33 Common Mistakes When Organising Franchisee Conferences

Franchise Relationships:

Conferences are costly exercises in terms of time and money. We have seen a lot conferences fail to add the value they could have because of one or more of the following mistakes. We hope these 33 tips help to make your next event the success that you and your franchisees deserve.

1 program, a lack of focus on why people are there, and ultimately, a poor return on investment.
2 Not having an effective planning team – behind every successful conference is a motivated, well organised team clear on their respective responsibilities.
3 Last minute planning of speakers – makes it hard to get the people you want and places you in a weak negotiating position.
4 Franchisor team not clear on their role – can result in them just hanging around and not adding value in the sessions or at the event.
5 Too much talking about operational issues by franchisor executives – can cause franchisees to feel bored, nagged or patronised.
6 Not asking suppliers for assistance, financial or otherwise – they are often more than happy to sponsor speakers or meals.
7 Not involving franchisees in the planning – franchisors often assume they know what franchisees want and get it wrong.
8 Not putting enough thought into making people feel welcome when they arrive or at the start of an event – an audience that is uncomfortable or distracted is unlikely to effectively listen and learn.
9 Poorly chaired by an internal manager – can create a clumsy or amateurish atmosphere.
10 Death by Power Point– speakers boring the audience with slide shows that are full of text. Read More