2009 August Franchising World
Members give their views about “most important” issues, threats and opportunities facing franchising.
By Dina Dwyer-Owens, CFE
As part of our ongoing work on an International Franchise Association Strategic Plan for 2010-2012, we surveyed members last spring for their views about the IFA programs and services they consider to be “most important” to them. We also wanted to hear more from our members about their views on the “most important” issues facing franchising and IFA as we look to the future. As IFA’s board of directors finalize the Strategic Plan, the input and comments from our members will be extremely valuable in giving a sharper focus to what IFA’s goals, objectives and priorities should be in the coming years.
The e-mail survey was distributed to more than 1,852 IFA members and 419 members responded to the survey for an overall response rate of over 22 percent. Because IFA has a very diverse membership, the survey responses were also segmented into six key groups–volunteer leaders, large franchisors, medium franchisors, small franchisors, suppliers and franchisees.
More than 90 percent of the IFA members surveyed say they are “Satisfied” to “Highly Satisfied” with IFA. More than 41 percent of survey participants say that IFA is “More Important” to them than any other organization to which they belong; while 55 percent say IFA is “As Important;” and less than 4 percent say that IFA is “Less Important” than any other organization.
Members surveyed also indicated very positive views about their membership—with more than 85 percent of franchisors, 83 percent of suppliers and 80 percent of franchisees stating they are “Likely” to “Highly Likely” to renew their membership. Survey participants also stated they are “Likely” to “Highly Likely” to recommend IFA membership to others, with more than 85 percent of franchisors indicating a desire to recommend others, 83 percent of suppliers, and 60 percent of franchisees.
The survey also revealed that IFA has a very young membership in terms of the number of years they have been members. More than 78 percent of the members in the Small Franchisor category have been members for less than five years. More than 60 percent of the members in the Supplier category have been members for less than five years. More than 30 percent of the members in the Medium Franchisor category have been members for less than five years.
Collectively, the survey results show that IFA members are highly united around the programs, activities, and priorities that matter most to them—Government Relations, Education and Communications/Information. Members surveyed also gave their highest “Excellent/ Good” ratings to these same programs and activities.
While survey participants agreed on the “top priorities,” there are differences in expectations about what members want from IFA based on their tenure (years as members), their membership type (franchisor, franchisee, and supplier), and on company size. For example, Large Franchisors, who make up 40 percent of the membership dues, rank Government Relations and Advocacy as #1 and Educational Conferences, such as the IFA Annual Convention, as #2. Small Franchisors, on the other hand, rank Educational Conferences as #1, Communications and Information as #2, and Government Relations as #3. Suppliers, who depend on showcasing their products and services to other IFA members, ranked Educational Conferences as #1, Communications and Information as #2, and Trade Shows as #3. Franchisees surveyed ranked Communications and Information as #1, Government Relations as #2, and Franchise Development/Marketing as #3.
Members surveyed agreed on the programs they rank the highest in terms of “Excellent/Good” ratings. Communications/Information and Educational Conferences received the highest ratings and Government Relations, Professional Development, and Franchise Development received the next highest marks for “Excellent/ Good” ratings. Programs and services that received lower “Excellent/Good” ratings are areas where more improvements can be made, such as—Outreach Programs for Women/Minorities, International Development and Self-Regulation.
The survey measured members’ agreement with and support of IFA’s mission statement —to protect, enhance and promote franchising. Survey participants were given a number of different “IFA mission and purpose” statements and asked to give their views on each—“Strongly Agree/Support,” “Somewhat Agree/Support,” “Strongly Disagree/Don’t Support” and “No Opinion/Don’t Know.” More than 87 percent of survey participants voiced they “Strongly Agree/Support” the IFA mission statement to protect, enhance and promote franchising.
Threats and Opportunities
One of the most useful measures of the survey was feedback from members about what they see as the “greatest threats to them, to their businesses and to franchising in general.” The majority of members surveyed agreed on these threats in this order of magnitude:
• Government Regulations and Unfavorable Legislation
• Weak Economy
• Financing/Credit Crunch
• Union Organizing/Card Check
• Franchise Failures/Weak Franchise Systems/Bad Practices
• Higher Taxes/Cost of Doing Business
• Rising Health-Care Costs
• Litigation
The survey asked members what they see as the “greatest opportunities for IFA members and for franchising in general” over the next few years. In general, survey participants were very optimistic about the “opportunities” for their businesses and for franchising in general. Three broad themes about opportunities can be identified from comments by survey participants:
• An “improving” and “rebounding” economy will create opportunities for franchise business growth, including more and better franchise prospects. There will be opportunities for “strategic acquisitions” and “better, cheaper real estate.” There will be opportunities for international expansion as global markets improve.
• Increasing “professionalism” of the franchising industry due to greater focus on education and professional development. There will be increased competition forcing higher standards. There will be a bigger “talent pool” to draw on. There will be new technology to support franchise growth.
• Increasing IFA influence and effectiveness in government affairs at all levels due to higher profile in Washington and expanded grassroots efforts—a “bigger footprint” for IFA and recognition of “importance of franchising to the U.S. economy.”
The survey asked members what they would like to see IFA accomplish in the coming years. From the hundreds of individual comments and suggestions provided by survey participants, a number of general themes emerged. Members want to see a “bigger tent” for IFA members … with “more diversification of programs and activities.”
• Increased IFA influence in government affairs at all levels, with a higher IFA profile in Washington and at the grassroots level.
• More educational programs of all sorts. More regional programs, more webinars, and expanded Franchise Business Network activities.
• Higher standards and more emphasis on “professionalism,” professional development and best practices.
• Smaller Franchisors want more assistance from IFA on a wide range of issues from financing and credit to education and more franchise development opportunities.
• More international outreach and more cooperation with franchise associations in other countries.
• More franchisee inclusion efforts.
• More outreach to women and minorities.
In the coming months, IFA’s board of directors and committee volunteers will work to finalize the IFA Strategic Plan for 2010 to 2012 and to lay the ground work to put it into action on many of the goals and priorities identified in the membership survey. There are some great challenges and opportunities ahead of us. Unified in our mission, with active support and participation of our members, we look forward to achieving our goals and building IFA into an even bigger, even better “world class” organization.
Dina Dwyer-Owens, CFE, is chairwoman and CEO of the Dwyer Group and serves as chairwoman of the International Franchise Association’s board of directors. She can be reached at ddo@dwyergroup.com .