Skip Boykin's Page

Are you interested in owning your own business, but you don't know where to start?

Skip Boykin
Independent Consultant
UBC Franchises
United Business Consultants, LLC
Website: http://ubcfranchises.com/
E-Mail: UBCFranchises@gmail.com
1-800-809-0265
412-901-3145 Cell
412-466-2123 Office
My website: http://www.its-your-business.com
http://www.talkshoe.com/tc/40951


UBC Franchises provides a free consultation service to help you identify the best franchises to meet your business ownership dreams. UBC Franchises is a member of a 17-year-old network of Franchise Consultants with the experience in helping individuals find the American dream.

UBC Franchises will arrange a phone conversation to gather information about your business goals and preferences. The franchise consultant will interview you to gather information to help identify a franchise that will meet your personal, professional and financial goals. The franchise consultant will send you a Confidential Questionnaire that will provide additional information about you and the kind of business that will be best for you and your family.

Once UBC Franchises has the information; the two of you will discuss franchise types that match your criteria. The franchise types will be narrowed down to those that you feel best fit your goals. The franchise consultant will identify appropriate franchises and present them to you for you review.

Once you have chosen franchises that you wish to further investigate, the franchise consultant will contact the franchisors and have them forward the appropriate information and disclosure documents. The franchise consultant will also place you in direct contact with the appropriate franchise representative. UBC Franchises will help you with questions to ask the franchisor, and will be available to you throughout your investigation. Ultimately, it is your job to conduct a complete and thorough investigation.

UBC Franchises always recommends that you consult with qualified attorneys and accountants to review all documents before you make the final decision to purchase a franchise. We can help locate attorneys and accountants, if you do not know any yourself.

Avoid.......
• Spending a tremendous amount of time and effort trying to find the perfect franchise, but never finding it.
• Settling for the wrong franchise, when one of their competitors might have been a better investment.
• Purchasing a franchise that does not offer adequate training or support.
Everywhere you look today, you see FRANCHISES!

In fact, financial experts have indicated that franchising is the "wave of the future". In the next 10 years, franchising could comprise over 50% of the retail economy and employ millions of people. This growth should be anticipated based on the simple logic of the underlying concept.

Franchising offers success, with the least amount of risk, to aspiring business owners. Franchises will enable hundreds of thousands of new business owners realize the dream of successful business ownership and financial independence.

What is stopping you? Are you like many other people and simply don't know where to start? Are you asking yourself the following questions?
• I want to start a business, but I don't know what kind?
• There are over 1500 franchises available, which is the right one for me?
• I don't have any experience in running my own business; can I get the training?
• Can I get support after I get my business started?
• How much investment will I need?
• Can I finance any of my investment?
• Do I need to operate the business or can I hare someone to run it for me?
• Can I open more than one unit?
The questions are endless, and that is where UBC Franchises can help you. We help you answer the above and many more questions. Our role is to help you analyze your lifestyle, financial and business requirements, and then help you focus on a few opportunities that best fit them. Then, we will help you present your qualifications to the franchises that you have an interest. With our vast knowledge of franchising, we will help you choose the franchise that’s best for you and your family.

UBC Franchises does not charge you for our services. There is absolutely no obligation that you buy a franchise that we present to you. After going through the evaluation and qualification process together, we will present you as a qualified prospective buyer to the franchises that you have chosen. If you purchase one of these franchises, the franchisor will pay us for finding a qualified buyer. Federal Trade Commission law dictates that the franchisor must charge you the same whether you go through us or directly to them.

There are other reasons you should utilize the services of UBC Franchises instead of going direct to the franchisor.
• The UBC Franchises consultant will educate you in the intricacies of franchising.
• The franchisor will tell you the advantages of their franchise, but the UBC Franchises consultant will also identify and disadvantages that should be considered.
• The franchisor will tell you how great their franchise is, but the UBC Franchises consultant will help you identify the franchisors competitors that may be even better.

Step-by-Step Process
Step 1 - Contact Us

There is no time like the present to see what options you have. Your contact information is kept confidential and is reviewed by our staff to provide you the best opportunities for your particular needs.

Step 2 - First Appointment

One of our consultants will contact you to setup an appointment to discuss your goals in finding the right franchise for you. This will take about an hour and can be accomplished over the phone. Understanding your particular goals and needs will allow us to find the best opportunity for you. We will set a follow up appointment to present you with opportunities that fit your requirements.

Step 3 - Research

We take the information provided by you, research available franchises and match them with your stated goals and needs.

There are over 1,500 franchises and our goal is to identify the best 3-4 franchises that match your requirements.

Step 4 - Presentation

We present you with the opportunities that we have identified in our research. This meeting should accomplish two goals. First, if any of the opportunities are of interest to you, then we will arrange an introduction directly to the representative of the franchise. This will require that you complete and submit a confidential questionnaire to be supplied to the Franchisor. The Franchisor wants to know that you are financially qualified to purchase their franchise, that your time frame to buy is within reasonable limits, and that your partners or family are in complete agreement with you buying a business. This does not obligate you in any way. It simply shows the Franchisor that when you find the right opportunity then you are capable of buying it.

Second, this step will allow us to clarify your goals and needs identified in Step 2, sending us back through Steps 3 & 4. This may take place several times throughout the process.

It is important to remember that the Franchise Consultant is presenting you opportunities, but you must make the decision that is best for you and your family. Therefore, refining the criteria for the best opportunity for you is an ongoing process.

Step 5 - Introduction to Franchisor

For each of the opportunities that you have an interest; we will introduce you to the Franchisor. The Franchisor will send materials to help you become acquainted with their franchise. They will also send the Uniform Franchise Disclosure Document (UFDD), which is a disclosure document for their franchise opportunity. The UFDD receipt should be signed and returned immediately.

Step 6 - Review of the UFDD

We will discuss the items that are contained in an UFDD; in particular items that you should pay close attention. You should then review the UFDD in complete detail writing down any questions or concerns for discussion with the Franchisor.

Step 7 - Call Franchisees

The Franchisor should provide you a list of several franchisees for you to call to ask questions about the franchise. Obviously, the Franchisor is going to give you a list of franchisees that are successful and have positive things to say about the franchise. The reason for calling these references is that you want to ask the why and how they became successful. Then you need to determine if you can do the same things that they did to be successful.

Step 8 - Consultation with Attorney and Accountant

You should always consult with an attorney and an accountant before making a decision. It is important to insure that both people have a good background in franchising. If they don't then the process may cost you more than you needed to pay while they do their research.

Step 9 - Attend a Discovery Day

Most franchisors have a Discovery Day, where they will invite you to their location. You will not only get crucial information for your decision, but will get to meet the staff that will be providing your initial training and continuing support.

Step 10 - Decision Time

You have taken all the steps up to the door and now you must open it. Decision time. Congratulations you have decided to buy a franchise. You have become a "Frantrepreneur", a cross between a traditional entrepreneur and a modern franchise owner. A person that possesses the desire to be a business owner, but does not want to recreate the wheel.

FAQ's

Why use UBC Franchises and not go directly to the franchisors?
Quite simply to save time, money and potential aggravation! Our service is free. Your franchise fees or business purchase price will not be greater if you choose to us our service. We provide all the information a potential business owner needs to find the opportunity that fits their goals, plus we already know many of the safest, strongest and most lucrative opportunities in business today, a task that can take months for someone outside the industry.

How much does it cost to use the services of UBC Franchises?
The consumer doesn't pay for the services that UBC Franchises offers. You will pay the published price for any franchise just as if you had gone directly to the franchisor. The franchisor absorbs our marketing costs. The franchisors respect the processes we follow and recognize the quality and fit of clients we refer to them after our consultations are complete. UBC Franchises is uniquely able to provide a win-win scenario for the investor and the franchisor.

How will UBC Franchises find the best franchise for me?
Our goal is to find an opportunity that will meet the specific needs of each individual we work with. To do this effectively, we first have to learn what those needs are. We will ask you a series of detailed questions. Some sample questions you will be asked are:
• What are your reasons for wanting a business of your own?
• Have you ever owned a business?
• What hours do you like to work?
• Where do you want your business to be located?
• How do you feel about managing people?
• How much capital do you have to start a business with?
• Will you have partners?
• Do you want to build multiple units?
• How soon do you want your business to open?
• Will you be involved on a full-time or part-time basis?
These are just a few of the many issues we will discuss with you over the course of our consultation process. With this information we can create a personalized profile and model for you to use in evaluating opportunities. We can also usually match our clients with a few opportunities that have characteristics consistent with the ones they're looking for in order to save time and efforts in the process.
Sorting through the over 1,500 franchise opportunities can be a long, confusing process. Many people spend months sorting through companies without ever finding an opportunity that has what they really want in a business. WE CAN HELP!

We've done a lot of the homework for you. We have pre-screened hundreds of companies from all areas of business. They must meet the exacting standards we have set to be included in our inventory. We do all of this so we can offer the franchise opportunity that will be the "perfect fit" for you.


Why should I buy a franchise?
Franchising offers individuals the opportunity to be in business for themselves, but not by themselves. The Franchisor is there to provide support with all the different functions of the business. They have seen the issues that can arise in their business and know how to deal with any problems effectively.

Prior to your opening, they provide extensive initial training and support so you're well prepared to handle whatever comes. They can also provide advertising and marketing support to help build your business faster. The most significant benefit to franchising is the reduced level of risk. This comes from a franchise system's proven method of doing business.

Is financial assistance available?
Financing can be a major hurdle for any potential franchisee. Start-up costs can reach a high level and it is essential that the franchisee have adequate working capital. It is important to address any financing issues during the investigation of franchise opportunities.

The best source of information about financing options for any franchise is the franchisor. Once again, we are dealing with an issue that the franchisor has addressed numerous times with other franchisees and they will have a good deal of information about the practical options that are available.

How soon can I get my business started?
This depends almost completely on you. The franchise consultation process can be completed easily within a few days if you are responsive and motivated. After you begin investigating opportunities, most clients can find a great match for them within one to three months. After you select the right business for you, it will typically take anywhere from 2 weeks to 6 months for your actual business to open for operation.

Do I need specific industry experience to successfully own a franchise?
No, in fact most companies are looking for people with no experience in their industry. This is because they want their business operator to focus on running the business and not performing the labor their concepts require. Franchisors need people who can be effective in areas such as motivating employees, generating sales, and running the day-to-day operations as efficiently as possible. The franchisee role is typically one of management rather than labor.

What else can UBC Franchises do to assist me?
Assist in setting up financing through referrals to firms who work with franchisees seeking to start and build their businesses. Assist in working with you in site selection and negotiations when appropriate. Be with you from start to finish guiding you through the process to make sure that important issues are not over looked.