Your business is successful and continues to grow. That’s great news! But, what is your next move? You may be limiting your growth by staying as one independent store. Perhaps you like the idea of opening another store in your hometown but don’t know if that’s a good idea. Maybe you’ve even had the idea to expand to multiple locations in your state but don’t know where to begin. Franchising is an excellent way to grow your business and spread your brand.

Once you have decided franchising is right for you. There are some key tips to ensuring the success of your business, uniformity of its branding, and ultimately, the continued growth of your business for years to come.

Get Organized

Ask yourself these key questions:

1. How does your business work?

2. What makes your business different and unique?

3. How would you like your business to look as a franchise?

This is a crucial step because you need to establish how your business will run uniformly, how your business’s locations should look (indoors and outdoors) to be easily identifiable, and of course, how staff will be trained. You should consider developing an operations manual that clearly identifies all of these key elements. This will streamline the process once you have new locations.

Hire an attorney, accountant, and broker

Expert advice and professional guidance are incredibly important during this process. There are a number of documents to fill out, i.e. Franchise Disclosure Document, with distinct formats to follow. You will need to set pricing, create a franchise agreement and determine intellectual property protection. Financially, you will want to be sure you’ve covered all of your bases otherwise it can get confusing at the end of the calendar year. Because there are sensitive legal and financial agreements and actions to consider, it is best to have that legal and financial support as well as the guidance of a broker who has done this and knows what to expect.

Staffing and Location

Be picky about the people who will be representing your brand when you are not present. Franchising forces you to delegate and to trust your business is being well-managed. In addition to management, you need to choose the right locations for your brand. What makes the most sense for your business? The best way to start is to expand locally, but not too close to the original location because that can affect sales. You will likely need to visit these locations in person from time to time, so accessibility will also be key.

Grow, Grow, Grow!

How do you want to grow? Determining this detail is important so you can easily measure the successes and failures of expanding and franchising. This way, you can decide if the next step from local expansion is nationwide – or even global.

Franchises are not only great ways to literally grow your business, they are also excellent opportunities to create jobs and establishing a presence in multiple locations. If you feel that franchising is right for your business, chat with a Transworld Franchise Consultant in Houston today. Our team of experts are familiar with every detail of the franchising industry and can guide you through the process. With their help, you will create a Transworld Franchise Development Program that is tailored to your individual needs as a Franchisor – including specialized research, knowledge and planning to determine the best structure for your franchising corporate structure.