How to Work With Independent Franchisee Associations

Successful franchise systems have two core foundations: unit profitability and strong franchisee/franchisor relationships. Franchisee associations represent the interests of franchisees to the franchisor, and they usually form independently of the franchisor. That makes them powerful. A good relationship with an association keeps the franchisee/franchisor dynamic productive, while a bad one turns it combative. Either way, the effect shows up in profitability and growth.

Why Franchisee Associations Are Formed

Independent franchisee associations are more common today than they were 15 or 20 years ago. Franchisees form external associations for several reasons:  

• The system is growing fast, and franchisees grow discontented when the franchisor stops responding to them.
• A specific incident or grievance pushes franchisees to organize.
• Communication breaks down, or the franchisor goes non-responsive.
• Franchisees believe the existing Franchise Advisory Council (FAC) is “fixed.” They may feel the franchisor appoints only its “favorites” to the council.

Sometimes the corporate team recognizes these associations. Other times it doesn’t, which adds strain to the relationship.

The Difference Between a Franchise Advisory Council and a Franchisee Association

Franchisee Associations

Franchisees legally organize these associations around a specific agenda, and the relationship with the franchisor is often adversarial. The structure is formal; most associations can sign contracts and can legally represent and negotiate on behalf of their members. Members pay dues to belong, and frequently not all franchisees in the system participate.

Franchise Advisory Councils

An FAC is a committee of franchisees that the franchisor organizes to gather feedback and ideas for improving the system. Effective FACs  are interactive groups built on constructive, structured collaboration. In effect, they carry the voice of the franchisees to corporate leadership.

The franchisor organizes the FAC, keeps the structure less formal, and there’s no cost to participate. The council represents the franchisees’ perspective and communicates operational challenges to leadership. But it holds no real power: there is NO voting, no approval authority, and no liability.

How Franchisee Associations Can Benefit Franchisors

Franchisees often form an association out of discontentment, but the relationship doesn’t have to stay complicated or adversarial. In fact, welcoming and fostering a positive relationship with a franchisee association yields a number of benefits, including:

• Sparking collaboration between franchisees and franchisors.
• Driving participation in system-wide calls, events, product or service rollouts, and feedback efforts.
• Generating ideas and changes the franchisor can implement to strengthen the brand.

Our advice: work with the associations. Recognize the value they bring to your system. Not every relationship with an association turns acrimonious, but if yours has, treat it as an opportunity. It’s like responding to a poor customer review. You’ve been handed a chance to turn critics into loyal, raving fans.

Turn Goodwill Into Actionable Feedback

The best way to start is to ask for feedback. FBR partners with franchisee associations and franchisors to conduct franchisee satisfaction surveys. We’ve surveyed members for associations including Elevanta, the franchise association administrator for multiple brands, and the Planet Fitness Independent Franchisee Association. In fact, Planet Fitness is a high-performing brand that consistently earns a place on our lists of Top Franchises.

We have seen firsthand how the association shares the results of the survey with the franchisor and collaborates to implement positive changes in the system, as well as uses their status as an award-winning brand to drive development. We ask a standard set of benchmark questions and make it easy to add custom questions to measure satisfaction in other areas unique to your system. FBR can present the results to the entire franchisee community, or just to the franchisor/executive team to reinforce the value of the third-party work that was done. We offer a neutral viewpoint, grounded in data, and provide clarity on what to work on first. We also offer guidance on how to get there and how to get everyone working toward the same goals.

We’ve seen firsthand how the association shares survey results with the franchisor and collaborates on positive changes, as well as uses their status as an award-winning brand to drive development. We ask a standard set of benchmark questions, and we make it easy to add custom questions unique to your system. FBR can present the results to the entire franchisee community, or just to the franchisor and executive team, to reinforce the value of the third-party work. We offer a neutral viewpoint grounded in data, and provide clarity on what to tackle first. We also guide you on how to get there and how to get everyone working toward the same goals.

Learn more about how we work with Franchisee Associations.

Stop Fighting Your Franchisee Association and Start Reaping the Benefits

If you’re facing a strained relationship with an association (or even your FAC), put in the work to understand how you can collaborate for the good of the system. Keep asking franchisees what they need and want, then respond by setting clear expectations for what comes next. Pair that with transparency, respect, and communication, and everyone starts moving in harmony.

Interested in seeing what questions we ask on our standard survey? Request a free demo to see how the survey works and get a look at our proprietary online reporting tool.

Request a Free FAC Workbook

Our FAC workbook walks you through how to implement an FAC that contributes to the success of your franchisees and the overall performance of your brand.

Request a free copy of Building a Franchise Advisory Council that Gets Results for a step-by-step guide to:

• What you need to know before implementing an FAC, including defining goals, setting expectations, identifying FAC members, and communicating the plan.
• Creating the FAC format and agenda, launching, setting ground rules, and managing the process.
• Keeping the FAC on track, making adjustments, and expanding the opportunity and value over time.

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