Grow Market Lead
Anatomy
of a Start-Up
OpenFran.org) for a fee that included
Item 19 earnings representations in
some cases. Making prospects aware
that they could acquire these types
of reports on their own and referring
the candidates was invaluable. There
is even a database of free FDDs available online at Cal-EASI (California
Department of Corporations). At this
point, it may feel like you’re selling
the invisible, and though you may have
limited information to share at this
stage, there are no negatives.
Through the end of
our first full year
of franchising, we
have licensed 30
U.S. locations and
have commitments
for 13 more.
Progressive
discovery
Following a comprehensive and proven process
to qualify candidates, we
culminate in a discovery day at our Salt Lake
City headquarters. As
it is in our EarthFruits
cafes, it’s all about the
experience. As candidates enter our offices,
they are greeted with a
physical lineup of all of
our extremely approachable executives and employees in branded dress
shirts, their sole purpose
to convey that we can
find our success only
by helping them to find
their success.
It has been critical
to convey that we are focused more
on their success than on the physical
growth of our system. Ours is a very
relaxed environment where we place
no pressure on the candidate to “buy”:
it’s a great fit, or it’s not. These potential franchisees always leave saying
that one of the deciding factors was
the honest, authentic, knowledgeable,
and caring manner in which all of our
employees and management conducted
themselves. We’ve learned that one
of our greatest assets as an emerging
brand is our ability to provide direct
access to members of our executive
management team.
20
Franchiseupdate Iss u e I, 2 0 1 2
than happy to do what they could to
help the brand grow.
Each Tuesday night, these franchisees (on their own) host a call for candidates where they share their experiences, projections, business plans, and
answers to questions. We were quite
fortunate that all of our new franchisees were intelligent, charismatic,
open, communicative, and passionate
about what we stand for. They all were
willing to share their experiences and,
as a result, have contributed to more
than 90 percent closing rates for candidates
who actively enter our
process.
Now expanding
worldwide!
Choose wisely
If there is anything we’ve learned
during this journey, it’s not to be too
anxious to secure that first franchisee.
Your first few franchisees will determine your success. If you decide, as
we did, to provide those early adopters with certain advantages for being
pioneers (such as a larger territory
and extra support), be sure to ask for
a favor in return. Seek in exchange
their commitment to speak with other
qualified candidates and to serve as a
promoter (if and when deserved). It’s
the classic law of reciprocity, and all
of our initial franchisees were more
Through the end of our
first full year of franchising, we have licensed 30
U.S. locations and have
commitments for 13
more. We are closing in
excess of 90 percent of
everyone who becomes
actively engaged in our
process. We’ve licensed
the rights to Qatar and
are nearing completion
of international development in the United
Arab Emirates, for the
whole of Canada, and at
least a half dozen other
international markets. I don’t believe
that any other frozen yogurt franchise
experienced this level of development
in their first year as we have. As a result,
I’m certain both our early adopters
and we are going to enjoy the “fruits”
of our labor. n
Keith Gerson is COO of Sopra Brands,
whose parent company, Sopra Capital,
operates the brands EarthFruits Yogurt,
HouseMaster Home Inspection Services,
Teriyaki Stix Japanese Grill, HomeServiceNet.com, GFEazy, lunchboxers, and
Hogi Yogi. Contact him at 801-503-9214
or [email protected].