think Tank, a Futurist and retired entrepreneur. Currently he is planning a bicycle ride across the US to raise money for charity and is sponsored by http://www.Calling-Plans.com and all the proceeds will go to various charities who sign up.

If you have been in an industry for 20 years and were at the top 5% level of productivity and knowledge and are now semi-retired perhaps you should be a consultant. Not everyone has what it takes to be a consultant, but if you do, you will find yourself in a nice place financially by taking advantage of your expertise and knowledge.

Today, I am a semi-retired consultant to industry and having been in the franchising industry for so long I find that those are the most rewarding coaching opportunities for me. Of course it is not all good. There are some real winners out there. Luckily you can choose who you wish to do business with. My advice is to be the best, work only for the best and expect the best; let’s call it “all the best!”

Recently when discussing franchise consulting with a gentleman who wished to start a mobile franchise business making jewelry, we got to talking about past experiences and international business. No, not far off international business, just over the border in Mexico from Arizona and I mentioned the questionable ways business was done there and how some of Mexico ran like a third world country. He stated;

I was going from Phx to Mexican border town for scripts. I met this girl and found that her Father was Mayor (town w/300K), her Uncle was Chief of Police (I could do NO harm), and another Uncle,on her Mother’s side was a State Rep. I married her after a long formal courtship and bought a strip club 5 blocks from the border.

So, far as a business consultant, no real problem here, only a red flag on the strip-club thing, but still there are always reasons why people do things. I no longer wanted the job of consulting this gentleman after hearing this, but did not dismiss him as an entrepreneur by any means. But then he stated something like this;

The kids came in droves from U of A, ASU and I rolled in the bucks, even sold coke right in the club. I got a chance to buy a cantina that had a 21 room “Casa de Pu-ta”. I got the kids all pumped up at the strip club then loaded them on my jittney for the 4 mi. cross town trip to my Cantina so they could get drunk and laid. I made 3M in 4.5 years. Long story short I left my wife, three kids, mistress, and two kids 2M in trusts and took off for Tonapah, AZ where I sold land home packages until I went into an 18 day coma and almost died.

Now as a consultant and a straight arrow, you can imagine my dismay at this gentleman’s lack of personal character. Indeed, there was no way at this point I was going to help a man who left his wife and kids to set up a whore house in Mexico just over the border, with a strip-club and then sell drugs and assist American Kids in getting STDs. He then stated how he preceeded to lose all his wealth and how he got a terrible disease.

Well, being a one man show, not even capable of getting out of bed for 6 mo., I lost all but 75K. Then I came down w/Buerger’s Disease and wound up on SSD, living in Escanaba, MI. Oh well, I’m still going to try to make it again if you’ll hang w/me and coach me!

Indeed the answer is “No Way” would you? And am I suppose to feel sorry for this gentleman now and help him regain his ill-gotten riches in an industry that I care about? Well, you see there are success stories in consulting and there are horror stories. And the moral of the story is “Know Your Customer” because your reputation is based on it.

L. Winslow is a Economic Advisor to the Online Think Tank, a Futurist and retired entreprenuer. Currently he is planning a bicycle ride across the US to raise money for charity and is sponsored by http://www.Calling-Plans.com and all the proceeds will go to various charities who sign up.

The rules in franchising are said to be helping the consumers, but that is not factual. The rules in franchising are to put up barriers to entry and help the status quo and allow franchise attorneys to siphon money from the very lucrative industry sector. Of course generally no one wishes to admit these issues, it is so as sure as my opinion and 20 years of observation in the industry accounts for something.

The hardships for start-up franchisors are intensive and relatively stacked against them. Still some make it despite the trips and traps. To start a franchising company today and become a franchisor will require a million dollars liquid and the availability to get more or borrow as it grows. It is often less expensive to start a Business Opportunities selling company.

Of course if you choose to run with that Biz-Op Crowd there will be an inherent level of mistrust going in from the buyers, so you must know that. Still last liar wins, and there are plenty of Biz-Ops blowing smoke out there, it is pretty sickening.

My thinking is that unless the business that is to be franchised is a totally emerging trend, technology or service that a franchisor ought to have been in business in multiple locations for 10-years prior to franchising. Or at least have some serious team members on the board who have been thru it all and know the industry back-wards and forwards.

You know it is kind of like that book “E-Myth” by Michael Gerber; until you have your current business running perfectly; well you really have no business selling businesses to others. This of course is my mindset. But we live with Free-Markets (or the illusion of) and that means the right to free-contract and thus there will be people proving the Peter Principle who come and go. Indeed, there is no easy way to franchise. There is no easy way to sell Biz Ops either.

If you are considering either selling franchises or the problems with Biz Ops, then you should know of the issues out there. Especially with Biz Ops as there is so much Fraud there; it makes you want to question the entire idea of commerse. Read this:

http://www.ftc.gov/os/comments/franrulestaffrpt/OL-100001.pdf

I think there is good information out there for those considering selling businesses and would recommend if you are considering entering the business selling business that you get a Robert Bond’s “Franchise Guide” and check out the listings available to see how they are offering their systems, then pick up an Entrepreneur Magazine and a couple of others and sit in Barnes and Noble Coffee shop and take notes, if you have not already.

L. Winslow is a Economic Advisor to the Online Think Tank, a Futurist and retired entrepreneur. Currently he is planning a bicycle ride across the US to raise money for charity and is sponsored by http://www.Calling-Plans.com and all the proceeds will go to various charities who sign up.

In my retirement I like to keep myself available for up and coming entrepreneurs who may have questions about the industries I was previously involved with or the franchising business format that helped build my company.

Not long ago a gentleman wished to receive some consultation for a mobile business concept to franchise. After discussing this with him he said that I almost scared him away from the Franchising Industry. I told him that; “It really is not that I want to scare you out of the franchise business; just let you know some of the realities, barriers and freight trains on that track if you care to walk down it.”

He asked about various franchise consultants out there and mentioned FranCorp, which has been in the franchising sector for over three decades now. I told him as a non-corporate type Franchisor that FranCorp was not my style. As a Franchise Consultant type myself indeed I only care about winning and that means anyone I might consult takes the market by storm and holds it.

There is a much better consultant in Houston for new franchise market entrants in my opinion. He is not my style either, but he is of the highest integrity, honest and he also teaches certified IFA courses to get a CFE degree (Certified Franchise Executive). I think you can find him on the IFA website under “Vendors; Consultants.”

When picking a franchise consultant it is important to match business styles and to understand more about franchising too. I recommend that you buy the books;

• E-Myth
• Franchising 101
• The Franchise Bible
• Franchising 4 Smarty Pants’

Then after reviewing what some of the other companies are doing in the market place you should be able to develop and excellent business plan. This will prepare you and give you the knowledge you need to hire the franchise consultant that is right for you.

L. Winslow is a Economic and Industry Advisor to the Online Think Tank, a Futurist and retired entreprenuer. Currently he is planning a bicycle ride across the US to raise money for charity and is sponsored by http://www.Calling-Plans.com and all the proceeds will go to various charities who sign up.

Many people want to start a business and possibly own a franchise. Promoters advertise many types of franchises, claiming the industry they discuss grows tremendously each year and you should own a franchise in that industry.

The travel industry never wanes. Even in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks, consumers continued to look for family vacation packages. Getting away together strengthens the bond between families while making priceless memories.

Many people who take the step to own a franchise fail within five years and many fail sooner, according to small business experts. With a franchise that promotes family vacation packages, the one who decides to own a franchise promotes a product sought after by consumes. Whether families seek a cheap Hawaiian vacation package or a closer-to-home Texas vacation package, they want the best deal available.

Entrepreneurs who own a franchise that features cheap vacation packages will successfully do business with these families. When consumers find a great family vacation package, they will want to take that vacation again. Those who own a franchise need repeat business for continued success.

Those who own a franchise can take advantage of the family vacation packages. This gives the franchise owner knowledge about the product he or she promotes. This also benefits his or her family when they own a franchise as many people say great vacations create great memories.

The entrepreneur who decides to own a franchise may do so for many reasons. They may want to start a home based business to spend more quality time with their family. Perhaps they want to avoid travel agents who charge high fees to book family vacation packages. They may just want to make money and own a franchise.

Those who own a franchise need support. Those who sell family vacation packages often rely on a coastal vacation sales center. The employees of the call center support the person who decides to own a franchise by handling calls and explaining travel packages to interested buyers.

The coastal call center does not take away clients from the person who owns a franchise, but closes the sale. This gives the franchise owner more time to look for consumers who want to book a family vacation package. Those who own a franchise may find they can reach the prospects but cannot “seal the deal” The coastal vacations call center gives those who own a franchise a full-time professional sales staff that gets consumers to sign on the dotted line.

Those who own a franchise need to remember that any job requires hard work. Just because they use a coastal call center to close the sales, does not mean they should not pursue their business hard. Consumers want family vacation packages and franchise owners who work hard can make a lot of money by pursuing the market actively. Those who own a franchise work smarter, not harder.

No one should delay his or her desire to own a franchise. Home based travel agent opportunities exist and produce lucrative profits for those willing to work hard and smart and own a franchise. Whether or not the franchise owner sells family vacation packages or specializes in Bahamas timeshares, hard work and ingenuity gives franchise owners personal and financial freedom.

Ben Jordan an x-Fortune 500 executive turned own a franchise marketer. His love is helping people use the coastal vacation sales center business model. For a FREE 3day/2night hotel voucher and for more information please visit http://www.abccallcenter.com

It’s 4:45 PM — you’ve been up since 5 AM and you’re ready to go home. You get a call out of the blue - asking for a “quick analysis” of a particular piece of geography for a new location for your company. What data can you quickly get your hands on so that you can form an intelligent position, and how do you use all those reports, anyway?

Site location is part art and part science. One needs to understand the current business landscape, the demographics of the area, the traffic patterns and as much as possible about future plans for development. And, a little bit of basic math helps, too!

Basic concept: Primary Trade Area

The primary trade area is actually exactly what one might guess it to be. It is the main area that most of your customers are coming from. Depending upon the frequency of your sales cycle and the uniqueness of your products and services in the market, you make some assumptions about how far your prospects are willing to go to get to your location.

For convenience locations such as grocery stores, gas stations, coffee shops and banks, people generally don’t travel too far (relatively speaking) from their point of origin. The opposite is true for destination locations, such as specialty restaurants, theme parks, specialty clothing stores, et al. Distance willing to travel is actually a function of availability of goods and services and population density.

Translated into practical terms, a person in an office in Manhattan is more likely to get cash from the nearest ATM (within a block or two) where as a homeowner on an Iowa farm may have to travel 10 miles to get to the closest bank branch in town.

How do you determine your Primary Trade Area?

You could take a map out of your car, stick it on the wall, and throw darts, OR, you could spend a little time with a mapping package and do some neat calculations.

If your business isn’t very dynamic, you don’t need to reassess your trade area more than once a year. If you are growing, it makes sense to make mapping out your customers relative to the prospective pool of prospects a company metric.

There are lots of advanced calculations that take into consideration the competition, traffic patterns, store attractiveness and prospect population, but if you don’t have much time or competitor data, the best way to get a handle on your customers is to plot them out on a map and see where they live. Then, depending upon whether your consider yourself to be a convenience location or a destination location, you determine where the closest 50 - 80% of your customers live (or work). Use 50% if you are more of a convenience location and go out anywhere from 65-90% to determine your primary drawing area for destination locations.

Determine how far people will walk/drive to come to your location. “Ring studies” are called that because the mapping person puts circles around around the location and calculates the number of customers and prospects that exist within each mileage band. Another way to look at your customers is to ask for a drive time isochrone….that is, a unique polygon shape that follows the road network that shows you how many minutes most customers need to drive to get to your location. (Picture a city with 5 major roadways convening at the city center. A drive time isochrone might look like a star shape because people driving fast on the major roadways can get in faster than those in the more congested (and lower speed limit) side streets.

Convenience locations are generally 5 minutes or less in the dense suburbs, and can be up to 20 or more out in the more rural areas. There are more detailed ways to calculate trade areas - but if you’re looking for something quick that most people understand and won’t question you’ll get the basics straight so that you can say something like:

“70% of our customers come from within 7 miles of the store, that’s about a 15 minute drive time.”

Now what?

If you have one location, then when you are expanding you know that you have been successful with this particular location and can at least use your current assumptions to review the proposed site. If you have several locations, then classify your stores first by type, profitability, size, or other metrics, then lay out the distance and drive time data in a spreadsheet. You’re starting to build some intelligence!

Next step, buy data.

Census data is great, but it is dated. Populations are constantly changing in relation to the economy of an area. If you are serious about understanding and growing your business, don’t rely on free or cheap estimates. Spend a few hundred dollars and get what you need so that you can confidently approach the bank (or your spouse, boss, investor etc.) with information you can hang your hat on.

Here’s what I usually recommend for a good understanding of the potential for a site: Each report is about $50 depending on where you buy it from, and most of the time it is packaged so you can expect to pay between $250 - $500 for a series of site reports that you can use over and over to assess or market a property.

1. Census counts, current year estimates and five year projections for current population and current households. Include population described by segments such as Education, Home Value, Occupations, Race, Language spoken
2. Income distribution, net worth
3. Lifestyle/Lifestage assessment
4. Traffic counts
5. Business counts
6. Relief map (shows the terrain)
7. Market Potential Estimates
8. Consumer Expenditure, Retail Sales reports

…then analyze it!

So you have the data, now what? Analyze it. What I mean is take some time to study the reports and pull out factors that are important to your business. Make some basic assumptions given what you know. Here’s a little secret: no one approach is *right*. No one can predict the future — no one. But what you can do is estimate based on what you know and prepare for scenarios that might play out.

There are several ways to estimate potential. You can take a bottoms up or a top down approach.

An example of bottoms up logic might work like this: I am starting a new restaurant. How often do people eat out in my area? (Market Potential) How much do they spend on food outside the home?(Consumer Expenditure data) If X percent of the population eats Y food, how far out do I have to get Z customers? What’s my gross sales if I get 5% of the available prospects to come in one time? twice? monthly? What’s the turnover in population in my area? Is the area growing? Are people moving away at a rate higher than the county, the state, the metro?

An example of tops down logic might start out with an assumption that you need to bring in $xx,xxx/month to meet your profitablilty goals. You then calculate how many customers you need based on your average service/product cost. Look at similar businesses to get a demographic profile (list of characteristics) of your most likely prospects — then create a few reports assuming that people can drive 5 minutes, 10 minutes, 1/2 hour or more to your location.

Site location isn’t brain surgery, but it does require spending some time to think about the factors that can make or break a business. Arm yourself with a few reports. Run them for your area as well as for areas that you know are successful. Make up a little formula to help you estimate your potential and use the reports to fill in the blanks. Use Excel to create comparisons between what you know and what you estimate.

Whatever you do, don’t get “analysis paralysis”. The biggest problem with any business planning is pouring over data and market information trying to get an exact prediction of success. Follow your gut, use the data to support your intuition or to make you think harder about various scenarios that might play out.

Wendy Cobrda is Emissary & Founder of Catenate, LLC, a target marketing boutique with offices in Syracuse, NY and a virtual team scattered across the country. Catenate, a word which means to “link together in a series or chain” combines demographics, mailing lists, mapping, modeling and data mining to solve data-deficient marketing challenges. Wendy runs The Catosphere: Data on Demand — presentation-ready site location reports and maps.

http://www.catenate-usa.com,

http://www.catosphere.com,

http://www.thinkplaza.com

The concept of a business opportunity might not be completely understood, simply because it can apply to so many different situations. For the purpose of our discussion here, we will not be talking about franchise opportunities. Otherwise, almost anything goes–from distributorships to vending machine routes, from network marketing to dealerships. Business opportunities can be online or be located in the real world. In general, a business opportunity is the sale or lease of a product, service or equipment that enables you to start a business.

Business opportunities usually involve a product and they may have a location, although the online world is quickly changing that. The assumption with a business opportunity is that there is a market for the product or service and there is the potential for profit. Initial fees for taking advantage of a business opportunity vary and there may be a buy-back or guarantee provision. Business opportunities usually come with some sort of marketing program as well.

A “business opportunity” doesn’t normally refer to the one-off sale of an independent business. Business opportunities normally consist of a system or set of procedures that can be sold to more than one buyer in more than one location. With the sale of an independent business, they are usually no continuing obligations between the seller and the buyer. The buyer can do anything they want with the business they’ve bought, and there’s no requirement for a continuing relationship with the seller.

There are many advantages and benefits connected with business opportunities. They normally have a lower initial fee and lower startup costs than a franchise. Business opportunities are normally based on a proven system or product, so you can profit from the experience of others. There may be a training program connected with the business opportunity and longer-term business counseling may be available as well. You benefit from the buying power of a larger company and you can often take advantage of cooperative promotional activities and advertising.

But the world of business opportunities is not always perfect. The company offering the opportunity may not always have your best interests in mind. There may be a lack of support at some times. Exclusivity clauses (meaning you can sell their product and no others) may hinder your ability to compete in the marketplace. It’s not unheard of for parent companies to go broke or declare bankruptcy. The bottom line? Anytime you consider taking advantage of a new business opportunity, it’s your responsibility (not someone else’s) to diligently evaluate both the company and yourself.

First of all, are you truly ready to take on a business opportunity? In addition to having the financial freedom to take a chance, do you really have the passion and excitement to put into a new business opportunity? And what about time? Do you have enough time freely available to devote to the success of this business opportunity?

Successfully starting up a new business requires complete knowledge of your product or service. If the company is not willing to immediately and cheerfully provide that knowledge, then you should quickly back away from this particular opportunity. Do some market research of your own. Don’t take the company’s word for it that a rabid demand exists for their particular product.

Investigate the company’s record of past success and try to interview someone who’s currently involved with the business opportunity. Has the company lived up to its promises and fulfilled its obligations?

What sort of income claims are connected with this business opportunity? You should look for assurances of reasonable income, but at the same time there should be no limit on future income. Promises of fast and easy riches should be a warning for you to stay away. How many years has the company offering the opportunity been in business? What sort of reputation do they have? Are their ethics and standards compatible with yours?

There’s no shortage of business opportunities available. It’s a fairly simple matter to find something that appeals to your interests and fits within your startup budget. But don’t allow yourself to be rushed into any arrangement. True business opportunities based on proven models will have no trouble waiting for your careful consideration.

This business opportunity article was written for http://www.business-trader.com.au

New franchise opportunities are coming to the market regularly and the franchise industry is going from strength to strength. Franchise exhibitions are attracting many new exhibitors. Potential franchisees are coming in their droves to look at the many new & old opportunities that are eager to take their cash.

Entrepreneurial spirit is alive and kicking. People from all walks of life and different educational backgrounds are now thinking about going into business. More women are now looking to buy a franchise than ever before. Older people are joining the queue looking for part time & full time business opportunities for later life.

The banks and lending institutions are competing strongly to lend money competitively to new franchisees. It has never been a better time to buy a franchise. In some cases the franchisors are even stepping in to provide guarantees to lenders to enable the franchisee to buy their franchise and set up the business.

Buying a franchise is much safer compared to starting a business on your own. Survey after survey carried out by official franchise organisations and lenders prove that people buying a franchise business are much more likely to still be trading profitably than people who choose to go into business on their own steam.

For those who are considering buying a franchise business it is imperative that the right questions are asked to the franchisor.

How long has the franchisor been trading?
Are you a member of any approved organisations?
What skills are required to operate the business?
How long will it take to recuperate capital invested?
How much turnover will I need to do to breakeven?
Who are your main competitors?
Is the market for your products growing, at a standstill or declining?
Will there by any unexpected fees?
Is there any ongoing training & support?
Which territories are available?
Do I have an exclusive territory?
What assurance do I have that my territory will be protected?
Are there any ongoing fees?
How long is the training?
How many franchisees do they have?
Can I contact all or some of your franchisees?
How many are trading successfully?
How many franchisees have failed in the past?
Why did they fail?
How are disputes handled?
How is marketing done?
What will be my contribution?
What is the procedure in selling the business?
What are the fees involved in selling the franchise?

Bear in mind that a good franchise opportunity will only work if you are prepared for the hard work involved in running a business. It is absolutely vital to find a business that will stimulate you for years to come. Far too many people choose an opportunity primarily based on profitability, rather than choosing the right business for them.

The franchise agreement is the cornerstone of your business and as such demands close scrutiny. Legal advice should always be sought to ensure that it is evenly balanced. Some franchise agreements that I have seen are far too one sided and give more protection to the franchisor than the franchisee.

A final word of caution, even the best franchise will struggle in the wrong territory and marketplace. Always get independent advice from professionals to determine if your ideal franchise opportunity will work in your area.

Naz Daud is the founder of CityLocal. This Business Franchise Opportunity is for people who would like to work from home and be their own boss.

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Selling a franchise business is not as straight forward as selling your own business. Your franchise agreement will have detailed instructions on the procedures that you need to follow when you take the opportunity to sell your business. These rules are there to protect both parties.

The franchiser will be able to assist you in valuing your business and will probably insist that you use the methods of valuation as set out in the franchise agreement. You will of course be free to seek independent advice and valuations.

Be careful when seeking the advice of experts and always agree the price beforehand so that you are prepared for the final costs and have a chance to negotiate any prices quoted before giving them the work. The rule of three quotes applies here as well.

It is always worth seeking a second opinion as valuations can vary wildly. This is due to the many variables the valuation experts take into account including future growth potential of your business and values for any properties whether leased or purchased.

The franchisee will have to seek the permission from the franchiser to sell the business. This permission can not be unreasonably withheld or delayed provided that the franchisee has adhered to the terms of his agreement and has found a suitable buyer.

In some cases the franchisee will have to pay a small percentage of the sale price to the franchiser. This can range from a standard fee to a percentage of the sales price. The franchisee will also have to pay the franchiser a small fee to do the normal checks on the future buyer.

The franchiser usually has a right to buy your franchise business at the same price as the highest offer received and considered acceptable. This is a normal part of any franchise agreement and is there to protect the franchisers rights. If they believe that you are selling the business at under value, then they could take the opportunity to step in and buy the business for the same price.

The franchiser might also want to take his business back into private control and this is an optimum time to buy the rights back. If this is the case then the franchiser might actually step in and bid higher than the current highest offer.

In most cases the new buyer will not be able to take over your franchise agreement. A new agreement will have to be created for the new buyer and your agreement will lapse. You will have to ensure that all monies due as per the franchise agreement will have to be settled prior to the transaction taking place.

Most franchisers will be able to assist you in the sale of your business if required. This service usually demands a premium and or a higher percentage of the purchase price.

Finally bear in mind that there is always a difference between the valuation and the final price achieved. In some case this difference can be huge. In the end the market place will decide what your business is worth and not the valuation report. At any point in time some business are more in demand then others and can command prices well in excess of their valuation price.

Taking all this into account it is better to sell the business when the economy is doing well or at the right side of the economic cycle. By getting the timing right, this can make a huge difference to the sales price achieved.

Naz Daud is the founder of CityLocal. This Business Franchise Opportunity is for people who would like to work from home and be their own boss.

Business Franchises and UK Business Directory

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Ireland Business Directory & Franchise Opportunity