Franchising 101: Buy It or Build It with Josh Minturn

0:01Boom! Shake the room, Fire Nation. JLD here and welcome to Entrepreneurs on Fire. Brought to you by the HubSpot Podcast Network, the audio destination for business professionals with great shows like DTC Pod. Today, we'll be breaking down franchising one-on-one, buy it or build it. To drop these value bombs, I have brought Josh Mintern into EO Fire Studios. An entrepreneur himself, Josh has a passion for helping others find business ownership through franchising. Over 400 individuals and counting with two decades of experience, he is a wealth of knowledge. In Fire Nation, we'll talk about startup goals, objectives, risk tolerance, choosing a category, agnostic, specific, what is a franchise, the discovery process, how to take action and choose the right franchise, and oh, so much more.

0:48And a big thank you for sponsoring today's episode goes to Josh and our sponsors. The Next Wave, your chief AI officer, hosted by Matt Wolf and Nathan Lanz, is brought to you by the HubSpot Podcast Network, the audio destination for business professionals. Matt and Nathan are leading AI creators in your guiding light in the AI and technology frontier. AI technology is transforming the way we do business and the media landscape is fragmented. The Next Wave strives to be the leading podcast on AI technology and how you can apply it to growing your business. Listen to The Next Wave wherever you get your podcasts.

1:23Josh, say what's up to Fire Nation and share something that you believe about becoming successful that most people disagree with. Fire Nation, thank you so much for having me. Really appreciate it. Excited to chat with you a little bit about franchising and what I know from the industry. In terms of becoming successful, something that most people don't think about, you can't just hang your shingle. It's something that takes active participation. It's a myth that you can do business without having to be active in it, unless you have enough money to hire somebody to do it. So most people don't. They're not Warren Buffett.

2:02But as long as you're persistent, you give it your best effort, the business gods are typically good to people. Well, Fire Nation, today we're talking franchising 101, buy it or build it. And I want to talk about the first part of this franchising 101. I want to talk startup. I want to talk goals, objectives, risk tolerance. Josh, take it away. Yeah, you know, for anybody that's really considering starting a business from scratch or through a franchise, I really encourage that person to first take some inventory of critical elements of their desired future state before they actually jump in and start acting.

2:43I know that a lot of people want to start. You just want to get going. But it's really important to think with the end in mind and think about what that future state looks like. Like we ask people in our process, I'm with a large franchise brand with actually 15 brands. And we ask people to go through what we call the quality decision making process. So every candidate that comes into our discovery process, we want them to think bigger picture, not just about our brand, not just about being in business, but what do they really want to get out of it? Do they want to be active or passive? Do they want a business that can help them achieve a certain lifestyle?

3:24So these are the types of things that we want them to think about. And even bigger than that, how will their life need to change if they get into a business? What kind of time investment are they going to make? Who will be impacted by those decisions? Those are all really important factors. Fire Nation, these are important factors to be considering when you're looking at taking such a giant leap. Because guess what? But you can build it. But again, there's the other option of buying it. And there's a lot of benefits we're going to be talking about when it comes to this process. But I think a lot of people might be saying to themselves, what type of business?

4:00Category to brand, agnostic to specific. Josh, talk to us about this thought process. Yeah, absolutely. So it's interesting. When I was a kid growing up, my dad told me there's a million ways the guys can make a buck. You have to pick one and do it. And so with all the choices that are out there, it can be very overwhelming to choose the right business for you. And frankly, when you look at it, how do you know the business will even work? Where should I start? Should I buy? Should I build? And so a lot of people, they kind of revert to things that I would consider to be kind of passion plays. They look at their passions in this internal inventory and they're saying, you know, what do I really love doing?

4:43You know, and so when you think about that, there's a guy out there who's really smart. I loved his show. He was on the TV show Dirty Jobs, Mike Rowe in 2016, and he came out with a video. And he suggested that instead of people following their passion, they focus first on purpose. And that purpose will lead to the opportunity, right? Passion is great for hobbies. Doesn't always translate into making money. And so the first and foremost thing that I say is focus on purpose, focus on the opportunity that is derived out of that purpose. And then you can start making some decisions about which type of category, let's say.

5:23So start from broad to narrow. What kind of category would really fit with those types of purpose anyway? From there, you might begin to select a brand. But in my opinion, it's great to start fairly agnostic. Right. You just again, you start with kind of just an open you have an open plate in front of you. You can choose any number of opportunities. And if you do that, you won't let the right one pass you by. Fire Nation, there are a lot of processes to think about when you're going through this. I mean, I love how we talked about categorical brands, agnostic to specific. I mean, there are options that are out there.

5:59And one thing that I'm really passionate about is you need to have both sides of the equation. in my opinion, this is my opinion, where if you want to find that zone of fire, which I think we all need, you do want something that you're excited about, that you're passionate about, that you have curiosity towards. That's going to get you up every day being like, you know what? I'm not dreading doing X, Y, Z. I'm not dreading going to work. I'm not dreading doing that thing. But on the flip side, you also need skills, knowledge, value in that equation as well, because if you don't, then what are you really doing?

6:31You're just having that hobby. You're just having that hobby that's just something that you enjoy doing. But if you're not adding value to the world, you're not going to have that zone of fire because that zone of fire is that commingling, that merging of your passions, your curiosities with skills and value that you can give to this world. And one thing that I love to say is if you can become the number one solution to a real problem in this world, you will win. And the beautiful thing about franchising to me is a lot of times franchises have found the number one solution, have created the number one solution, have discovered the number one solution to a real problem.

7:08And they prove that in Omaha, Nebraska, in Puerto Rico, in California. But guess what? You live in New Hampshire. Guess what? You can probably become the number one solution to a real problem that's been proven by other franchises in other locations. I mean, think about that. That's really exciting for a lot of reasons. So we talked a lot about franchises. without even really discussing the fundamentals, Josh. So let's talk franchise fundamentals. What the heck is a franchise in your words, in your minds? Absolutely. So a franchise is really very simply a brand's chosen distribution model. So when you think about it, a franchisor has often started as a small local business.

7:48They found some success building systems and process, maybe even adding some technology to what they do around those core business functions like sales, marketing, operations. And as a result of that, as a result of building process, they were generally able to scale their business. And at that point, you're beginning to think, okay, how do I go bigger? How do I go broader than just my local area or region? And at some point, capital becomes a concern, right? So if you really want to scale across the United States, you have a couple of different paths. You can deploy your own capital, right? Or you can choose to invite others into your business model.

8:32And by inviting others into your business model, you're essentially leveraging their capital to expand your brand across the country, right? And so that's fundamentally what franchising is. To be a franchise, a business must offer a business model for a fee. They have to provide a prescribed method of operating that business and collect an ongoing fear royalty. That's what makes them technically, by the book, a franchise. So it's also important to note that while franchisees pay fees to leverage the brand and the business model to make money, they do not typically own the brand itself. So the franchisee does not typically own the brand, the system, or the customer base.

9:17And so really, it's a marriage that the franchisee is leveraging the brand systems and technology that a franchisor put into place to create a revenue stream that they can one day hopefully sell for a profit. And so that's the partnership that exists with a franchisee and a franchisor, making it fundamentally a franchise. Fire Nation, I hope that adds a little clarity when it comes to what a franchise is, those fundamentals. And we have a lot more to talk about evaluation, choosing the right franchise. When we get back from thinking our sponsors, we all know that starting a business is hard, but there are tools out there that help make it easier.

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12:44That's E-T-H-O-S life.com slash fire. Josh, we're back. And before the break, I said that we're going to talk about the evaluation process of a franchise. So I really want to dive into evaluating a franchise. You have something called the discovery process. Break that down for us now. Absolutely. So evaluating a franchise can actually be tricky, especially if you're not a pro at it, because there are a ton of options. And so when you're exploring multiple brands at one time, it's important to remember that we're trying to determine the right fit. Right. So franchisors and the franchise salespeople, if you will, they really treat this less like a sales process than one might think.

13:31It's really more like a discovery process. And the best people in the space are actually trying to act as guide on this journey. We know that it's it's a life changing event. This is something that you'll remember for the rest of your life, the day you started a business. And so we want to act as guide on this journey to point you down the right path. And if it's not a fit, then it's not a fit. We walk away and nobody's hurt. But again, because there is risk involved here, we want to make sure that we have a very thorough process of evaluation. So my team at Authority Brands, we walk people through the discovery process, which includes three core phases, right?

14:09Not necessarily three easy steps, one, two, three, and now you're a franchisee. No, it's three phases of a process that we call discovery, diligence, and decision making. The first step is always mutual discovery. So we want to help you learn as much as you possibly can about our brand. And of course, we want to learn about you, right? This is very much a mutual evaluation process. Your goals, your business objectives, family dynamics, the partners that you might have, income needs, your timeline, all of those things are super critical to understanding fit, right? Are we a fit for you? And are you a fit for us?

14:49Of course, we also want you to evaluate our brand. And so we do our best in this part of the process to help educate you. So this is certainly all about getting as much information in your hands as we possibly can. The information will run the gambit from really the investment level that it takes to be successful in the business, the territory that you'd be occupying. And of course, we want to learn about your goals so that we can help you build a plan to get there, ideally. And of course, if the individual that we are speaking with remains interested in exploring the process a little bit further, if they've gone through that discovery and they say, you know what, I think I can see myself doing this, then we advance them to the next step.

15:33Fire Nation, I really hope that you understand the importance of the discovery process because this is going to allow you to say, you know what, this is where I'm going to be spending my days. And I love the phrase of where you spend your days and how you spend your days is how you spend your life. So you can't take something like this lightly. You need to go into this saying, wow, like I thought choosing a college was important. That was a snap of the fingers. That was four years of your life. That was over before a lot of people even knew it started. You could be a franchise owner for five, 15, 30, 60 years.

16:06I mean, who knows how long you could be passing this down to your children's children's children at some point. So this evaluation process is there for a reason. And I love, Josh, how you really just created this great step-by-step to make sure the discovery process is right. But now it's all about choosing the right franchise, because at one stage, we have to just take action. So Josh, take it away. After you've gone through this discovery process with you, of course, we want you to invest time into doing your homework, doing your diligence, making sure that you speak with franchisees, You meet with our brand presidents, or you even maybe come to a meet your team day, because all of this leads to this final step, which is making a decision, right?

16:50Is this a great fit for your family, for you, for your goals, the things that you're trying to achieve in life? If it is the right fit, then of course, we want to help you down that path, right? This is full of emotion. This decision is full of emotion. And so we really try to focus on this logical, linear path to get you from A to B to C so you can make a really wise decision about your future, about your life and your future. And a couple of points to note. The reality is just because a brand is a fit, that does not promise success in that brand. Starting a business is hard work. I like to say you're choosing today what others won't, so tomorrow you can live like others can't.

17:36The reason why a lot of people won't choose it is because they know inherently starting a business is difficult, but it is so very rewarding. And so that effort is typically rewarded in the long run. And so, again, we want to do things that others won't. So tomorrow you can live like others can. And secondly, the reality is there may be actually, believe it or not, several brands that align with any candidate's goals and objectives. And so much of the conversation will go back to the candidate's perception of which brand makes the most sense for them individually. And we want to help them navigate that.

18:10There's no harm, no foul. If a candidate comes to us and says, you know what, I love the idea. It's just not for me. You know, it's better to know that now. It's better to know that up front than to get into it, be invested, invest all that cash and time and energy into starting this business only to realize, wow, I made a mistake. But again, at the end of the day, it requires action. There's an old saying that goes something like this. How do you eat a two-ton elephant? It's one bite at a time. Starting a business can be a very daunting task. You may find the support of a great franchise guide walking you through a well-defined step-by-step discovery process will actually help you tackle that task of determining if a life change is right for you.

18:57That's that one bite at a time mentality, one step at a time. Selecting the right franchise for you comes down to a choice, and that choice is to take action. You're choosing to do what others won't in starting a business so you can live like others can. Fire Nation, we've talked about a lot of awesome things today. We're talking goals, objectives, risk tolerance, category to brand, agnostic to specific. We even talked about the franchise fundamentals, the discovery process, choosing the right franchise. Josh, of everything we talked about, I want you to share with Fire Nation the one thing that you really want to make sure that we walk away with knowledge-wise.

19:36Yeah, I think the most important thing is to remember that starting a business, while it can be difficult, it is something that is exceptionally rewarding. If you have the itch, if you desire to be an entrepreneur, you should absolutely scratch that itch. I really believe in living life with no regrets. And there's a handful of things that you might look back on in the future and say, man, I wish I would have tried that. Because business has the potential to absolutely change your life. It can change the trajectory for not only you, but your family. And so it's one of those things that you want to make sure that you don't regret not doing, right?

20:14So if you have the itch, definitely, definitely scratch it. And Fire Nation, that itch for a lot of people is going to go unscratched for the rest of your life. And don't be one of those people that's looking back over the decades and decades of inaction with nothing but regret. So Josh, if Fire Nation wants to learn more from you, wants to connect with you, give us a call to action right now. Yeah, you know what? If you wanted to speak with me directly, I can be found on a lot of different places. LinkedIn is a great place to start. I have all my contact information there. But more importantly, if you wanted to learn about our brands, authoritybrands.com is a great place to go to learn about the 15 different franchise opportunities in the home service space that we do offer.

20:59And I think you would enjoy learning about those brands. Request some information. Talk to one of our professional guides. They'll walk you through the process to just even learn, explore what we have to offer. And one more time, what is that URL? Authoritybrands.com. Fire Nation, you're the average of the five people you spend the most time with. You've been hanging out with JM and JLD today, so keep up that heat. For links to everything we talked about, visit eofire.com. Just type Josh in the search bar. The show notes page will pop right up. Josh, thank you for sharing your truth, your knowledge, your value with Fire Nation.

21:34For that, we salute you and we'll catch you on the flip side. John, thank you so much. Hey, Fire Nation, a huge thank you to our sponsors and Josh for sponsoring today's episode and Fire Nation's successful entrepreneurs accomplish big goals. That is why I created the Freedom Journal so that you can accomplish your number one goal in a hundred days and we're talking step by step. So visit thefreedomjournal.com, thefreedomjournal.com. And I will catch you there or on the flippity flip side. The next wave, your chief AI officer hosted by Matt Wolf and Nathan Lanz is brought to you by the HubSpot Podcast Network, the audio destination for business professionals.

22:12Matt and Nathan are leading AI creators in your guiding light in the AI and technology frontier. AI technology is transforming the way we do business and the media landscape is fragmented. The Next Wave strives to be the leading podcast on AI technology and how you can apply it to growing your business. Listen to The Next Wave wherever you get your podcasts.