This episode of the Franchise Secrets podcast is all about virtual assistants. Erik talks with Nathan Hirsch of Outsource School about using virtual assistants as an affordable way to make your life easier and grow your business. As a business owner, there’s no reason for you to be spending your valuable time toiling away with basic tasks. Instead, you can outsource things like social media management, scheduling, lead generation, and email management to virtual assistants so you have more time to spend on the most important responsibilities. Erik and Nathan talk about where to hire virtual assistants, what you should pay, and how to manage them so everyone can be more efficient and effective.

Franchise Secrets Podcast

80: Using Virtual Assistants To Grow Your Business And Save Time, With Guest Nathan Hirsch Of Outsource School

The Franchise Secrets podcast has a special guest this week with entrepreneur and master marketer Dan Fleyshman. Dan is the youngest founder of a publicly-traded company in history, and he’s here to share his insight and experience with you.  Dan gives you new ideas and techniques to improve your marketing efforts and become a smarter business owner in this episode. From more guerilla-style local marketing efforts to learning how to use social media like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn more effectively. Dan talks about all the small and easy things you’re likely missing that could improve sales and make your businesses better.

79: How To Market Your Business Better and Smarter With Serial Entrepreneur, Master Marketer, and Investor Dan Fleyshman

The Franchise Secrets Podcast sits down with guest Jeff Dudan to talk about his experience as a franchisor and his new book, “Discernment: The business athlete’s regimen for a great life through better decisions.” Jeff founded, built, operated, and eventually exited the leading national franchise AdvantaClean, giving him a wealth of experience. As a successful franchisor, Jeff opens up about the strategies he’s used when scaling a business into an emerging brand. From remaining calm and reacting to what’s actually happening during a crisis and managing your relationship equity to making good decisions under pressure, Jeff’s tips will help guide you from having a good business idea into having a stable franchising opportunity.

78: Building a Business Idea Into an Emerging Brand and Competitive Franchise, with Guest Franchisor Jeff Dudan

The Franchise Secrets Podcast returns this week with special guest Stephen Vereb, Massage Envy and Amazing Lash franchisee. Stephen takes us on a journey from being in real-estate and corporate banking to a multi-brand franchisee. It all started with a childhood friend, who gave Stephen a copy of “Rich Dad Poor Dad,” helping spark the entrepreneurial spirit to start his first franchise. From there, one location turned into two and three, forcing Stephen to learn how to scale the businesses on the fly. Erik and Stephen also talk about Franchise Tribe Mastermind and how networking has helped make him a better franchisee.

77: How to Scale a Franchise and Franchise Tribe Mastermind Networking with Guest Stephen Vereb, Multi-Brand Franchisee

Today on the Franchise Secrets Podcast, we talk to Amy Hudson, proud franchise owner of The Exercise Coach in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. Amy discusses how she went from being a High School teacher to moving across the country for the right franchise opportunities.  Anyone getting into franchising or already a franchise owner knows how finding and managing staff can be one of the toughest parts of the business. As a successful semi-absentee franchise owner, Amy talks about her experiences building up one of the different types of franchising from scratch. From team building and employee development to a better way of viewing your staff, Amy breaks down what’s helped her franchise businesses prosper.

76: Semi-Absentee Franchise Opportunities and Hands-Off Management with guest Amy Hudson, Franchise Owner of The Exercise Coach

Today, we invite Heidi Morrissey, president, and CEO of Kitchen Tune-Up out of South Dakota. As a franchise or small business owner, surviving and scaling your business is more important than ever in this pivoting environment and economy. Heidi is an experienced business owner with lots of tips and tricks regarding sales, marketing, and training. More importantly, tune in this week and listen to Heidi’s experience and suggestions concerning pivoting franchises and surviving during unique times.   Heidi Morrissey, President and CEO of Kitchen Tune-Up comes in this week to share her experience. As a second-generation Franchise Owner, Heidi strives To help people find a career they love and to establish a healthy work/life balance. Her ultimate goal is to attract like-minded entrepreneurs to join her. She is also a trained MELT instructor who has also created a dynamic home-based career in scrapbooking and teaching classes. Prior to all of these successful ventures, Heidi was a Kindergarten Teacher

75: Surviving During a Pivoting Economy with guest Heidi Morrissey, CEO of Kitchen Tune-Up

 Today, our goal is to have a greater understanding of service based businesses in franchising.  Michael Kaplan, of Redhook Investments, discusses with Erik the topics of Service based franchising, expanding to other verticals, marketing, Buy/Sell Agreements, recession recession proof niches within service based industry and much more. Michael Kaplan is the former co-owner of Zerorez Carpet and Living Services Care in Minnesota, where he successfully grew the business to over 170 employees with over $15,000,000 a year in revenue. Today, he's an angel investor at RedHookinvestments.com, helping businesses build strong leaders and realize their potential. 

74: Understanding Service Based Business in Franchising with guest Michael Kaplan of Redhook Investments

Today, we get tactical, practical advice on franchising from a Quick Serve Restaurant (QSR) perspective.  Lucas Mitchell, Owner of several Five Guys Restaurants, sits down with Erik to discuss researching and buying a QSR franchise, structuring an investment deal during COVID-19 and the challenges of finding the right people for leadership roles, communicating with investors, and much more. In Lucas' 14 years of restaurant experience, he has managed teams of more than 170 employees, operated multi-unit concepts grossing over $9 million per year in revenue, and has grown customer satisfaction and revenue while at the same time decreasing expenses. Lucas is a proven leader with an eye for detail, and an unwavering work ethic.

73: Franchising Advice from a QSR Viewpoint with guest Lucas Mitchell

Today, we dive into Jeremy Bollington’s journey of entrepreneurship and franchise ownership. We also talk about team leadership, the importance of communication, opportunities post-COVID, being second to market, and much more. Jeremy is a multi-franchise partner and area representative for Blo Blow Dry Bar and Waxing the City, based out of Charleston, South Carolina.  Before Blo, Jeremy spent 25+ years as a banker in cities around the world like London, Hong Kong and New York.

72: An Area Rep Perspective on Franchising and COVID-19 with Jeremy Bollington

On this week's podcast we talk with author, educator and former franchise owner, Christy Wilson Delk. This episode is packed with tips and advice for strategic leadership and "what to do when bad things happen". Christy Wilson Delk was a 15-year franchise owner, well-known speaker, author of Adventures in Franchise Ownership, and a business professor at Rollins College in Florida.

71: Strategic Leadership with Author and Educator Christy Wilson Delk

 On today’s episode of Franchise Secrets, I’m talking to a personal idol of mine: Robert Kiyosaki. Robert’s #1 best-selling Finance book “Rich Dad, Poor Dad,” changed my way of thinking, and my life as an entrepreneur. He joins us today to discuss how to shift our thinking and train ourselves as entrepreneurs through franchise experience. He brings with him a wealth of knowledge and ideas—and as always, great stories.     After returning from the Vietnam war as a decorated airman, Robert watched his highly educated father lose his job, buy a franchise, and fail the business in a short amount of time. In comparing his own father’s experience with the path of his best friend’s successful father, Robert crafted “Rich Dad, Poor Dad” to prove how traditional education is not always the key in reaching personal and professional monetary goals. So, if your PhD can’t help you, what can? Practice, practice, practice.     But how can you gain experience in a way that doesn’t leave you broke? Well in today’s episode, Robert and I discuss how owning a franchise is a great way to start gaining experience, how to adapt to run that franchise, and which ones to go after when you can’t go after McDonald’s.     Timestamps     (05:58-9:49) Running a franchise location teaches you the ins and outs of owning a business.       (10:38-19:32) Prioritize your financial statement—and a financial team!       (20:08-22:17) A PhD doesn’t make you a smart businessman. So, what does?     (22:33-27:25) How to learn smart business practices every day.       (27:27-29:47) The sooner you start, the smarter you’ll become.     (29:47-38:53) Be a student first, an entrepreneur second.       Know Your Business     One of key aspects Robert stresses is that you need to have flexible thinking when franchising. When his father rented the cheapest space he could find for a financially solid ice cream franchise, he managed to kill the business before it could start. Robert points out that his father failed to realize that he wasn’t entering an ice-cream selling business, but rather a real estate one. He highlights a great point: when you are franchising, you must let go of your preconceived ideas of that business and accept it for what it really is. As with my experience with salon studios in Orange County, I needed to understand that the salon wasn’t about hair-cutting: it was about property management. Sometimes a business presents itself as X, when in reality its Y. As Robert and I discuss in today’s episode, your job as an entrepreneur is to understand what that Y is. Being able to adjust your mindset when presented with new information is what makes many franchise owners so successful.         Show Me your Books     As Robert states in this episode, “Every time I talk to a small business owner, I say, ‘Who does your books?’” Robert reiterates several times the importance of financial statements and I couldn’t agree more. An entrepreneur cannot be a successful one without the proper financial team—accountants, bankers, and attorneys. You can’t excel in business if you or your team lack financial literacy—after all, it’s about the financials. Your untrained husband or aunt who keeps the books might be cheap in the short term, but your business will suffer in the long term.     Student first, Entrepreneur second     Robert firmly believes in education—through experience, not through school. A degree is worthless if you have no idea how to function as a business owner in the real world. To learn, you need real world experience. Entering the franchising world is a great way to learn, and you must learn every day. The soon you start, the smarter you will become. The more intelligent your business mind becomes, the more money you will make. If you just want money and not the skillset to amass it, Robert suggests marrying someone rich. As he says, “It’s the training—not the money—that makes you rich.”  Connect With Robert Website Facebook LinkedIn Connect With Erik Facebook LinkedIn Medium Franchise Secrets Website 

70: Rich Dad Poor Dad Franchising with Robert Kiyosaki

Tune into this week's podcast as we discuss how to buy a franchise.  This episode is packed with tips and advice with Doc Cohen, on the topics of buying a franchise, private equity vs a mom & pop franchisor, and a peek at the life of a franchisee and IFA chairman. Lawrence “Doc” Cohen, a veteran of the franchise industry who first franchised Great American Cookies three decades ago, is the first-ever franchisee inducted into the International Franchise Association’s (IFA) Hall of Fame. Cohen, whose company, Houston-based Cookie Associates, also owns TCBY, Coffee Beanery, and Pretzelmaker units.

69: How to Buy a Franchise with Doc Cohen

Tune into this week's podcast as we take another look at the franchisee to franchisor journey.  This episode is packed with tips and advice with Klaus Grimm of K&KG Investments, on the topics of diversifying your portfolio, new franchisor pitfalls and market predictions. Klaus is an experienced business leader and executive with a demonstrated history of growing top line revenue, creating and leading teams. He has strong leadership skills and is experienced in starting and managing franchises such as Wow Wow Hawaiian Lemonades and Hammer and Nails - Grooming for Guys.

68: New Franchisor Pitfalls with Klaus Grimm of K&KG Investments

Tune into this week's podcast as we dive into the customer experience.  This episode is packed with tips and advice with Scott Abbott, CEO of ProNexis, on the topics of first interaction, paid leads for home services and piloting call centers as a franchisee. Scott is a respected entrepreneur from Utah that has led several companies from their growth stage to exit. Most notably was co-founding Five Star Painting, one of America’s largest painting franchise systems, taking it to over 100 locations in four countries, culminating with the sale of Five Star Painting to The Dwyer Group, one of the world’s most respected franchisors in the service industry. Today Mr. Abbott is leading ProNexis to become a fully integrated business solution for service based businesses.

67: Improving the Customer Experience with guest Scott Abbott of ProNexis

Tune into this week's podcast as we dive into the journey of taking your business to a franchise.  This episode is packed with tips and advice with Tim Swackhammer, franchise owner of Mold Medics.  Tim owns Mold Medics in Pittsburgh, PA which he has turned from a mom and pops business to a franchise.  He is also owner of JAS Technology, a Wireless Zone franchise.

66: From Franchising to Franchisor with guest Tim Swackhammer of Mold Medics

Franchising specialist Erik Van Horn reveals the secrets he uses as a franchisee, consultant, investor and entrepreneur. Join us every Wednesday to learn tactical and practical tools that will help you buy, grow, and sell franchises like an expert.

hubhopper

Franchise Secrets Podcast

hubhopper