Survey Results 2013: Why Invest in a Franchise?

The latest survey of Franchise Direct, an Internet source for franchise information, shows how franchisees think when they have to decide on a franchise.

The survey is anonymous and shows the opinion of representatives of various age, gender, ethnicity, level of education, and professional background. The same questions are asked to 558 selected participants via the Internet. Although this may not serve as a sample of how the population thinks, it gives us an overall idea what entrepreneurs look for in a franchise business.

One of the question participants are asked is why they are considering investing in a franchise.    

The results of the Franchise Direct Survey 2013: Why are you considering starting a franchise?

Not surprisingly, the majority of the participants consider freedom and experience to be the strongest motivators to buy a franchise.

Nearly 51%, or 284, of the interviewees answer they want to be their own bosses, but they don’t want to start from square one. For entrepreneurs without much experience, running a business by themselves could be intimidating. There are too many things to think about and too much to do.

It takes a business years to find its niche, earn clients’ loyalty, and build a strong brand presence. The chances of a new business to prosper are not high. It’s a fierce battle which few have the power and resources to fight.

Franchised companies are franchised because they have a business model that works. Some of them have been on the market for decades. Franchises come ready with an established name and presence and entrepreneurs can rely on professional help on the side of the company.

Franchisors provide full support to franchisees which gives them the freedom to focus on the development of their business instead of losing time and energy dealing with other stuff.

Apparently there is a reason why we see the cliché ‘make business for yourself but not by yourself’ on most of the franchised companies’ web sites. It works. This is what potential franchisees want and this is what they get.

Over 18% of the people polled answer they consider investing in a franchise because they want to make supplemental income. While some people want to make a franchise their full-time career, others see it as a way to earn extra money on the side. Many of the franchise concepts offer part-time work and allow franchisees to keep their current job.

A little over 13%, or 75 entrepreneurs, consider franchise ownership since they want to expand their business ventures.

A total of 73 people either had no answer /53/ or gave various answers combined in the category OTHER /23/. On the other hand, those who wanted to start a private business, but could not find financing and consider franchising instead are 23, or 4,1%.