Franchise Update Magazine Issue III, 2013 | Page 46

Grow Market Lead

rate P&Ls and compare that with gross
revenues of our franchisees, which are
disclosed, and connect the dots,” he says.
“We are the only home care company in the U.S. that has net earnings
claims in its FDD based on our nine
corporate locations, which provide
audited P&Ls,” he says. “Most candidates say they appreciate our transparency around such an important
component of the discovery process.
They tend to gain comfort knowing
we have invested in the same business
they’re considering. This builds trust
and credibility.”
Typically, he says, “When you show

only gross revenues, you force candidates
to try to extract expense information
from franchise owners, but many don’t
want to share on that level.” Providing
audited P&Ls from the corporate locations, he says, is a huge help in validation
(Step 5). “It helps take the pressure off
franchisees to have to disclose financial
information, and from candidates having to extract it from them.”
To help candidates sort out all the
data, his team tells them there are three
important factors in determining their
potential ROI: client count, rates, and
number of billable hours per week per
client.

She Liked It So Much…

A

bout two years ago, Christine Friedberg was employed at FRANdata working on a project involving best practices in the home
care industry. One of her assignments was to shadow discovery
day at Griswold Home Care. “Someone there jokingly suggested
I join,” she says. She laughed it off.
Soon afterward, she became a mother and took maternity leave to spend
time with her new daughter. She began thinking about having more time and
flexibility, asking herself, What’s next in life? “It randomly came to me one
night on the treadmill: ‘I think I know what I should do.’”
Today she’s a Griswold Home Care franchisee with two contiguous territories in Northern Virginia. Labor Day will mark her
first full year. So, with all her knowledge and experience
of franchising, why Griswold?
“I thought it was a great model and was impressed
with the people,” says Friedberg. Also, she says, “It’s a
great industry—we get to help people at that point in
life when they need that extra help.”
She also liked the company’s transparency, not only
with its franchisee candidates, but also with its customers. Price is one of the first things people look for when
shopping for home care, says Friedberg, and she liked
how the company posts its pricing on its local websites.
“Of course you’d put that on your website, that’s how
Christine Friedberg people do shopping nowadays,” she says.
Friedberg also liked the rebranding button the company pushed in 2012, aimed at updating the brand while staying true to the
values and culture laid down by founder Jean Griswold three decades ago.
“It’s a good company, it’s growing, and the marketing team is doing a lot
of new things,” she says. Following its rebranding, she says the 31-year-old
company is now in “version 2,” with a new name, new logo, new websites,
and a marketing team that she says is ahead of the industry with its online
advertising, blogs, technology, and goal of empowering clients and candidates
with information.
“Marketing was a huge thing for me—finding new ways to help franchisees
and bring in clients,” she says. “There are tons of companies in this space.
None operate the way we do. It felt right.” n

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Franchiseupdate Iss u e III, 2 0 1 3

Step 4
Executive Call

Enjoy a conversation with a member of
our executive team. Our caring philosophy starts at the top and you will quickly
understand how we became a leader
in the non-medical home care industry.
This is a newer step, says Magid,
added about 3 years ago at the request
of franchisees who asked for someone
on the executive team to more carefully
vet candidates before sending them out
for validation. “It’s an opportunity for
me to talk to our candidates and be certain they understand our model,” says
Magid. “Ultimately, I want to make sure
they’re an ideal candidate.” That means
a discussion to review the five criteria
candidates must meet (Step 1). It’s also
the point in the process when the sales
team involves the spouse, if they haven’t
already participated in a video call. And
if Magid still has doubts, he’ll send it
back to his sales team for more digging.
Step 5
Meet Our Fr [