When to Press the Panic Button

We’ve only started this quarter, and we’re already facing changes that, in ordinary times, would have taken years to develop. Consider:

• Change in control of government — more money printing, stimulus, green new deal.

• The rise of big tech — Amazon eating main street businesses; Google, Facebook, and Twitter controlling digital marketing and the public square.

• Generational purchasing power shifts from Boomers to Millennials.

• Lockdown fatigue.

• The Unexpected.

As a community, we’ve learned from 2020, and many of us have built and rebuilt the foundations of our businesses. There will be more challenges ahead, and if 2020 has taught us anything, it’s that we should expect surprises.

So let’s prepare. Let’s deploy some SWOT analysis. Plan and prepare for the potential THREATS facing your business in 2021. Then set a plan for avoiding them and, if they are unavoidable, how you’ll react.

BIG IDEA: Throw out the panic button! 10 years’ worth of opportunity is about to be thrown at us in 2021. The opportunity will be disguised as threats, so take the time now to evaluate the strengths that you will need to rely on and the opportunities that you’ll be looking out for.

If you haven’t prepared a basic SWOT analysis for 2021, spend some time now.

Amazon Buys 11 Jets from Delta — Times are changing. Delta Airlines needed to unload underused jets, and in a first, Amazon bought 11 of Delta’s jets to bolster Amazon’s own shipping and rely less on UPS and USPS.

Facebook Suspends President Trump’s Account — The President cant speak on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or YouTube. Does big tech have too much power?

HenDough Chicken & Donuts — Few things in life are better than fried chicken, donuts, and biscuits. The HenDough team is just getting started and have already differentiated themselves in a proven market.

“Athletics and education have always gone hand in hand for me,” says Kristen Maines, a former NCAA Division I tennis player and University of Buffalo athletics coach who is now one of Sylvan Learning*’s newest franchisees.

Maines was looking for an opportunity to combine her love for coaching with her desire to own a business when she became aware of a local Sylvan Learning* Center, a leader in supplemental education, that was up for sale. Right away, she said, she knew it was the perfect opportunity.

A long, long time ago (March 2020), Nick & Charles set out on a path to tell the stories of franchising. ‘Zors, ‘zees, suppliers and brokers all jumped into the conversation. Along the way, the franduo started interviewing ‘zees and ‘zors side-by-side. Here’s a discussion with MOOYAH Burgers, Fries & Shakes team. Learn their secret trick to franchise growth in the video below.

In franchise development, there are no magic bullets. It’s a lot of blocking and tackling and leveraging great brand assets and stories to accomplish the set-out growth goals. To win at franchise development, no matter if you are a ‘zor or a broker, you will need to:

Your leads don’t come from that month’s activities, typically. You are attempting to sell one of the hardest things in the world to sell: franchises. Leads take time to mature. They go from impression to clicks to your website to research to leads. This doesn’t happen in a day, likely not in a week, and likely not in a month. Retire the, “I paid X and got Y this month” statement.

Don’t disqualify someone as cold or dead just because they don’t answer your 40 calls. They may just need a little more discovery to feel confident.