How to Embrace the Franchisee Perspective on a Corporate Level

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The benefits of incorporating franchisees in the big picture.

By Jackson Loychuk, 30 Minute Hit

Walk a mile in someone else’s shoes, or in other words, keep other’s perspectives in mind as you make decisions. It’s a simple idea, but an essential one when it comes to the success of a franchise brand.

After Jackson and Deanna Loychuk launched 30 Minute Hit’s franchise opportunity and began building out their corporate team, they quickly noticed that some of their local owners had impressive skill sets which would add immense value to their upper management team. The Loychuks made the easy decision to not only incorporate these folks into the corporate team, but made a point to get them deeply involved in the decision-making process while building the brand. Today, the CorporHIT team has a total of 10 people — eight of which are currently still operating as franchisees. Of the remaining two corporate members, one is a former owner and the other was a trainer at the very first 30 Minute Hit location. Each person on the team knows the ins and outs of running a local studio, the pain points and the successes — all of which have proven beneficial for the brand as a whole.

While adopting this corporate structure is not the right move for every brand, there are lessons that franchisors across the industry can learn from simply taking into account their franchisees’ perspectives when growing their own brands.

Build Trust Through Transparency

At its core, franchising is a relationship — one that requires communication, sharing of ideas and most importantly, trust. As a franchisor, you need to trust that the local owners are following procedures and fulfilling the brand’s mission. Having visibility into a franchisee’s performance allows you to verify this by understanding where they are seeing success and what pain points need to be addressed.

On the corporate level, building franchisee’s trust can start with granting them access into the many inner workings of corporate operations. This gives them peace of mind that their interests are being considered and enables them to understand how decisions that affect them are being made. It is key to have an opportunity for real-time feedback.

Understanding the challenges and realities on the front line operations permits the franchisor and franchisees to come up with practical solutions that embrace both franchisee needs and corporate requirements.

Face-to-Face Franchisee Engagement

Advances in technology are continuing to make communication more convenient. From email to texting and video conferences, it has never been easier to have open lines of communication with your franchisees. This is a critical component for success. Franchisees feel in the loop, while the corporate team hears new ideas, pain points and can offer potential solutions.

While digital newsletters, voicemails and forum boards are great tools, at the end of the day, there is no substitute for a face-to-face communication experience. CEOs that spend time on the front lines, talking with franchisees, local employees and even customers, get the chance to see what’s really going on inside their brand.

Take a fitness concept, for example. Often trainers are the “unsung heroes,” delivering the true customer experience. Franchisors that have taken the time to interact with employees can use those learnings to build the needed support systems and policies to make it easier for the staff to do their jobs. However, those that have not taken the time to sit down and talk with the staff and the franchisees to understand what it is like to do their jobs every day have a hard time implementing changes that actually make a difference. Creating and understanding shared experiences enables franchisors to relate and communicate at every level of their operation.

Create a Stakeholder Mentality

Just as it is in any business, the culture inside a franchise is a crucial part of attracting the top prospects. When a candidate speaks to current franchisees, you want them to hear from happy owners that are completely committed to the brand and its mission. You can create these types of owners by implementing policies that cultivate a stakeholder mentality amongst your franchisees.

Franchisees that feel trusted, heard and involved on the corporate level are able to answer questions and provide support based on their own first-hand, real world experience in operating a location. They want to see new prospects succeed just as much as the franchisor is willing to help.

Some of the most successful brands are able to create the feeling that franchisees are joining a single team and that they are going to be included and supported from day one. This stakeholder mentality is contagious, creating exceptional engagement and happy franchisees that are motivated to excel in their positions.

Now, most brands don’t have the luxury to stack their corporate team with franchisees, but by allowing real-time insight and engagement, trading ideas and solutions on a daily basis and creating a ‘one-team’ mentality, franchisors can take steps towards being more successful by incorporating the franchisee perspective.

Jackson Loychuk is the CEO and Co-founder of 30 Minute Hit. Jackson and his wife Deanna developed 30 Minute Hit’s signature boxing and kickboxing circuit, based on Jackson’s many years of martial arts and fitness instruction, into a women-only gym as a way to give women their own space to invest in their personal health and fitness. Find out more about 30 Minute Hit here.