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February 2012
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Archive for the ‘Profit With Coffee’ Category

PostHeaderIcon The Importance of Location for a Coffee Franchise

In the world of business, location is extremely important. Most of us have heard the saying “location, location, location”. There is a reason it is a saying and it is important for everything from the perfect photograph and romantic settings as it is in the world of real estate and business success. Spend time scouting out locations that you feel would be great places to open a coffee franchise business and ask yourself the following questions.

Is this is a high traffic location? Most people are rather lazy by nature. You want to find a location that people will drive by often. In other words, you do not want to select a location for your coffee franchise that is low traffic-at least not if big business is your goal. If you found a location that you think is perfect for a coffee shop sit back sometime and see how much traffic drives by the area you are considering. If the rate of traffic is busy you will get a good bit of advertisement value from putting up a sign and having people pull in on impulse.

Can customers easily get into and out of your location? As a customer there are few things that I find more frustrating than a business that is located in an area that proves difficult for entry and exits. Most coffee franchise customers are going to be in a hurry and on the go. You want to make the process as seamless as possible and this means you want a location that allows quick access off the road and back onto the road. People are more likely to make you a daily or weekly stop if your business is convenient for them to enter and exit. Many coffee franchises are electing to have two drive thru windows for added convenience, this is something else you may want to consider for your location if possible.

Is it near entertainment? You might find yourself awed and amazed at the number of people who stop in for a cup of coffee and perhaps a sweet treat after a night at the movie, theater, or even a game of bowling. Many people find that a great cup of coffee is a nice way to end the day (especially if you have a nice variety of decaf on hand). Even those that may not have considered it before will find they are often tempted to make the stop after a movie-especially those on dates that aren’t quite ready for them to end if they see the sign and the coffee franchise in question is located conveniently near the theater or other entertainment venue.

With these things in mind, make sure you choose your location carefully for the best possible effect. Location won’t guarantee success but a great location is a good deal of insulation against failure. When planning your coffee franchise keep all the locations in mind, ask the questions mentioned above, and go with the location that really is the best location to attract business rather than the location that has a certain look. Aesthetics can always be changed later on; the location is pretty firm once selected.

Carlos Anastacio

http://www.freeinstantcoffeesamples.com

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PostHeaderIcon What are the Benefits of a Coffee Franchise?

Building a business from the ground up can be an intimidating, back breaking, and bankrupting process for many would be business owners. Most businesses fail miserably after the first year and even those that hang on often fail to do much more than break even (if that) during their first three years in existence. For this reason we are seeing a growing trend among those who are interested in owning a businesses in franchise purchases and ownerships.

If you know very little about what it means to own a franchise businesses such as a franchise coffee establishment you might not realize how many benefits ownership of a business such as this really has. Name recognition is often one of, if not, the greatest challenges that most businesses face. It is difficult to get people to try something they’ve never heard of before, especially if it has something to do with food or drink. It is much easier for most to go to the same big chain stores that line malls and shopping centers across the nation rather than taking a chance on the new kid in town that offers something unexpected.

While name recognition goes a long way to making ownership of a coffee franchise, or other franchise establishment, there are plenty more wonderful reasons to consider a franchise business rather than going it alone. In fact one of those reasons is that in a franchise you aren’t going it alone. You will have training and education that allows you to build your business on the experience of others without making many of the costly mistakes they have made in the process. Build on the positive and avoid the negative to make more immediate profits than if you were to build your own business from the ground up.

Another great benefit of joining a coffee franchise is that they have the ability to do extensive marketing research that most small business owners cannot afford. This means that the advertisement campaigns are much more likely to appeal to your target audience and get results than if you were creating the ads yourself. You will also find that most larger franchises run national advertisements that you are not likely to be able to afford until you have a few franchises under your belt and would have even more difficulty affording if you were building your own business. Professional advertising is a huge benefit to small business owners and a coffee franchise will receive a big bump in business due to a successful ad campaign.

Training is yet another big benefit to choosing a coffee franchise rather than going it alone with your business. Most franchises offer comprehensive training programs for everything from paper work, closing sales, perfect water temperatures for brewing coffee, and how a uniform should look on staff. Extensive training in these methods means less mistakes which turns into great profits. A coffee franchise may not be the perfect business that’s why there are alternatives such as Free Instant Coffee Samples.

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PostHeaderIcon The Potential Pitfalls of a Coffee Franchise

All businesses have a few potential pitfalls that should be watched for when considering a partnership of sorts, as would be the case with a coffee franchise. A coffee franchise has excellent possibilities when it comes to profits but the reality is that most coffee franchises fail to capitalize on the massive profits that could be earned. This doesn’t mean that there aren’t many franchise owners that are doing well financially with their coffee franchise businesses. It simply means that there are many more who aren’t doing as well financially as they should be with their coffee franchise businesses.

At the same time you really should examine potential problems that often arise when becoming a part of a larger franchise organizations rather than going it alone. More often than not the benefits far outweigh the potential problems but you should be aware of both the potential for great success and the potential for a few stumbling blocks (or outright landslides) along the way as the result of a franchise affiliation.

The first roadblock that often arises is that you, as a franchise owner, are more often than not limited to products created by and for the franchise to serve in your coffee cafÈ, shop, or house. This means that the new great flavor that you fell in love with last week may never be on your menu and many business owners find this to be a hard lesson to swallow.

The other problem with being limited to the corporate version of products and goods is that these are often neither the best nor the least expensive. This means that you are likely going to pay more for something that you may not truly appreciate the quality of. Hopefully, if you’ve elected to go into business with a particular franchise company you appreciate their quality but every once in a while something better comes along at a better price and it’s difficult to pass it up though you are often required to do so.

Another big problem for those who go into the business of owning a coffee franchise often come across is the fact that you’ve dreamed of becoming your own boss and running your own business only to find out that you are still a slave to corporate policies and your own franchise agreement if you want to keep your franchise rights.

Worst of all for many people is the fact that after years and years of being told how to dress and what to do at work you might find yourself required to wear a uniform when working in your very own store as well as being told how to serve the products you are paying to serve. It’s a tough role for some to swallow. Unfortunately, it’s part of the package if you want to enjoy the benefits of building a business with a coffee franchise. Only you can decide, in the end, if the pitfalls are worth those benefits.

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PostHeaderIcon The Coffee Franchise for Women in Business

Women in business are a growing occurrence. Once relegated to the roles of caretakers more women are stepping up to bat in recent years and discovering that we are not only excellent caretakers and tenders but also exceptional providers and business minds. Savvy women in business often follow the path of least resistance. One way to do this is to buy into a coffee franchise as a business investment.

Why would a coffee franchise appeal to women in business?

There are actually quite a few reasons that coffee franchises are appealing to women in the world of business not the least of which is the fact that a franchise offers name recognition, which can cut years of struggling to build a steady customer base off the timeline. Customers are what makes money in businesses such as a coffee franchise and name recognition often brings customers in the door much more quickly than a new business that no one has ever heard of.

Coffee franchises also offer products that many women find personally appealing. This is often one level in which women in business differ from men. Women are much less likely to go into business offering a product or service that they do not genuinely like or believe in. If a woman loves coffee this is a business that she will see as an attractive business because she knows the product, enjoys the product, and is in a position to really be able to help her customers by making appropriate suggestions to those who seem to be at a loss (personally, I’m almost always at a loss in a coffee cafÈ because there are so many wonderful goodies from which to choose).

Women in business also like the idea of coffee franchises in many instances because it presents a challenge but doesn’t overwhelm. There are plenty of new and wonderful things to learn when opening a coffee franchise but the vast majority of them are pretty straightforward and not overly technical or complicated. This makes the path to ownership much more attractive to women who are less technically or mechanically inclined than the average guy and some of those who would simply rather save mechanical or technical pursuits for pleasure rather than business.

If this isn’t enough however, there is always my personal favorite reason that a coffee franchise is more attractive than some of the other food centered franchises that are available for women: no frying. That’s right. Most coffee franchises do not require a steady supply of greasy food to prep, prepare, and clean up. There is no pervasive scent of fried food that seeps into pores, clothes, and nasal passages. While all women will not count this is a favorite reason it is quite possible that most women will at least somewhere down the road consider it a definite plus when it comes to coffee franchise ownership. The scent of coffee is much more attractive than the scent of French fries-especially in the early hours of the morning when most coffee franchise stores are busiest.

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PostHeaderIcon ABCs of a Coffee Franchise

One thing that is often overlooked about running a business by those hoping to run one of their own is that it isn’t an easy proposition. If running a successful business were easy, there would be many more people doing it. The good news is that a franchise, such as a coffee franchise, makes the running of your business seem as simple as ABC.

Accounting. Franchises often have a unique method of accounting for the money earned, money owed, inventory on hand, inventory needed, and countless other details that are often learned by other business owners through painful sessions of trial and error. Learning these accounting practices makes financing the business, operating the business, paying taxes, payroll, and ordering new supplies much less painful than they have the potential to be. Little details such as this are often overlooked during the planning stages though vitally important to the success of a business.

Business management. This is a skill that isn’t inherent in most people. There are things that must be learned in order to properly manage a successful coffee franchise, or any other business. Managing a business requires the ability to see the big picture while still paying attention to the minutest details. You need to be able to make sure the store is clean, the staff is in proper uniform, the coffee is being stored and prepared properly, and that the money is going where it needs to be when it needs to be there. This is a skill that is taught during training sessions with most franchises and one that needs to be remembered and perfected.

Customer Service. When you buy a coffee franchise you will discover that your customers are your most valued assets. You will also learn that your employees and staff are you biggest tool in keeping customers or loosing them. A coffee franchise is part of the service industry and you need to stress this fact to anyone on your staff. Good customer service is essential for your business.

Demand. Before you build a coffee franchise you need to see if there is enough demand in the area to warrant a new business. Some markets are quickly becoming saturated with coffee franchise stores because of their popularity and relatively low start up costs. Do not allow your business to be a victim of low demand. Build in an area that is underserved or that has an unusually high amount of traffic to meet the demand (such as an exceptional location).

Exceptionality. Competition is fierce in the coffee franchise industry. You must be exceptional in every aspect of building your business in order to stand heads and shoulders above the rest. Offer customers the most delicious coffee, the best service, and the nicest atmosphere and you will find that your customers are loyal to your business. Fail to do this and you will find your customers going to the coffee shop down the road.

Let the alphabet be your guide and think of other ways you can make your coffee business and  stand out among the crowd.

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