IMPROVE FRANCHISEE RELATIONS: Become a Physician!

Franchisors often ask, “Why do franchisees invest in a franchise and then fail to follow the system”.  I think it comes down to the culture which the franchisor develops within the franchise system itself.  We teach people how to treat us.  Franchisors teach franchisees how to treat them.

Some franchisors, try to establish a culture of “family”, they have “re-unions” instead of conventions.  Other franchisors try to maintain a strong dictatorial relationship with their franchisees, trying to maintain control over every aspect of the relationship.  I believe that the most successful franchise organizations have a culture which falls somewhere in between these two extremes.

With the family approach comes the old saying “Familiarity breeds Contempt” which roughly translates into “The better we know people, the more likely we are to find fault with them”.  As we find fault we begin to quit listening and following the advice.  We begin to think we know as much or more than the other person.  The franchisee has a need to believe that the franchisor has the answers to the problems which arise and the medicine to prevent issues from becoming problems in the future.

The Dictatorial approach fails because you simply can not MAKE anyone do anything.  When you stop and think about it, you can’t make a subordinate do anything, because they’ll just get made and quit.  You can’t make a peer do anything because they are your equal.  Obviously you can’t make your superior do anything.  As a franchisor you must create a desire in your franchisee and an environment within your system that causes franchisees to want to do what it is that you want them to do, which is FOLLOW THE SYSTEM.  You must continuously be building the confidence that franchisees have in the system.  You must constantly remind them to turn to the system for help and guidance.  They must believe that by doing so, they will find the solutions which will allow them to accomplish their desired objectives.

This type of confidence is best developed in a relationship which closely resembles that of the Physician/Patient relationship.  Your physician is a trusted, knowledgeable confidant who provides the right advice, at the right time.  Your physician is a partner in your health and well being, who genuinely cares about you.  This relationship remains friendly, without the need to become friends.  As a Franchisor you must be friendly, without becoming such a good friend that your franchisee no longer feels compelled to listen to you and follow your advice or to feel comfortable in sharing personal and private information.  You must care about your franchisee.  The old saying “They don’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care”, has never been more true than it is in the Franchisor/Franchisee relationship.  You must remain the authority, who has or can provide the answers which will insure the health and well being of each and every franchisee in your system.  The advice and directions provided to franchisees by way of your training, your system, your support, must be accurate, and relevant.  It must provide for their health and well being, while never causing harm.

So if you’re serious about building strong relationships with your franchisees and having them look to you for solutions and preventative medicine become a Physician to your franchisees.  Provide them with the medicine that will make them better when they’re ill, and advice which will prevent them from becoming ill.  Build their confidence, so that they believe in turning to you for advice, and that by following your advice everything will be okay!

Believe & Succeed,

FranSynergy
Synergizing Franchising One Franchisee at a time!
www.fransynergy.com