Short version: the franchisor pays us a referral fee if you buy one of their franchises. You pay nothing, at any stage.
That answer usually prompts a second question, and it should.
Why it is free to you
Franchisors have a cost of finding qualified owners. They can spend it on advertising, on trade shows, on an internal recruitment team, or on referral fees to advisors who bring them people who have already been through a proper process.
That fee is already in their budget either way. It means the franchise costs you the same whether you come through us or walk in off the street. You are not paying a premium for the guidance.
What the incentive actually is
We are paid when someone buys. You should know that, weigh it, and ask any advisor the same question.
Here is the part that matters more than the structure. An advisor who pushes people into the wrong franchise builds a short career. The business runs on referrals from people who had a good outcome and on relationships with franchisors who want owners who succeed. Talking someone into a brand that does not fit damages both.
So the incentive is to make the right match, not to make any match. That is a claim, and claims are cheap, which is why the testimonials page is worth more than this paragraph. Read what people say about not being sold to.
What we do not do
We do not charge candidates a fee, a retainer, or a success payment.
We do not represent every franchise in existence. No consultant does. We work with a set of brands and we tell you that rather than implying the shortlist is the whole market.
We do not tell you franchising is right for you when it is not. A good number of the conversations we have end with somebody deciding against it, and that is a legitimate outcome of a fifteen-minute call rather than a failure of one.
Questions worth asking any franchise consultant
How are you compensated, and by whom?
How many brands do you represent, and how were they selected?
Do you get paid more for some brands than others?
What happens if I decide not to buy anything?
Have you owned a franchise yourself?
You will learn a lot from how readily those get answered. We would rather put ours in writing than have you wonder.
The thing being bought and sold
We describe the job as making you an educated buyer rather than a sale. The difference shows up in what happens on the first call: we ask what result you are looking for before we mention a single brand.
Book fifteen minutes and see whether that is how it goes.