As Poppies celebrates the 40th anniversary of opening the first office, the whole network, myself included, get to look back on our time in our domestic cleaning businesses. Some might find the thought daunting, but I think it’s extremely important to reflect on how far we’ve all come – especially since I took over the reigns as franchisor in 2018. That being said, if time machines were a reality, there’s just a few things I’d tell myself after travelling back to 1996 when I launched my own Poppies franchise.
Create a robust business plan… and follow it
This will usually be a requirement from most franchisors and funding establishments during your start-up process, but it’s even more important to keep referring back to your business plan as the weeks and months pass by. I would suggest always having three years planned ahead, ensuring you make regular check-ins to assess how you’re performing against your goals. You’ll be able to clearly see where you’re heading, as well as knowing when to adjust course according to your performance – this way you be able to to keep reaching further.
Know your numbers
Even if maths isn’t your strong suit, it’s important to get to grips with your numbers. If you’ve got your business plan in place, use those figures as your goals- for example, tracking your sales conversions and profit margins. It’s also important to know what influences these numbers and how they can change – if you’re not quite heading in the right direction, what can you do to bring things back on track?
Don’t sweat the small stuff
It’s normal to worry about those little inconveniences, especially with something that’s entirely new to you, but remind yourself that we all have ‘firsts’. Whether it’s missing out on securing a major contract or having to confront a difficult member of staff, it’s something we’ve all got to face at one time or another. With so many things in business, experience is key and the more you encounter a situation, the more accustomed you’ll be to deal with it. And let’s be honest, it’s never usually as bad as you fear and in a franchise – you’re never alone.
Every day is a school day
No matter how hard you try, you will never know everything. As frustrating as that might sound to some, think about business as a journey. What can you do to improve your skills and make yourself a better business owner in the long run? It’s a good idea to expose yourself to new ways of thinking to help develop you and your team – in both a business and personal sense.
Find a mentor
In franchising, when you invest in a brand, you are automatically mentored by the franchisor, their team and established franchisees from the network. Find the right guide for you and use their experience to develop your own skills. It’s what I did when investing in Poppies – I adored the founding franchisor, Sue, and she became not only a mentor but a friend too. Now I’ve stepped into her shoes, I’m able to pass that knowledge, passion and enthusiasm through to future franchisees.
Psychology is more useful than business
In my experience, business skills and acumen can be learned – and it’s certainly easier when you join a great franchise with a strong business model and operational processes. The art of understanding people, how they react and why, on the other hand, is a lot harder to learn. Of course, the more business knowledge you have when you start a business the better, but the skills of communication, listening and understanding are a fundamental part of not just business but everyday life, where a level of intuition often comes into play for the best performers.
Delegation is key
I think I speak for a lot of business owners when I say that delegation can be a struggle. Learning how to delegate is crucial for business growth. There will be some areas of your business where the franchisor will offer help and others where you need to employ someone or engage a supplier, such as an accountant. Building a trusted team around you will make you more confident to delegate tasks and free you up drive your business forward.
Work hard and play hard
Just because you’re investing in a franchise, it doesn’t mean that your business won’t need a lot of hard work to make it a success. What you should find though is the potential to fast-track your progress in comparison to starting a business from scratch. In your first years in a new business it’s easy to forget to give yourself a break. Whether you’re getting away on holiday or just taking a breather to unwind, make sure you take some time out. My seven tips above will certainly help to guide you towards a place in your business where you can enjoy a guilt-free work-life balance.
In the absence of a time machine, these are some of the things I advise my franchisees at Poppies and those thinking about joining our network. If I knew then what I know now, I wouldn’t hesitate to become part of such a great team.
