A Day in the Life of a Franchisee

by Michelle Wiginton

The first thing you should know is there is no typical day in the life of a franchisee. You must be able to embrace change, remain flexible and think on your feet without allowing the stress and strain of the unknown turn your positive attitude to a series of negative experiences. It’s all a matter of choice; (Your choice!)

That’s right, you can choose how you react to the things that happen each day, even when you can’t always control or predict when and what those things might be. For example, employees calling in sick or quitting without notice, natural disasters or even changes in the economy that affect your bottom line.

You can approach your daily challenges with a solution-oriented goal or a poor-me-I’m-a-victim-again resignation. Nobody likes to hang around those individuals who are never happy, nothing good ever happens to them and they never expect an outcome to be favorable to them. These negative thoughts and emotions seem to attract even more trouble for those who are feeding them. However, take a positive-thinking and uplifting-speaking individual and you will find they are ready to tackle challenges, they are looking for a good outcome, and they analyze each situation for the things they can learn and take-away that will make them better for the next challenge.

Bearing in mind that the choice is completely up to you, let us explore three daily challenges that can either be dealt with badly or in a manner that will benefit you:

An employee quits without giving two weeks’ notice.
Bad Response: Get into a verbal argument with the employee that can be heard by other employees. This type of verbal attack is probably why they did not give notice in the first place. Don’t talk about the employee’s resignation with employees and certainly do not issue threats about future recommendations, last paychecks or returning company property. All of these issues can be resolved professionally and in such a manner that you are seen in a positive and respected light by your team.

Good Response: Ask for the reason(s) that the employee is terminating their employment and LISTEN to what they have to say. This might be an excellent opportunity for you to get some uninhibited feedback about you, your staff and your organization. (Maybe they have been harassed by a senior employee and they feel quitting is the only way they can deal with it.)

Keep personal information confidential. Don’t share any information with other employees that might violate privacy rights and/or compromise any lives in an unethical manner. If employees see you talking about other employees, they also know you talk about them.

Coordinate each termination of employment in the same professional and organized way you should handle your hiring process. The employee should have a clear understanding of what is company property (cell phones, uniforms, company vehicles, etc. ) and how you expect for everything to be returned. This should be communicated during the hiring process and re-communicated during the termination process. Seeing your respectful, encouraging and professional mannerisms during terminations will determine future employees’ expectations, fears and confidences about their own future job changes.

A competitor comes into town and is bad-mouthing you.
Bad Response: Many people live by the rule; do unto others before they do unto you. This fearful attitude will alienate you, cause you to make decisions out of desperation and usually comes back to bite you in the most unpleasant ways. Talking bad about others is the quickest way to fan the fires of animosity and makes you look petty, unprofessional and ugly. Think about spewing ugly talk as talking to a mirror. The only person who gets covered with the acrid toxins is you.

Good Response: Most people who talk ugly about competitors have never actually met them. If you have a competitor, make it a point to go in and introduce yourself and tell them about your business. Don’t slink around and try to participate in corporate espionage. People who love your establishment will probably also visit the new competitor, too.

Look for ways to work together for the benefit of both/all like businesses in your market. Can you share advertising? Can you share referral maps? Can you get together once a month and share tips, ideas and opportunities? You seem to like your friends…make your fellow business owners your friends. Of course it takes two to make this happen, but at least you can try and give each relationship your best effort.

Never, never, never talk negatively about any of your competitors because there are always people who are listening. If someone says, “Well, XYZ does it like this!” you can kindly respond, “That’s wonderful, we are able to offer this, but if you feel XYZ is a better fit for you, we certainly understand.” No ugliness, no backing off your processes/procedures, and no reason that anyone should be upset…but they will get the point.

Other businesses are stealing your ideas.
Bad Response: If you are doing cutting-edge, super-cool and innovative things to promote your business, you can expect to see your hard work and sweat equity shamelessly copied and embraced as the brain-child of others. You can immediately respond with a hateful call threatening to sue or have your attorney send a scary letter that promises them a huge fine, jail time and a rap sheet if they don’t cease and desist immediately. You can openly attack them on Facebook, post nasty things on their blog and even knock down their posted signs around town. Remember the mirror concept, it works here, too.

Good Response: First of all, make sure you did not “borrow” your ideas from others and that you actually have something to be upset about. Nothing would make you feel more foolish than to accuse someone of plagiarism and have them/their company be the originators of the idea/verbiage in the first place. Pick up the phone and talk with the other business owners and share your concerns about the issues you are seeing and ask if they are aware that you are the copyrighter of the content/originator of the idea. Many times, they have hired an external company who may not be aware that they are infringing on the rights of others.

If you encounter hostility, then you might want your attorney to handle matters, but that may not be the best first move for every situation. If the infringement or copyright is blatant, you need to stand up for your intellectual property, but also document each and every encounter, response and communication. You can be kind and understanding, but sometimes you have to become assertive and stand your ground in order to protect and grow your business.

Michelle Wiginton
Event Coordinator
Just Between Friends

Learn more about Just Between Friends at topfranchises.franchisebusinessreview.com.

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