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When deciding on which route to take for your career, there are many factors to consider between buying a franchise, becoming self-employed or finding a job and becoming employed.
Our friends over at Get Ahead VA have put together some information on the main things to consider between each of the options you have to help you make an informed decision on what could be the rest of your life.
Work-Life Balance & Lifestyle
Franchise
- It is a tried and tested model, so you know what to expect.
- You can work your franchise around your lifestyle and set your hours.
Self Employed
- You will need to do a lot of research upfront.
- Invest time and money to make sure it works.
- There is quite a lot of uncertainty.
- You may be more obliged to put in extra hours to get your business off the ground.
Employed
- Defined working hours.
- A set working environment with limited holiday.
- Core hours and discretionary expectations with no overtime.
Business Strategy
Franchise
- The business strategy exists, and there is a clear path to follow with a complete toolkit of everything you need, from launching your business to growing it.
Self Employed
- You will need to create and develop this strategy by yourself which could be a steep learning curve.
Employed
- The strategy will be in place, and you are unlikely to be involved in its creation or development.
Assistance
Franchise
- You will receive support from the franchisor & franchisee network.
- You will be given full training as part of your induction and ongoing.
Self Employed
- You will be able to source your own support from local Chambers of Commerce, but this will be trial and error, and you will need to rely on recommendations.
Employed
- Available from internal resources, e.g. line manager, HR, IT
Costs
Franchise
- The business costs will be known upfront.
Self Employed
- There will be usual business costs, website, branding, recruitment etc.
- These are unpredictable, but you can start from a low base.
Employed
- These costs could be commuting/travel, home office if working from home sometimes, childcare.
Risk
Franchise
- Risk is limited as the business model has been thoroughly tested. You will be following a roadmap for success.
Self Employed
- There is a greater risk as more factors are unknown.
- You are your own boss, and don’t share the risk with anyone else.
Employed
- You are at the mercy of your bosses and the business as a whole, so you will share the risk even if you are doing a great job.
Brand
Franchise
- A franchise provides established brand awareness as the business reputation is already in place.
- Clients may well be aware of your franchise brand already.
- The brand is shared across the franchise, so it isn’t unique to you, but you can adapt it to add personality within brand guidelines.
Self Employed
- You will need to build up awareness of your business from scratch. There are more business risks as you need to prove yourself, but your brand will be unique.
Employed
- Branding exists, and you will have rigid guidelines to follow unless you are in the marketing department!
