Clint Lee

“The significant problems we face cannot be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them.” -Albert Einstein   In my previous post, titled “Designing a Process for Awarding Franchises – Part 1: Leadership”, I looked at the notion of how designing a process of awarding franchises has to start with prioritizing around the characteristics that your franchisees should have.  Without fist hashing out this issue, it will be largely unproductive to tactically begin putting together a process that can be managed.  For example, creating a system for “selling” franchises to individuals with no prior business ownership nor franchising experience is much different than creating a system of segmenting, targeting, and positioning  your franchise to individuals and/or organizations who fit certain characteristics that you have pre-defined.  Both of these ph... (more)

Fundamentals: Franchise Lead Generation with Google Adwords

As a follow up to yesterday’s post about effectively managing lead-flow, I’ve posted another video showing what I’ve found to be very useful and effective tools for lead generation. You might want to consider incorporating Google Adwords campaigns into your repertoire for franchise lead generation. The ability to target micro-channels and create highly relevant campaigns for specific target markets, along with the powerful analytical capabilities and budget options served up by Google Adwords makes it a no-brainer to incorporate into your overall strategy. The benefits of Adwords... (more)

The Five Most Important Aspects of IT for Franchisors

(Photo: source) I came across a rather interesting question that was posed on Linkedin yesterday which prompted this post. The question was “Which thesis about IT within emerging franchise networks most appeals to you?” The author, Heath Waldorf, is putting together a thesis paper and was looking for some insight. I obliged…. Information Technology within franchise systems would appear to be a scarcity judging by the lack of conversation on the topic. A few quick searches about franchising and technology will pull up a handful of dated articles on intranets (which are rapidly b... (more)

What is a 360-degree view, anyway?

Like most companies in most industries, franchisors have plenty of moving parts and pieces in their business. For instance, there are potential franchise candidates to evaluate, real estate to analyze, franchisees to train, and franchisees to support; not to mention all of the franchise contracts, leases, and disclosure requirements to keep tabs on.  Many franchisors tout ” proven systems” as a main selling point or advantage to becoming a franchisee, however a quick look under the hood would reveal that many franchisors don’t have their own internal processes sorted out. This ... (more)

Designing a Process for Awarding Franchises – Part 1: Leadership

Designing a process for effectively awarding franchises can be challenging.  There is both a management and a leadership component to doing it.  You may recall the image that Stephen Covey paints in “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” whereby a group of Workers are fighting their way through the jungle, wielding machetes and cutting through the underbrush while their Managers stand behind them “sharpening their machetes, writing policy and procedure manuals, holding muscle development programs, bringing in improved technologies and setting up working schedules and compensat... (more)