Not Being Afraid to Hear What You Might Not Know
Advice to live by and the key to franchisee performance.
One thing I hear a lot when meeting with franchisors is “Why would I want you to tell me my franchisees are upset?”
It’s one thing to know your franchisees are unhappy. But how easily can you relieve their pain points if you don’t know what your franchisees are upset about? It’s actually pretty easy if you’re not afraid to hear what you might not know. Or hear something different than what you think you know.
My team at Franchise Business Review has worked with more than 1,200 leading franchise brands to help them measure franchisee satisfaction, and here’s what they understand that other brands don’t.
1. Be open to feedback. So, imagine you’re running a franchise business, and you hear your franchisees are unhappy about something. It’s natural to feel a bit uneasy about that, right? Wrong. It’s actually a good thing. Why? Well, because it’s the first step in making things better.
2. Relieve their worries. You see, the key here is to find out what’s bothering your franchisees. Maybe they’re facing some challenges, and by addressing those issues, you can make them happier. It’s like being a friendly neighbor – if they tell you their fence is falling apart, you’d help fix it, right?
3. Listen to their voices. Sometimes, when people feel like their concerns aren’t being heard, they start shouting even louder to get attention. In the franchise world, this can make it seem like everyone is upset. But what if, instead, you just asked your franchisees what’s bothering them? Simple, right?
4. Make things better. The idea is that by asking for feedback and being open to what your franchisees have to say, you can make improvements. It’s like when you ask your friends for advice on redecorating your home – they might suggest great ideas you hadn’t thought of.
Where Does FBR Fit In?
There’s this cool organization called FBR, and they help companies like yours understand what’s going on in your franchise system. We make it easy for you to gather feedback from franchisees, identify where there are gaps between what you’re providing and their needs, and provide opportunities for continuous improvement.
So, the big takeaway is to be open to feedback, accept that you might need to improve in some areas, and don’t be afraid to hear what you might not know. It’s all about making your franchise system a better place for everyone – you, your franchisees, and your customers!
Find out how you can get started on the path to measuring and improving franchisee satisfaction to drive profitability and performance or drop me a line to chat about how FBR can help.
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About the Author: Mike Conlan
