Franchise Obligation Is a Two-Way Street

Dear Franchisee:

It hasn’t been that long since you signed on the dotted line, paid a hefty franchise fee and committed to sending monthly royalty checks. I’ve got to believe you did this because you thought franchising would give you a better chance than going it alone, and you were right. At least you would have been, if you were now taking advantage of all those things you paid for.

Now that you are my “customer,” you think you are always right. You want a relationship that requires me to do all the giving and all the listening. If you would acknowledge that this is a partnership, if you would listen, too, here is what I’d tell you:

We know what we are doing. We’ve been doing it for years. Our model gets results when you follow it. If you need help, you have access to subject-matter experts at the corporate level, as well as fellow franchisees.

Instead, you have decided to go it alone. You make excuses for your lack of participation and tell us we don’t understand “your unique set of circumstances.” You may find it hard to believe, but your circumstances are no more unique than those of our other owners. The only thing that’s different is your (in)ability to ask for help, listen to advice and apply what your learn.

I guess your business experience in a completely different industry is all you need to succeed. Never mind the fact that you didn’t sell anything in the corporate world. Don’t worry that you don’t know the first thing about how to hire and manage sales people, or that you’ve never spent a day on the manufacturing floor. I’m sure all of your pricing is based on better profit models than we could ever provide and that you know exactly what to look for from the reports generated from your point of sales system.