Five Opportunities for 2010

SPOOFVILLE - There are sectors in franchising that just continue to gather steam despite a weak economy. That steam makes it easier to lift a franchised business to better success. Here are five business trends that franchise buyers may want to consider when purchasing in 2010.

1. Online banking: Tech news site CNet reports, “Among 3,988 adults surveyed in the U.S. by Gartner Group, 47 percent said they now bank online.” Banking online is a trend that just continues to grow. Franchise buyers should plug into an online bank franchise to take advantage of this trend.

2. Science retail centers: Scientist Albert Einstein understood the principles of operating a franchise. “You have to learn the rules of the game, and then you have to play better than anyone else,” said Einstein. It is franchises above any other form of business that are epitomized by rules and standards geared to help the franchisee succeed. Einstein would have liked excelling in the rules of running a Discover Science center, particularly since it retails scientific games and puzzles to inquisitive children and young adults.

3. Pet poop scoop services: The economy may be down but the population of dogs in the United States continues to grow, including the sheer volume of their bowel movements spread from coast to coast. And consider this: People are busier now than ever before. Those trends are why buying a franchise that picks up dog waste makes sense. Consider a Pet Butler franchise.

   If dogs aren’t your thing, consider a franchise servicing old people. There’s a boom in old people too.

4. Janitor services: Golf pro celebrity Chad Campbell says, “Jani-King is just a great company to be associated with.” If it’s good enough for wealthy and famous Campbell, then commercial cleanup services should be good enough for you. Despite any minor criticism reported about this industry, buy one now.

5. Actually, any franchise: Only 5% of franchises fail* compared to a 95% failure rate for independent small businesses. Ergo, a franchise is a safe and proven business.  Bennigan’s is a franchise. Therefore, buy a Bennigan’s restaurant - or any franchise - to invest in a safe and proven business.

If any reader wants to buy these franchise concepts, please contact me. I’ve been appointed a franchise broker (seller). I am an agent for the franchisor. They pay me between $10,000 to $15,000 for every franchise of theirs that I sell. So the good news is that my services won’t cost you a thing when you buy a franchise.

Readers: Each of the choices above has at least one logic fallacy that is typically used by franchising salespersons. Even if the individual sentences are factually accurate, the conclusion is inaccurate. Can you identify any of the reasoning errors - e.g. ad hominem, non sequitor, hasty generalization?

If not, you now know that you are an easy mark for a franchise salesperson who struggles to find a good reason on why their franchise brand has any value. You are an even easier mark for someone hungry to receive a hefty sales commission if you have no experience in the industry.

So how big is the bulls eye painted on your shirt?

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*Note: All kidding and spoofing aside, 95% success rate of franchises is an incorrect and misleading statistic. Read here for more details on why.