Who is the “Average” Franchise Direct Prospect?
For starters, he is a white man between 36 and 45 years old. He has at least a two-year associate’s degree, and is most likely self-employed with management experience.
He has been exploring franchising for the past one to two years because he wants expand his current business ventures, but doesn’t have that Shark Tank worthy idea himself. He wants to reap the benefits of his hard work, but with more career freedom and flexibility.
Though he admits he doesn’t know a lot about the franchise application process, he’s not afraid of taking the first steps. He probably has already spoken with a franchisor about buying a franchise, and there is a good chance he has already at least viewed a franchise webinar. Seeking the assistance of a franchise consultant is on his list of “to-dos.” He also has a good grasp of where his future franchise will be situated and what his budget is.
Speaking of money, he’s been saving for his franchise opportunity, planning on not financing more than 50% of the venture.
How does a franchisor make an impression on him? Word-of-mouth. He is most swayed by testimonials of current franchisees within a particular franchise system. Also, it doesn’t hurt when franchises are as forthcoming as possible with the financials. It helps that more franchisors are disclosing financials in their FDDs.
How Did We Discover This “Average Prospect”
It probably won’t come as a surprise to you to learn we have a vested interest in understanding who prospective franchisees are and what their motivations are for purchasing a franchise. Thus, we periodically conduct surveys to gauge the demography of our website viewers and how they search for franchise and business opportunities.
Our latest survey was sent out via the Franchise Direct subscription newsletter starting on March 8, 2015, and concluded on April 1, 2015. The survey provided a general profile of the users that visit Franchise Direct, along with a glimpse of what they look for in franchise profiles. Four hundred thirty-nine (439) respondents completed the survey in its entirety. Their responses were used to compile the statistics used to develop the “average prospect” profile.
A More Complete Look at Our Website Viewers
While the profile above gives a good look at the average viewer to our website, it only provides a narrow viewpoint. The slideshow below gives a more comprehensive overview of our website visitors.
What is your gender?
Which age group are you a part of?
What is your ethnicity?
What is the highest level of formal education you have attained to this point?
What is your employment status?
Are you a military veteran?
Do you have management experience?
What is the primary reason you are considering franchising?
How long have you been considering franchising?
Have you ever participated in an online franchise webinar?
Have you spoken to a franchisor yet about buying a franchise?
How familiar are you with the franchise application process?
Have you sought the assistance of a franchise consultant?
How much research have you done in regards to the potential location of your future franchise?
How much are you planning to spend to start a franchise?
How do you plan to finance your franchise?
What percentage of the initial investment are you looking to finance through outsiders (not personal savings/retirement fund)?
When researching franchises, what is the most important part of the franchise profile to you?
About the Survey Selection
Respondents to this survey were not selected on a random basis. Participants for the survey were invited through announcements sent through company newsletter mailing lists. This method does not qualify as a random sample of the whole prospective franchisee population and, as such, the results from this survey cannot be generalized to the entire prospective franchisee population. Instead, these results are representative of the opinions of the prospective franchisee population in a certain population segment.
For more information about the results of this survey and how the survey was conducted, please contact Franchise Direct at info@franchisedirect.com.