We begin the development project by completing a comprehensive review of your business and industry relative to the franchise operation and structure. A competitive analysis is prepared of similar type franchise companies, which provides a detailed overview of each company’s Franchisor-Franchisee relationship including the initial investment, various fees, territory provisions, and other key terms and provisions.

The FTC requires 23 “items” to be disclosed in the Franchise Disclosure Document concerning the franchise company and provisions contained in the Franchise Agreement. We fully assist you in establishing the terms of the franchise relationship and completing our proprietary questionnaires to help ensure that all aspects of the franchise business are fully identified and properly disclosed. The FDD, Franchise Agreement and Exhibits are prepared by Counsel in conformance with the FTC Franchise Rule. This enables your company to begin granting franchises in 36* “non-registration” states upon completion of the documents. Fourteen states have individual franchise registration requirements that must be completed prior to soliciting and selling franchises in these states.

The following Exhibits to the Franchise Disclosure Document and Agreement are prepared by Counsel:

The State Specific Addenda to the FDD and Franchise Agreement are prepared by Counsel to ensure compliance with individual state franchise laws when registering in the 14 Registration States. The State Specific Addenda address individual state franchise laws and regulations that vary from the FTC Franchise Rule relative to specific provisions of the Franchise Agreement and/or FDD disclosure requirements. These documents help expedite the registration process.

An Area Developer Program permits a franchise company to sell multiple franchises to a single franchisee for development over a prescribed time period. A percentage of the franchise fee for each franchise to be opened is typically paid in the form of an Area Development Fee upon execution of the Area Development Agreement. As part of the preparation of the Franchise Disclosure Document, we advise you concerning the structure and requirements for the Area Developer Program. Counsel then prepares an Area Development Agreement as an Exhibit to the Franchise Disclosure Document. This ensures that disclosure requirements are met and multi-unit opportunities are immediately available when you launch your franchise opportunity.

As part of the franchise legal document preparation, counsel will advise you concerning trademarks, service marks and copyrights that your company may license to Franchisees. If required, we will assist you in coordinating trademark filings with trademark counsel.

Franchisees are typically required to report information to the Franchisor regarding sales, financial data, income and sales tax returns, and other information specified by the Franchisor. We advise you concerning appropriate reporting requirements for the franchise business. In addition, we provide recommendations regarding minimum performance standards, revenues and/or inventory purchasing requirements when appropriate.

Franchisors may grant an “Exclusive Protected Trade Territory” in which to operate the franchise. We advise you concerning the criteria and system to be used to establish exclusive territories.

Using established criteria as well as statistics compiled from similar type companies, we determine the franchise fee, royalty fee, advertising and marketing fees and other fees appropriate to the franchise operation. We also provide recommendations and considerations related to other possible sources of franchise revenue, including promotional fees, administrative fees, sales of products, training fees and field support fees.

Franchisors have the right to dictate the type, style, size, layout and other criteria for the franchise location. We consult with you to establish appropriate requirements and criteria for the site selection process. As part of this process, we produce a Site Evaluation Form to be completed by Franchisees. If the franchise business is home-based, we assist in determining specifications and requirements for a home office.

One of the keys to a successful franchise operation is a standardized system that Franchisees follow to ensure consistency throughout the organization. A Franchise Operations and Policies Manual is one of the most effective methods of conveying policies, procedures, and operating systems to new Franchisees. Existing Franchisees also benefit from a comprehensive Manual in the ongoing operation of the Franchise Business. When properly implemented, the Manual ensures greater consistency between the independently operated franchise locations. It also saves valuable resources at the corporate level by minimizing the time franchise personnel spend responding to Franchisees’ questions.

The Franchise Operations and Policies Manual produced by FranSource acts as both a training manual for new franchisees and a reference guide for established franchisees. The FTC permits the Manual to be a unilateral extension of the Franchise Agreement. This allows the Manual to serve as the vehicle through which your company may modify policies, processes, procedures and other “nonmaterial” aspects of the franchise business. Recognizing that successful systems change and evolve, the pagination of the Manual is specifically designed to allow for easy updating as modifications and enhancements to the system are made.

FranSource determines the content of the Manual through the use of questionnaires, interviews, and onsite visits to view your operation first-hand. The content of the Manual includes comprehensive information pertaining to the development and operation of the Franchise Business. Forms and other materials used in the operation of the franchise are also included.

We consult with you to establish the initial training program for Franchisees. A training itinerary is produced which outlines the training content, hours devoted to each topic and other related information. Initial Franchise Training may be conducted at the corporate office and/or the Franchise Business.

We provide recommendations and assistance in establishing appropriate communication and support programs for your Franchisees. These programs play a key role in maintaining a successful franchise organization. Examples include:

We also advise you concerning support services that should be provided to Franchisees during the pre-opening period and franchise inspections that may be conducted by the Franchisor at the Franchise Business. In addition, we prepare a Franchise Inspection Form to be used by your representatives when conducting inspections.

We assist you in determining the characteristics of the ideal franchisee for your business. This is an important first step in developing effective advertising, marketing and sales systems.

We consult with you to establish appropriate franchise sales development processes and procedures. Once established, we produce a Franchise Sales Development Manual that outlines your entire franchise sales process. The Sales Manual is designed for use by franchise sales personnel as both a training manual and an ongoing reference guide. It includes the following topics:

In conjunction with the development of the Franchise Sales Development Manual, we produce various forms and materials for use during the franchise sales process, including:

In addition to the above forms and materials, we produce a full-color franchise brochure to provide to prospective Franchisees.

We advise and assist you in establishing a Contact Management System using one of our preferred Internet providers (i.e. eMaximation.com; IFXOnline.com). The CMS simplifies the franchise sales process by using technology to manage the lead-flow process. Our assistance includes:

Our franchise advertising and marketing assistance includes:

As part of our franchise marketing support, we draft a keyword specific news release to promote the launch of your franchise.

To promote the franchise opportunity, we develop and prepare copy for the Franchise Opportunity section of your website. The Franchise Opportunity pages are sculpted with selected keywords for SEO and PPC purposes.

To help ensure the successful launch of your franchise, our team directly supports your franchise sales efforts, providing valuable consultation and input. As part of our support, we also conduct 3-way calls with your company’s franchise representative and prospective franchisees.

To support your new franchise operation, we provide 12 months of ongoing consultation in the areas of franchise operations, communication and support, advertising, marketing and sales.