Fund a Franchise Fast!

By investing retirement funds into a franchise, 92% of Guidant clients fund in 21 days or less.

Thousands of entrepreneurs have discovered that purchasing one’s own business as a legitimate 401(k) investment can lead to less overhead and faster success. In fact, industry experts estimate that more than 10,000 small business start-ups have been capitalized in this way since 2005, and more than half of those entrepreneurs worked with Guidant Financial Group, considered the leader in “Rollovers as Business Start-ups” (ROBS). It appears that what was once viewed as a secondary option is recognized today as a reliable and intelligent way to fund a business.

For the average small-business entrepreneur, capital is virtually non-existent. Even the SBA loan is frustratingly elusive: Between January and June of 2010, there was a 27% drop in SBA loans. For today’s potential franchise owner, using money from their retirement accounts to finance all or a portion of their new business is their only funding option.

When completed by a provider intimately familiar with this type of transaction, franchise purchases can be surprising short. Guidant has streamlined the process to the point where 92% of their clients’ deals close in 21 days or less.  Perhaps this is stating the obvious, but time kills deals. Guidant’s efficiency means that franchisees start their business with little or no debt; franchisors can look forward to a franchise unit positioned for rapid success; and consultants/brokers enjoy more (and faster) financial rewards.

So how does it work? Foundational to this type of transaction it the fact that a 401(k) can legitimately hold both publicly and privately held stock. Using Guidant’s process as an example, the basic steps start when a private corporation is created for the new business.  Next, a 401(k) is created and then their existing retirement funds are rolled into the plan.  Then the new 401(k) makes an investment into the newly formed corporation.  Finally, the corporation, in turn, uses the investment proceeds to acquire a franchise or other small business, and the 401(k) becomes the shareholder.

Besides enabling the new franchise owner to avoid high-interest loan payments, this transaction enables them to grow their 401(k) retirement nest egg while they grow their business. There are additional advantages to this type of transaction. This includes, but is not limited to: the franchisee making a debt-free investment into their business; offering a benefit that is unavailable in small business today though the businesses new 401(k); using their retirement funds as a down payment for a larger loan; and obtaining capital without using their home or credit as collateral.

Because these transactions are fairly complex, working with a small or inexperienced firm can trigger substantial tax problems. Guidant has proven that it understands the importance of properly administering these plans, and it takes its role very seriously. Because of its expertise and reliability, Guidant Financial Group is the only business within this niche industry to have made the Inc. 5000 three years in a row. Not only does its growth demonstrates that more franchise consultants trust Guidant to help their clients fund a franchise, but it also points to an increasing reliance by small business on the ROBS form of non-traditional funding.

By being fully informed about this rich source of untapped capital, you can help put more of your clients into their dream business and help propel yourself into a higher tax bracket!

David Nilssen is the founder of Guidant Financial Group. In 2007, the Small Business Administration (SBA) named Nilssen the National Young Entrepreneur of the Year and the Puget Sound Business Journal named him one of the top 40 businesspeople under 40 years of age. In both 2008 & 2009, Ernst and Young named him a finalist for their coveted Entrepreneur of the Year award.
Visit Guidant Financial Online to learn more about Self Directed IRA, Real Estate IRA, Small Business Financing and SBA Loans.

Jantize America Janitorial Franchise

Jantize America is a strong franchise brand that provides their Franchisees with a proven business system that’s based on over 20 years of franchising and industry experience.  The Jantize business model is consistently ranked as one of the fastest growing and most successful opportunities in the world.

They provide their Franchisees with:

• Low Cost Start Up
• Recurring Royalty Revenues
• Unlimited Growth Potential
• Industry Size of $128 Billion and Growing
• Recession Resistant
• “Proven” business practices from the Franchisor

It allows the business owner to develop a large business within a relatively short period of time with an extremely high success rate. And, the Franchisee is responsible for the growth and development of their business, not the cleaning, trash removal, stripping of floors or handling keys to buildings.  They’re able to maintain a traditional 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. working day, while earning income from five different revenue streams:

• Sales of franchises: $3,500 to $35,000
• On-going royalties and management fees: 12-19%
• Financing
• Equipment leases
• Product and supplies

Jantize does have the prerequisites of: Sales & Marketing or Business Management experience, with leadership capabilities and understanding the basic Area Developer franchise concept.

Learn more about Jantize America by contacting a FBA Member here.

Learn more about becoming a Franchise Broker or FBA Member here.

Call with the Franchise Attorney

Our franchise attorney, Eric Riess, reviewed the Service Team of Professional’s FDD and found it to be a fair document and a good representation of the company.  He encouraged my client and I to do proper due diligence and gave suggestions on extra questions to ask the Franchisees.   Eric went through each of the items that he was going to ask the Franchisor for.  He explained why he requested them and was sure to check for understanding along the way.  The call went well and at the end Eric let us know he would be negotiating the terms directly with the Franchisor.

It’s incredibly important to have a knowledgeable franchise attorney that can review the FDD and make it work for both the Franchisor and my client.  Reviewing and revising the FDD should facilitate the investment in the franchise, not hinder it.

We called the Franchisor afterward and talked to him about any additional questions that we had.  We let him know that our attorney was sending the memorandum with the requested changes to him and asked that he review it.  One of the items on the memo was that the territory had not been defined yet.  Next, we would began discussing territory.

First Choice Business Brokers Franchise Opportunity

First Choice Business Brokers (FCBB) offers assistance to both buyers and sellers of small- to medium-sized businesses with their transactions.  FCBB prides themselves on being leaders in the industry, and providing the most professional and effective consultancy possible.

Ranked in Entrepreneur Magazine‘s 2009 Franchise 500

FCBB offers:

• Low Initial Investment
• Low Overhead
• No Inventory
• Few to No Employees
• Highly Expandable and Scalable Business
• Business-to-Business ONLY
• Daytime Weekday Hours

Business brokering offers security in any economy.  Whether it’s a good economy and business owners are selling, or a weak economy and buyers are looking to invest, business sales are continually being conducted.

Learn more about First Choice Business Brokers by contacting a FBA Member here.

Learn more about becoming a Franchise Broker or FBA Member here.

In the franchise consulting industry, the industry standard is to purchase most of your leads through internet portals (there are many different ways to do this and several types of portals to use).  However, many consultants find the leads costly — considering the number of leads potentially needed to purchase to make a sale.  There are many lead generation systems you can use, we’ll cover new and different systems and lead generation options throughout this blog.

Last blog post, we discussed cultivating your current contacts and networking to create new ones.  Another excellent and inexpensive methods for promoting your service and generating leads is to become a speaker and industry expert on your topic.  Public speaking promotes your business two-fold, it builds awareness in your community and creates buzz about your brand, as well as solidifies you as an expert in your field.

For every audience member you present to, you have a potential client and their network of potential referrals and clients.  You will build a network of contacts, associates and colleagues in your local business community.

Use all of your local sources for potential speaking opportunities and engagements, including:

• Networking Groups — such as your Chamber of Commerce, Meetups, BNI and other local business networking organizations
  
• Local radio and TV — offer to be an expert they can contact for specific stories and beats
• Universities and Colleges — offer to be a guest speaker in business and other applicable courses
• Organizations that your services can assist — offer to hold conferences at their location, or offer to speak at their large events such as conventions and yearly meetings

If you, as most people, have some nerves about public speaking and where exactly to start when preparing your presentation, Entrepreneur offers some great advice to prepare a topic for a speaking engagement.  Content could include:

A solution to a problem or challenge in the industry
Mistakes people often make when not using your services
Real stories and examples
FAQs about your service, industry and business

Another piece of good advice is to use a handout, this gives the attendees something to take with them.  Make sure to gather contact information so you can follow up — THIS is where you get your connections and contacts.

Public speaking is a very effective and cost efficient way to build your network and lead flow, with a little work and dedication you can use it as an excellent source of promotion for you and your business.

Do you use public speaking and presentations as a lead generation tool?

When opening up your business, the most important aspect of ensuring your success is obtaining, building and sustaining a customer base.  Planning your recruitment initiatives can be both exciting and daunting, but also pivotal to the immediate and long-term success of your brand.  If you’re working with a limited budget, keep programs for building your customer base simple and add initiatives as your resources grow.

Two ways to keep your costs down while building your brand’s awareness are cultivating your current contacts and networking to make new ones.

As an entrepreneur, you probably have more contacts than you realize, don’t forget to use them.  Avoid “pitching” them, but do make sure they know what your new venture is and are aware of what services you provide.  They may not drink your smoothie, buy your franchise, want your consultation, or need your restoration services, BUT they may know someone who does.

“You’ve been looking into starting your own business, but worried about taking the leap?  My brother-in-law consults entrepreneurs, let me get you in touch with him and see if he can help.”

They may not want to buy your product or service, but they do want to see you succeed.  Contacts you don’t want to overlook:

• Former colleagues, associates, supervisors and employers
• Fellow university alumni
• Anyone you built a relationship with that would be interested in hearing how you’re doing and what you’re involved in

When you create your list and generate your first communication, make sure your message conveys a tone of announcement (i.e. “Dear Friends and Colleagues, I would like to share some exciting news with you!  I’ve recently invested in/started XYZ entrepreneurial venture.  I’m looking forward to owning my own business, helping others realize their business goals, and I wanted to share this with you.”) instead of “I started this service, here’s why you should buy it from me.”  Your contacts will be happy to share in the news with you and may send along referrals.

Another way to garner referrals and increase exposure of your new business is through networking.  You can grow your contacts and maintain a database of people you can update on news and information and can help spread the word about your offerings.  Your local chamber of commerce, business groups, trade shows, charities and associations are all good outlets for networking.  Online communities where you can share information and expertise are also helpful.  Some events and organizations will come at a premium compared to others; weigh the cost to benefits and decide which will give you more bang for your buck.

You are your biggest promoter when you open your doors, by tapping into your current contacts and your community, you’ll build loyal supporters and followers that will help in your campaign to build your business.

How have you built your customer base?

Whether you’re starting a consulting business, or investing in a business opportunity that allows you to operate under your own brand, choosing a name for  your new venture is important.  After all, the name IS the company, will inevitable provide your potential customer with a first impression of your business and services, and it will be your trademark and brand.

When starting a company and needing a name, you have two choices: come up with one on your own or hire a naming firm.

A naming firm will save you time and a great deal of legwork.  However, if you have the ability, time and motivation to research and choose your own company name, you’ll save yourself quite a bit of money.

The pivotal first step is brainstorming, as Entrepreneur states “the more minds, the merrier.”  Have your friends, colleagues and partners join you in coming up with words that describe your business.  Use all points of reference (think thesauruses, dictionaries, etc.) to come up with as many words as you can.

When listing words that will help you choose your name, consider your services, your customer, your industry and your competitors.  Once you’ve got a full list of name-generating words, start matching them up and putting them together.  Pull a solid number of names together that you like and think will portray your services well (5 – 10 is a good goal), then follow Eat My Words’ “Smile & Scratch” test.  According to EMW your company’s name should make you “smile, not scratch your heads”! (Heed their advice, they’ve come up with some pretty nifty names).

SMILE - qualities of a powerful name

Simple – one easy-to-understand concept
Meaningful – your customers instantly “get it”
Imagery – visually evocative – creates a mental picture
Legs – carries the brand, lends itself to wordplay
Emotional – empowers, entertains, engages, enlightens

SCRATCH it off the list if it has any of these deal-breakers

Spelling-challenged – you have to tell people how to spell it
Copycat – similar to competitor’s names
Random – disconnected from the brand
Annoying – hidden meaning, forced
Tame – flat, uninspired, boring, non-emotional
Curse of Knowledge – only insiders get it
Hard-to-pronounce – not obvious, relies on punctuation

Basically…don’t make your potential customers think too hard about the name.  Make it easy for them to refer you, your company and your website.  Make sure YOU’RE passionate about it; if you’re not, how do you expect your customer to be?

After you choose a name you love, it passes the Smile & Scratch test and is available for your use, get on trademarking it, buying the domain names and starting your business!

The service sector of the economy is one of the few sectors that is growing and Color Glo’s franchisees are part of the growing mobile repair and restoration industry.  The ability to service multiple markets including but not limited to; automotive, aviation, marine and recreational, as well as both commercial and residential gives franchisees a business with unlimited growth potential.  Everyday brings new and exciting direction for their business.

Color Glo brings new life and restores to like new the many things that we all see and use daily in our general lives made of leathers, vinyls, plastics and cloth.

They give these items, which can be found virtually everywhere, not only their new appearance, but by extending their use, also contributing to a greener environment by keeping them out of the landfills.

In addition, and most importantly, they save their customer a great deal of money because they need not buy new!

The only limitation to a Color Glo business is imagination, making it truly the Right Business and the Right Time!

Here’s what some of the Color Glo Franchisees are saying:

Color Glo International Team

“We started with Color Glo International in 1994. Deciding to get into this business was the best decision we ever made. We made money our first week in the field and have been making money ever since. The Color Glo products allow us to make very high quality repairs. No competitor we have ever encountered has ever been able to match our quality. Technical support and product innovation provided by Color Glo International Corporate Headquarters allow us to stay current with developments in the repair and restoration field. We look forward to many more profitable years with Color Glo International.”
George and Trina Elfering, South Carolina

“My service develops loyal customers. The customers I first contracted during my training in 1980 are still a part of my customer base.”
Bob deHaan, Florida

“We enjoy the variety and the many opportunities that Color Glo provides.  It’s important for us to work with a company that is conscientious of the environment and Color Glo has made it their priority to develop products that are not only environmentally friendly, but also safe for the consumer.”
Ernesto Lo Russo, Italy

“You will never get bored with Color Glo, it is very fun and satisfying.”
Skeet Wyman, California

Interested in joining the hundreds of already successful Color Glo professionals nationwide that have made the decision to enjoy the freedom and lifestyle that only owning their own business can offer?

Contact an FBA Member here to learn more.