Franchising is one of the most lucrative moves you can do as an entrepreneur, boasting strong 5-year survival rates and impressive growth trends over the same period. If you’ve always wanted to establish a restaurant, franchising is an easy way to kickstart that dream.
Whether you’re already working toward an opening date or have signed paperwork, here are practical tips first-time franchise food business owners should follow — leading you forward to the biggest line of success and growth.
Branding
The most important thing you need to remember when running a franchised food business is to market smartly and progressively. That’s because even if you run a well-known brand if there are several of you close together, you need to stand out. So besides providing fantastic food and customer services, don’t neglect marketing your brand.
Although there are several ways, you can promote your business, getting a good logo representing the values and message of the company is a great start. So, start developing one with your graphic designer and marketing team, and contact different suppliers of sealants and adhesive to have physical logos ready for your products.
After developing the logo, ensure the branding transitions to your products, menu items, and advertising are uniform to make your brand stick more with customers while conveying a sense of professionalism.
Focus on Profit-Driven Menu Items
When making a menu, consider what moves and what customers want, then see if it’s profitable. After determining what can generate the most profit and where your bottom line comes from, market those menu items above ones that don’t meet those criteria. Having this mindset helps you understand the process better, allowing you to control food and labor costs alongside your overhead, increase profitability for each item on your menu, pushing the high-profit drivers for your franchise.
Location
After having your brand and menu out of the way, the next thing you need to do is secure a good location. Consider what places make the most sense for your business or where your brand is favored most. For instance, for a coffee shop, the best location is at a busy business district or the airport as more people here are in a rush and seek fast and convenient food. Besides that, consider which ones are closer to home as it allows you to manage logistics and check it from time to time, ensuring smooth operations
Sanitation
In the food sector, cleanliness is one of the most crucial factors determining your franchise’s growth potential. After all, employees aren’t the only ones who have access to your facilities, and showing a clean environment shows that you care about your workers and take operations seriously. This factor leads to an increase in engagement levels and positively impacts corporate culture.
Have a Robust Digital System In Place
Having all your resources in one central place that’s easy for everyone in the organization to access is critical to achieving franchise success. That’s because a digital resource system allows you to do everything more conveniently, from providing brand guidelines to finding the latest company news and promotions — it allows for open communication. A digital system helps you establish a forward-thinking database, providing answers and resources to your team faster and more efficiently.
Even when you franchise a big name, remember that the food industry is inconsistent, making it a challenging sector to tackle, especially for first-time owners. But it’s also one of the most profitable sectors to be part of when done right — and the tips mentioned can help you ensure steady growth, success, and profit long-term.
