There are a lot of franchisees in any franchise system. But there is usually only a handful who stand out from the crowd and surpass the brand’s expectations.
What are their secrets? What makes them outperform their colleagues? And, if you are a franchisee: how can YOU become one of these top performers?
This article will share the top six traits of top-performing franchisees and tips on how you can develop these traits.
6 Traits of Top-Performing Franchisees
Top-performing franchisees have a few specific things in common. Here is what makes them stand out and how you can become one.
1. Compliant
Compliant refers to a franchisee who follows the terms of the franchise agreement. The franchisor has spent years building systems, the brand, and its reputation. Compliance with the agreement ensures consistency, and consistency is key to success.
Develop This Trait
To work on becoming a more compliant franchisee, check out our article 7 Reasons a Franchisee Should Care About Compliance which shares several helpful tips!
2. Passionate
Top-performing franchisees are passionate about their work. They have energy, excitement, and enthusiasm, which fuels everything they do.
And the thing about passion is that it is contagious. A franchisee’s passion can help create a positive workplace culture which flows to engaged employees who genuinely care about their work and the customers they serve.
Develop This Trait
Of course, passion for your job will rise and fall throughout your career. So, don’t lose heart if you started out feeling a strong passion for your franchise and have seen it wane. You can rekindle your passion by remembering why you became a franchise owner in the first place. List your favorite things about your job, then focus on those areas (while delegating jobs that zap your passion).
You can also fuel your passion by actively working on creating more of it in your workplace. For tips, check out this Tony Robbins article.
3. Leadership Skills
Top-performing franchisees excel in their leadership skills. They know how to thoughtfully make decisions, set an example for others, and influence and inspire their team. As a result, their franchisor feels confident in their ability to run the franchise location, including accepting and implementing feedback.
Develop This Trait
Learning how to be a good leader will impact the success of your franchise. Here are some tips for boosting your leadership skills in your franchise business.
- Keep a positive attitude
- Lead by example
- Be a good listener
- Develop empathy
- Teach employees (instead of giving orders)
- Set clear goals and expectations
- Provide direct feedback
- Be open to new ideas
4. Communication Skills
Top-preforming franchisees are also effective communicators. Good communication includes many aspects of running a franchise business:
- Employees: Franchisees need to communicate when training new employees and guide seasoned employees in their day-to-day work.
- Customers: Franchisees must be able to talk to customers, both raving fans AND those customers who have a complaint.
- Franchisor: Good communication with the franchisor keeps both parties on the same page and ensures the franchisee gets the support they need.
- Community: Franchisees also have to be able to reach out to the community to promote the business.
Develop This Trait
Effective communication is characterized by the 5 C’s: clear, concise, correct, courteous, and considerate. Further, when we talk about communication, we must also consider it in different forms: verbal, nonverbal, visual, and written. That means communication is not just face-to-face but also on phone calls, texts, emails, social media, Zoom meetings, etc.
Considering the 5 C’s and the different forms of communication, one of the best ways to develop your communication skills is to be more observant of the world and people around you.
- Being a good listener will ensure that you know what the other person is thinking or experiencing.
- Developing empathy will help you understand how the other person may be feeling.
- Asking questions will help you clarify information before making a decision.
- Observing people’s reactions to you will help you adjust your communication style.
For more tips, check out this advice from the Forbes Coaches Council.
5. Resiliency
Resilience is the ability to adapt to unexpected or challenging situations. If you’ve been running a franchise business for any amount of time, you know that the unexpected can strike at any moment. An excellent example is the global pandemic that appeared suddenly in 2020, catching everyone off guard. By being resilient, top-performing franchises could adapt to the changes and think of creative ways to survive (and even thrive) despite the circumstances.
Develop This Trait
Whether it’s a global pandemic, a missed product shipment, or an employee calling off work, every franchisee should learn to become more resilient as they run their franchise business. This Forbes article highlights several ways that business owners can develop resilience. These include anticipating trends before they happen, focusing on what you can control, reflecting upon what is working, and being flexible in finding creative solutions.
6. Growth Mindset
A growth mindset is “the belief that an individual’s most basic abilities and skills can be developed through dedication and hard work—brains and talent are just the starting point.”
On the other hand, a fixed mindset is “the belief that an individual’s basic abilities and skills, intelligence and talents, are just fixed traits.”
In other words, it has to do with whether you feel you have control over the person you will become (growth mindset) OR think you’re stuck where you are (fixed mindset).
A growth mindset is related to ALL of the other traits listed in this article. If you hold a growth mindset, you believe you can work on and develop each of these traits to become a better business owner, leader, and franchisee.
Top-performing franchisees have growth mindsets, so they constantly strive to improve themselves and their business. They are optimistic, flexible, patient, and hard-working.
Develop This Trait
To embrace a growth mindset and work on expanding it, try these tips from Entrepreneur.com:
- Be 100 percent accountable
- Don’t be concerned with what others have
- Become an expert in your field
- Don’t focus on your failures
- Do the work and put in the time
For more ideas, check out this article.
Top-Performing Franchisees
Top-performing franchisees are compliant with the franchise agreement and passionate about their work. They possess top-notch leadership and communication skills. They are resilient and ready to bounce back from setbacks that come their way. Finally, they hold a growth mindset, believing that they control their destiny and can develop their skills and competencies through hard work.
These are the franchisees that franchisors love to work with and employees love to work for!
No matter how you score yourself in the above traits, everyone has a little room for improvement in one or more of these areas. Choose one of the traits above to focus on for an entire month, and you are sure to make your franchise business stronger and set yourself up to become a top-performing franchisee.