How to search for your perfect franchise

If you’ve made the decision to start looking into franchise business opportunities, I commend you; it’s a courageous move. That’s because most people won’t even consider it. They’ll continue to collect a paycheck from the companies they work for, thinking they have job security.

But, in today’s world, job security is a myth. Maybe you were the victim of a corporate downsizing or two, and you’ve had enough. Or, maybe, being your own boss is something you’ve always wanted to do. Buying a franchise is one attractive option to consider.

Look in the mirror

If you don’t know what you should be looking for, how can you expect to find it?

With more than 3,000 franchise concepts to choose from, it’s important for you to start your search off right. So, start with a little self-analysis. Don’t worry about what’s hot right now. It doesn’t matter. Yet.

Grab a pad of paper and start writing down a list of your top professional skills. What are you really good at? What are you considered to be the “go-to” person for? Are you good at sales? Are you fantastic at operations? Are you an amazing manager? Great with numbers? Make a list of your greatest talents.  

Next, on another sheet of paper, make a list of your dominant personality traits. Are you methodical? Or, are you a fast-paced, “let’s get it done” type of person? Are you dependable? Are you creative? Are you a leader? Do you consider yourself to be driven or laid-back? Are you socially conscious? Think this part through. Take your time.

Don’t look yet

Even though you may be chomping at the bit and want to search Google for “franchise opportunities,” it’s important to put the information you just compiled to good use; I’m going to show you how.

Look at the two lists you made. Read through them one more time to make sure you’ve really captured your top professional skills and dominant personality traits. If you’re satisfied, use all this information to align your traits and skills with the franchise opportunities that match up closely.

Obviously, it’s important to know what the general categories are in franchising. Once you know what they are, you can proceed to do some matchmaking.

Here’s how: Let’s say that your top professional skills are sales and marketing. On your other sheet of paper, you wrote down “energetic, determined and competitive,” as your dominant personal traits.

Keeping that in mind, what types of franchise business opportunities do you think you should look into?

Here are a few suggestions:

• Advertising/Direct Mail
• Sign-making Business
• Staffing Franchises
• Business Coaching or Consulting

Franchises like the ones listed above are business-to-business franchises. Also known as B2B franchises, most of these opportunities require solid sales skills and are for people who prefer to be out and about.  Do you see how they could match up to the top skills and personal traits of an extrovert?

Now, if you’re more of a managerial type and consider yourself to be a leader, franchises that involve managing a staff might be a better fit for you. The trick here is to stay focused on what you bring to the table first, before you start searching for a great franchise that you’d be proud to own but, more importantly, one that fits perfectly with the most important person in this entire process: you.