The Educated Franchisee Insider Newsletter

The Educated Franchisee
The How-To Book for Choosing a Winning FranchiseJuly 2011
Author ImageGreetings!

As we prepare for the 4th of July holiday weekend, it reminds me of the strong, independent foundation of this country.  The United States was built on the backs of freedom seeks.  People packed up their families and their meager belongings and moved to a new land.  They took tremendous risk all for one thing - freedom.  They did not accept the idea that a third party - in this case King George III - had the right to control their actions so they took a risk and struck out on their own.  That simple decision made all the difference.

Many years ago Benjamin Franklin said -

 

"Those who desire to give up freedom in order to gain security will not have,  

nor do they deserve, either one."

 

Remember this as you celebrate Independence Day.  Independence is not given; it is taken.  Independence is not an accident; it is the result of deliberate, planned action.  Give thanks to your parents for the sacrifice they made and ask yourself if you are doing everything to empower those who depend on you. 

 

We will take a few weeks this summer to visit Colorado. The whole family is so excited.  It should be a lot of fun.  Due to summer vacation, the next newsletter will be on September 1st

 

Enjoy the articles this month and have a great summer. 


Respectfully,
Apple Image
Rick Bisio
Apple ImageBuilding a Business vs. Making a Living.

Small business owners who don't understand their financial statements and don't bother to learn how to read them will never make fully informed decisions for their companies, says Bill Hettinger, co-author of a new book, Finance Without Fear.

It seems like 75 percent-ish don't focus on their finances at all. Some of them are artistic people and finance is not the skill they are into. But even the folks who have technical backgrounds don't tend to focus on finances. We find that people wait until they have some external reason to do so, like when they need to go to the bank for a loan, or they need a business plan, or there's some sort of shock to the system.

Someone recently told me: "I'm a sales guy. I didn't have to learn finance until I was 45 and opened my own business." A publicist who worked with me said, "I used to have another business and I never really looked at [finances] until I had to sell the business."  The problem is, who's making the day-to-day business decisions?


Go to Bloomberg Businessweek, Click Here
Apple Image9 Keys to Focus On When Considering a Franchise. 

 

OK, so you think you're ready to  buy a franchise. You've done some research. You've weighed the pros and cons. You've selected a business with an interesting product. You even know what you'll wear to work and how many hours you expect to be there. Yet in spite of how much preparation you've done, you still don't know the answer to the most pressing question: Will your business make money? No franchise company--no matter how glorious its track record--can guarantee financial success. But you have a much better chance of having a winning proposition if you follow these practical pointers before you sign on the dotted line.

 

Go To Entrepreneur.com, Click Here
Apple Image Banker's Wish 

 

Michael Grothe's entrepreneurial family had been in the oil and gas delivery business for 100 years by the 1980s, when he was a teenager.

 

But the small family business in central Pennsylvania was essentially killed when the corporate parent that oversaw it went through a restructuring process. The collapse scarred Grothe. "I never thought I would be in business for myself," Grothe says. 

 

It took 20 years, but the recession altered those plans. In fact, after two decades in banking, Grothe has now run his own business for the past six months.  

 

In going entrepreneurial, Grothe also represents a small but growing Gulf Coast demographic: the displaced banker. With consolidations, mergers and failures, the amount of jobs per banker in the region has shrunk significantly in the recession.  


Go to Gulf Coast Business Review, Click Here  

Apple Image New Business Owner Leaves Corporate World Behind

Working in corporate American may be the dream of many, but one man left it all behind him to paint the town red, or any other color for that matter.

New Apple Valley business owner Tim Fier had spent his entire career working for a Fortune 50 company, but after years of uncertainty and some frustration, Fier decided to drastically change careers by starting his own business, CertaPro Painters, 15050 Cedar Ave. S., in Apple Valley.

Fier had always worked for a large, retail company performing advertising and marketing duties, but many talented people in the industry lost their jobs in recent years, namely due to restructuring.

The Book
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There is a reality in life.  Greater knowledge drives better decisions and better decisions reduce business risk.  Franchising is all about risk reduction but not all franchises are low risk.  The Educated Franchisee is designed to empower you.  By following the advice and guidance presented in this book you will recognize high quality franchises and confidently pass over those that are not.

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Thanks for your interest in business ownership.  If there is anything we can do to improve this newsletter or any articles that you think would be valuable to our membership, please let us know.  Some of our best ideas come from our members.
 
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Author - Rick Bisio
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