Under-performing
Franchisees Are
Not the Problem -
They’re the Symptom
Under-performing franchisees are a symptom of a
larger disease that, left untreated,
will wreak havoc on your brand.
Is Your Franchise Brand at Risk?
These issues are just the tip of the iceberg. Left unchecked, this contagion threatens to infect seemingly healthy franchisees.
- Reduced AUV (Average Unit Value)
- Damaged Brand Reputation
- Unit Closures
- Negative Validations
- Expensive Litigation
- Stunted Growth
- Difficulty Attracting a Buyer
The Good News?
There is an innovative treatment proven to return a brand to full health and prevent future flare-ups.
Healthy Franchise Brand
Private Consulting
A Transformative Experience to Diagnose the Current & Future Health of Your Franchise System and
Prescribe a Treatment Strategy to Exceed Your Growth Goals.
A Healthy Franchise System is a
SWAG® System
A healthy franchise system provides a life of SWAG® - Sanity, Wealth, And Gratitude® to both the franchisor and the franchisee.
Franchisor Sanity
Franchisees master the business model and execute operations to meet brand standards.
Franchisor Wealth
Franchisees master the business model and execute operations to meet brand standards.
Franchisor Gratitude
Franchisees master the business model and execute operations to meet brand standards.
Franchisor Sanity
Franchisees experience work-life balance by showing up as entrepreneurs working on the growth of their unit(s) instead of employees stuck in the daily operations.
Franchisor Wealth
Franchisees make a living wage with one unit and are on-track to expand their wealth through multi-unit ownership.
Franchisor Gratitude
Franchisees are building excellent reputations through the positive impact they are making in their local communities.
A SWAG® franchise system ensures a strong franchisor-franchisee bond, operational efficiency, and a growth mindset, resulting in:
Efficient Corporate Operations that Drive Brand Growth
Support more franchisees with fewer Franchise Business Coaches by filling business intelligence gaps with innovative education and support processes, saving your budget and bandwidth.
Loyal, Enthusiastic Franchisees that Buy More Units
As franchisees comprehend, retain, and implement business intelligence, their abilities meet their desires for expansion, multiplying your "open" units, spending less money searching for more prospects.
Market Differentiators that Attract Qualified Leads
Beat the competition and attract more qualified prospective franchisees by highlighting a superior and proprietary training and support system, enthusiastic franchisees providing positive validations, and a record of franchisee success.
Consistent Brand Experience that Creates Raving Fans
Producing more multi-unit owners creates greater consistency across locations, which promotes a reliable customer experience, generating brand enthusiasts.
Proprietary Assets that Private Equity Values
Proprietary training protocols and customized support enhancements become valuable assets, allowing a private equity firm to purchase a turn-key corporate operation, increasing the value of the franchisor's business.
Building a Healthy Brand Requires Eliminating the Under-performance Virus
Don't be fooled into thinking that under-performing franchise units are just part of doing business.
Franchising was founded upon the belief that replication is key - which has resulted in 70 years of repeated wins and mistakes. One of those mistakes - writing off under-performers as isolated problem-franchisees and failing to recognize that the underlying cause is an infection spreading throughout all of your units.
VIRUSES DON'T DISCRIMINATE
Top-performing franchisees may be asymptomatic.
Alexandra was the #1 franchisee in her brand. The franchisor highlighted her success, asking her to provide magazine interviews, share her best-practices and lead validation calls. Little did they know she was ready to walk away from it all to stop overworking, escape the burnout, and reconnect with her family.
Within 60 days of business intelligence training, Alexandra took her first vacation since opening her business. She learned to effectively delegate and empower her team, freeing her to focus on growth activities. By the 6-month mark, she was ready to open a second location.
“I left my corporate job of 20 years to open my business. My retail shop was open 18 months and I was still working nights and weekends, feeling like a failure despite looking like a success from the outside. I hit a wall. April helped me create structure in my business and I can now trust it to run itself. I was finally able to take a few days off, which was so rejuvenating! April is wicked smart. She understands my specific challenges on a personal level, and I now see the way forward to opening a second location.”
Alexandra V.
Baked Goods Franchisee
"Learning from April Porter changed the way I felt about what I could do to help my business, it helped me to stop feeling like there was nothing else I could do. It also changed my perspective on the things I was already doing. As a new business owner, there was so much I didn’t know. I learned the difference between how I was showing up in my business and what it meant to embody a business owner mindset. Once I did that, I began concentrating on things to grow my business, instead of just operating it. Once I eliminated the stress of being in the negative, it was easy to see how to duplicate my success into a third location."
Becka S.
Kids Service Franchisee
Becka was the #2 franchisee in her brand with two locations open and operating. She received awards at her brand's annual conference for unit performance and the most inspiring franchisee, as voted on by her peers. Little did the audience know (including her franchisor and FBC) that Becka was averaging losses of $27,000 per quarter and contemplating closing her doors.
After applying April Porter's business intelligence protocol, Becka tackled the next quarter, reducing her losses to $12K. The following quarter, she achieved $30,000 in profit.
Don't despair. Treatment is simple...
with the right specialist.
April Porter has spoken with thousands of franchisees across the spectrum of success, identifying the root cause of systemic struggles and crafting solutions. With her expertise and guidance, you can diagnose and treat the underlying threats to your brand before they metastasize.
She is the only person in the franchising community with the unique combination of skills required to detect and treat poor franchisee performance and prevent system-wide infection.
Business
Strategist
A proven record of success in transforming average into exceptional.
Trial Attorney
A strategic storyteller that persuades people to adopt beliefs and take action.
Municipal Judge
A master at understanding multiple perspectives and remaining objective and fair.
Multi-unit Franchisee
A deep understanding of franchisee perspectives, desires, and fears.
Meet Doctor April Porter
The Franchise Doctor April Porter, J.D., is a trailblazer in the franchising world. After a successful career as an attorney and Municipal Court Judge, April became a franchise owner, investing in a kickboxing fitness franchise. In less than three years, she expanded to four locations, earning numerous awards, including three years of recognition as one of the Top 50 Fastest Growing Companies in St. Louis.
Throughout her journey, April realized that many franchise owners were struggling due to a misalignment between their business knowledge, their psychological and emotional needs, and their training and support expectations and what a franchise system provides.
In 2020, April founded "Ask April Porter" and put her unique combination of expertise to teach franchisees how to embody the mentality of business empire-builders, teaching franchisors how to craft effective education and support programs that resonate with all learning styles and personalities, and repairing the franchisor/franchisee relationship to support a unified drive toward brand expansion.
Healthy Franchise
Brand Private
Consulting
Get April's expert eyes on your franchise brand to transform the health and vitality of your franchise.
The Steps to Diagnosis
Step 1:
Assess the Symptoms
Discover the silent signs and quantify the obvious signs of struggling franchisees to identify the severity of risk to your brand and the timeline of the pathogen.
Step 2:
Explore Contributing Factors
Using the Mapping Matrix, April will evaluate communication and operational procedures to identify the disconnect causing the symptoms and uncover any legal liability risks.
Step 3:
Discover the Root Cause
Examine franchisee training protocols to determine breakdowns in comprehension, retention, and implementation that leave franchsiees unequipped to execute the model properly.
Step 4:
Identify Preventative Measures
Review sales and onboarding practices to discover the early signs of misaligned expectations or miscalculations of a franchisee's ability to succeed.
Step 5:
Redefine a Healthy Franchisee
Compare your current franchisee qualification criteria with your findings and possibly redifine your definition of a healthy franchisee.
-------- Treatment Plan -------
In-Person with April: In this one-day in-person diagnostic session, April will review your results, challenge assumptions, introduce new perspectives, and prescribe a treatment plan.
-------- Results -------
Gain a full understanding of which actions to take to reap the benefits of a Healthy Franchise, such as:
Accelerate top-performers' expansion into multiple units
Turn under-performers into top-performers
Rebuild trust in the franchisor-franchisee relationship
Transform naysayer franchisees into raving fans
Differentiate your franchise offer with innovative training & support strategies
Attract more qualified franchisee leads
Support more franchisees with fewer Franchise Business Coaches
Improve efficiencies at the corporate level
Reduce costs and increase EBIDTA
Eliminate liability risks associated with joint employer risks, FTC rulings, FINRA obligations, and legal regulations
Successfully exit lost causes without damaging your brand
Build a long-term sustainable brand primed for continuous growth
Time is of the essence
Don't Wait Until It’s Too Late
No brand is immune to this sickness.
Left untreated, it can devastate, and even terminate, a brand.
The best time to treat it is before symptoms begin. The second-best time is now.
Transform your franchisees and safeguard your brand.
TESTIMONIALS
What Franchisors Have To Say
"April’s work was transformative for my franchisees. Her straightforward and relatable approach truly resonated with everyone. It’s challenging to find a coach who understands both the franchisor and franchisee roles, but April nailed it. Since working with her, I’ve seen a noticeable shift in their [the franchisees’] mindset and enthusiasm. They are more engaged and motivated, which has been incredible for our network. I highly recommend her to anyone."
Cheryl W.
Founder | Home Health Care Brand
"Before working with April, we had a strategy for franchising our concept. Luckily, we hired her to consult before executing it. She discovered gaps in the franchsiee journey that, once pointed out to us, we recognized would have led to wide range of franchisee adoption and success. She created an insanely strategic process to incentivize our franchisees' behavior and ensure their retention and application of our training materials. She introduced us to innovative processes that significantly reduced our personnel costs without compromising the support of our franchisees. And, she worked with us and our franchise attorney to ensure that terms in the FDD and FA aligned with our training and support strategies and our long-term goals. And added benefit - we used everything she taught us refine our marketing of the franchise opportunity and differentiate ourselves from similar brands. Her guidance was worth its weight in gold!"
Scott R.
VP of Marketing | Financial Technology Brand
"April speaks franchisee-ease. Franchisees resonate with her approach to education and training, adopting concepts that some have been resistant to in the past. Her ability to strategically design training paths and support processes in order to drive behavior is unparalleled. Her teachings opened up a productive dialogue between [the franchisor] and the franchisees. I wouldn't be able to calculate the time, energy, money, and reputation she saved us."
Whitney T.
Director of Operations | Business Networking Brand
Answers to Your
Frequently Asked Questions
Is this right for me if I am just starting the process of franchising my concept?
The best time to create a customer success strategy is before you have your first customer. As a franchsior, franchisees are your customers, so starting at the very beginning is ideal! Not only will you save yourself from making mistakes that can cost tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars, but you will also prime your franchise for smooth operations and accelerated growth.
Is this right for me if I have a great relationship with all of my franchisees?
Yes! Just like a healthy body, the best way to keep it healthy is through preventative medicine. Most franchises see a degradation in their franchisor-franchsiee relationship approximately 3 years after selling their first units or somewhere between the 50-150 units-sold mark. Taking the time to identify potential problem areas now allows you to make adjustments before the negative affects set in. In addition, by implementing your customized treatment plan, you will have the tools to multiply your units sooner rather than later.
Is this right for me if I already have a contentious relationship with my franchisees?
Yes! As part of your treatment plan, April will discuss how to communicate the efforts you are making and the benefits to your franchisees, to plant the seeds of reconciliation and trust re-building. Although it will be a process and won't happen overnight, the goal is to return your brand to full health with happy, successful franchisees.
Will I be able to implement what I learn with a small team?
Yes! Your treatment plan will take into account the size of your team and will be designed to adapt to the growth of your team, so that you are continually building a strong, sustainable brand.
May I bring a team member with me into our consulting calls?
Yes. In fact, we encourage you to bring the person that oversees the training and development of your franchisees.
How long will it take to implement the "treatment plan" in my brand?
Your treatment plan will be 100% customized to your brand and will include a recommended time frame to complete implementation based upon your needs. Full implementation of the treatment plan may take anywhere from 3-12 months.
Will the information I share about my brand be kept confidential?
Each client agrees to terms of service that includes a confidentiality clause to keep all discussions and shared information confidential.
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