You often read about how 'back to work mums' suffer from a lack of confidence - well I never thought that would happen to me until last week, when after three months 'out of the spotlight' I returned to the Business World, firstly presenting the Franchisee of the Year Award at the StartUps Awards in London on Wednesday (which quite frankly I completely fluffed up!), and then speaking at the Business Start Up Show at Olympia on Saturday.
And the thought of public speaking again terrified me! All the old nerves and fears which I thought I had well and truly conquered, seemed to have returned.
The material for my 'Are You An Entrepreneur?' seminar at Business StartUp was all new and untested on an audience (which always adds to the nerves); it was based mainly on the research and learnings from my Entrepreneurial Profiling Test since its launch in April this year.
In my seminar, firstly I talked about the three key qualities of the successful entrepreneur - which in my view are Self Belief, Determination and Drive.
I then talked about how my Entrepreneurial Profiling Test works and the nine different entrepreneur types which result, and the ways they can ALL be successful in business.
I then ended by talking about my favourite three business books of all time, which are:
- Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill
- How to Get Rich by Felix Dennis, and
- Purple Cow by Seth Godin
Interestingly many of the emails I've had since the Show thanking me for my seminar also said that I was the ONLY speaker who talked about the other rewards of business (freedom, fulfillment, adventure) rather than being solely obsessed with monetary rewards - which is actually the underlying point of both Napoleon Hill and Felix Dennis's books.
Anyway, having faced my fears, I came away from the seminar feeling really inspired and energised myself, and it also reinforced my belief that I am in an incredibly priveliged position to be able to help entrepreneurs starting out in their journey in some way.
So thank you to everyone who came to the Show, and to my stand to see me afterwards (I'm sorry I couldn't spend time with you all) - as well as to everyone who has sent me such wonderful emails since Saturday. Your positivity has given me such a boost, I am no longer a 'nervous back to work mum' any more!
Next stop is the Entrepreneurs Forum Annual Conference in Newcastle this Thursday, where I will be talking about the highs and lows of my own entrepreneurial journey.
Hope to see you there!
Regards
Rachel
Showing posts with label Franchising. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Franchising. Show all posts
Tuesday, 6 November 2007
Tuesday, 2 October 2007
A Few Thoughts on Franchising...
One of the most emotive responses that I receive from my Entrepreneurial Profiling Test is from people highly indignant at my suggestion that they should perhaps consider franchising as their first venture into business, as an alternative to starting a completely new business from scratch.
It seems that for some franchising is still a dirty word in business - and that it is somehow a 'fake' alternative to going into business proper.
The other side of the coin is of course the emails I receive from people, typically 12 to 18 months in to their business journey, who have tried to start a business completely from scratch and who are beginning to realise just how difficult (and expensive) that is.
Creating a brand identity alone, along with all the brand collateral needed for certain businesses (signage, brochures, websites etc) for just one business location/outlet can cost tens of thousands of pounds. More often than not it's an area where many businesses skimp - and end up looking unprofessional and amateurish.
That's before you even begin to consider all the costs of setting up operational systems, bespoke software, supply chains and processes/know how - as well as the cost of the kind of 'trial and error' mistakes you inevitably make when you decide to go it alone.
Franchising gives you a ready made solution usually for an all in one fee - which allows you to focus on revenue generation practically from Day One - as well as fantastic training and ongoing support.
The results of my Profile Test show that over 80% of people thinking of going into business really should consider looking at the franchise sector as their first venture into business. The failure rate is less than 5% (compared to something like 67% in the start up sector); it's much easier to finance your start up costs, and with most franchises you can actually sell them on for more than they cost you once you have momentum going. Alternatively put a manager in to run them and use the money generated for your completely new business a couple of years down the line - once you have experience in business.
This week is the National Franchise Exhibition at the NEC - and I would normally be there speaking if I weren't currently 9 months' pregnant! If you are thinking of going into business I would suggest it's well worth a visit - and particularly if you Profile under my free Test as a Safepreneur/Execpreneur/Dadpreneur or Mumpreneur.
Alternatively visit the UK Franchise Directory Site which gives you a complete listing on every franchise currently available in the UK.
As with any business opportunity, you still need to be very careful which franchise you go for - and indeed some of the more established ones have very strict criteria on who they will allow to run one of their franchises - but it's an avenue well worth exploring.
Good luck!
Rachel
It seems that for some franchising is still a dirty word in business - and that it is somehow a 'fake' alternative to going into business proper.
The other side of the coin is of course the emails I receive from people, typically 12 to 18 months in to their business journey, who have tried to start a business completely from scratch and who are beginning to realise just how difficult (and expensive) that is.
Creating a brand identity alone, along with all the brand collateral needed for certain businesses (signage, brochures, websites etc) for just one business location/outlet can cost tens of thousands of pounds. More often than not it's an area where many businesses skimp - and end up looking unprofessional and amateurish.
That's before you even begin to consider all the costs of setting up operational systems, bespoke software, supply chains and processes/know how - as well as the cost of the kind of 'trial and error' mistakes you inevitably make when you decide to go it alone.
Franchising gives you a ready made solution usually for an all in one fee - which allows you to focus on revenue generation practically from Day One - as well as fantastic training and ongoing support.
The results of my Profile Test show that over 80% of people thinking of going into business really should consider looking at the franchise sector as their first venture into business. The failure rate is less than 5% (compared to something like 67% in the start up sector); it's much easier to finance your start up costs, and with most franchises you can actually sell them on for more than they cost you once you have momentum going. Alternatively put a manager in to run them and use the money generated for your completely new business a couple of years down the line - once you have experience in business.
This week is the National Franchise Exhibition at the NEC - and I would normally be there speaking if I weren't currently 9 months' pregnant! If you are thinking of going into business I would suggest it's well worth a visit - and particularly if you Profile under my free Test as a Safepreneur/Execpreneur/Dadpreneur or Mumpreneur.
Alternatively visit the UK Franchise Directory Site which gives you a complete listing on every franchise currently available in the UK.
As with any business opportunity, you still need to be very careful which franchise you go for - and indeed some of the more established ones have very strict criteria on who they will allow to run one of their franchises - but it's an avenue well worth exploring.
Good luck!
Rachel
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