Roadmap Series 3

A Unique Form of Due Diligence

There is one part of the franchise investigation process that most people don't know about, and it's one of the most valuable. Unlike any job interview process, franchise candidates have access to a full directory of existing franchisees and can call any of them. In this video, Terry and Ray introduce the concept of franchisee validation and explain why it's genuinely different from anything else in the business world. Most franchisees are willing to share their experience because someone did it for them. Learning how to use this access effectively is what separates a good investigation from a great one.

Questions To Ask Franchisees To Find Out The Truth

Knowing you can call franchisees is one thing. Knowing what to ask is another. In this video, Terry and Ray walk through how to open a franchisee conversation (start with their background, not the money question) and what kinds of questions lead to real insight. They also address the question everyone wants to ask first, "How much money do you make?", and why leading with it almost always backfires. Terry and Ray have developed a full question guide for candidates going through this process, and this video gives you the strategic thinking behind it.

Don’t Call the Franchisee Next Door…YET

It's completely natural to want to call the franchisee closest to you to find out if this concept works in your market. But in this video, Terry and Ray make a strong case for why that's a mistake, at least early in the process. If there's a nearby territory still available, calling that franchisee too early could tip off a potential competitor. This has happened. It isn't hypothetical. There is a right time to make that call, just not at the start. They explain exactly when and how to do it so you keep your options open.

First: Target The Best Franchisees

Once you have your franchisee directory, who do you call first? Terry and Ray's answer is clear: the top performers. Ask your franchise development executive for a list of the highest performers in the system and start there. Find out what good looks like. If the best operators in a system aren't happy or aren't following the franchisor's model, you have your answer and you don't need to make any more calls. This video also introduces a useful tactic: ask franchisees to rate on a scale of one to ten how closely they follow the system. The numbers tend to tell the whole story.

Second: Target The New Franchisees

After the top performers, the next people to call are the newest franchisees, those three to nine months into the system. They've just been through training and onboarding, and it's fresh. They can give you the clearest picture of what the startup experience is actually like. Terry and Ray explain why long-tenured franchisees, while valuable, often can't give you the same level of detail about early support and training, especially in a system that's evolved significantly over the years.

Third: Target Franchisees Like You

One of the most powerful validation calls you can make is to someone who had a background similar to yours before joining the franchise. In this video, Terry and Ray explain how to find those people and why it matters. If someone with your skills, your career background, or your personality has already navigated this system, their experience is a highly relevant data point. Ask your franchise development executive, and ask other franchisees who get to know you during the process. People who are like you will surface the most relevant challenges and the strategies for overcoming them.

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[Video Series 3]

Talking To Franchisees ... The Secret Sauce

The Franchise Owner Roadmap