How to make more money with a small business

Earning a full-time wage on part-time hours sounds like a fantasy. In most cases, it is. However, the adaptable nature of the franchise model makes it uniquely suited to semi-absent ownership. Here, we take a look at what you need to be doing to earn a full-time wage from a part-time franchise. In other words, how you can make more money with a small business.

>> Read more:

• The Benefits of Starting a Part-Time Franchise
• Weighing up the pros and cons of a part-time franchise
• Can You Make Money as a Part-Time Franchisee?

How to make more money with a small business

Change your mindset

There’s a big difference between working in a business and working on a business. Many franchisees jumped at the opportunity to invest in their franchise because it gave them the chance to own a business and build it from the frontline. They wanted to be a part of day-to-day business operations, enjoyed the micromanagement aspect of owning a franchise and thrived working amongst customers and their staff. If you're looking to earn a full-time wage with a part-time franchise, this isn’t an approach you’re going to be able to take. Instead, you’ll need to change your mindset, re-evaluate how you run the franchise, and become a different type of leader.

Carefully consider your role in the business

Rather than setting up your business so that it requires your continued presence, it’s necessary to take on a slightly different role. The first step in this process is to consider your position from a new perspective. While the majority of franchisees consider themselves business owners, you’re going to think of yourself as more of a CEO type figure. You are removed from the action, viewing operations from a slightly detached vantage point, from which you can map out the future with greater clarity. You are working towards a very specific objective – building a franchise that allows you to reduce your working hours while still receiving a full-time pay packet. That is never going to happen if you're always getting your hands dirty and aren't capable of delegating to others.

Find a suitable franchise

There is a wealth of profitable franchise opportunities out there for you, but not all of them will be well suited to your ultimate objective. Some franchises require you to take a role inside the business as a day-to-day manager. Others won't be profitable if you have to hire additional staff. Many franchisors won’t consider your application if you’re intending to run the franchise from a distance or aren’t interested in putting in a full working week. Consequently, it's essential that you do your research and identify those franchises that will allow you to step back and leave the everyday business to your employees.

Most franchises that are compatible with the part-time franchisee model will openly advertise themselves as being so. For many, it's one of their biggest draws. Others won't market themselves as suitable for part-time owners but have systems in place that do facilitate such a management system. If you're not sure whether a particular franchise permits part-time ownership, the best thing to do is contact them. The franchisor management team will be able to provide plenty of information relating to part-time ownership and help you work out whether it's feasible if they don't already have semi-absent franchisees.

Turn employees into leaders

Nurturing the staff that will become the franchise's leadership team in your absence is possibly the most important step in becoming a part-time owner. Unless you can develop a team of individuals that you trust to take on day-to-day management, you’re never going to be able to fully step back and reduce your hours. There will always be something calling you back – a nagging doubt, a desire to check in and ensure everything is running smoothly or urgent calls from inept and under-skilled managers will always keep you from developing the franchise into a part-time venture.

Identify high potential individuals

Consequently, it’s necessary to begin preparing your employees for leadership from day one. Identify the individuals you believe demonstrate the highest potential, start delegating more significant responsibilities and try to provide them with as many educational and training opportunities as possible. Ensure that they understand what the end goal is and let them know that advancement is a distinct possibility. If they’re able to handle running the franchise, they will do. This can be a major motivation for many employees and can encourage them on to bigger and better things in a way that's just not possible if they don't see career advancement in their future.

Be Patient

It’s also important to remember that becoming a part-time franchisee takes time. You're not going to be able to set up the business and step back immediately. There will be months, maybe even years, of hard, full-time work before the franchise is secure enough that you feel comfortable taking a backseat. This is the price you’ll pay for the work-life balance you’re searching for. In most cases, part-time franchisees believe this to be a price worth paying. In the early days, much of your time will be dedicated to learning how the franchise operates, where problems are likely to arise and how the franchisor expects the business to function. This experience endows you with an in-depth knowledge that is invaluable when it comes to setting up the franchise for part-time ownership.

Utilise support structures

Even the most affordable franchises have developed comprehensive support structures that allow franchisees to benefit from the wealth of experience and expertise that they’ve accumulated. Part-time franchisees need to take advantage of these support structures if they're to begin minimising their hours. Make sure you understand what kind of support you're eligible to receive before you sign a franchise agreement. Look for ways that the franchisor can help ensure your business is ready and utilise all the assistance you can get your hands on.

Conclusion

If you're going to become a part-time franchisee with a full-time wage, it's necessary to plan ahead, prepare the business for your reduced role and build a replacement leadership team. This needs to begin happening as soon as possible, to ensure that the business doesn’t become over-reliant on your presence. Always work with your end goal in mind and ensure that you have a trusted team beside you to take over the reins when you’re ready.

Eight ways to increase the profits of your small business

Making as much money as possible is important to both individuals and business owners alike, as it often comes hand in hand with how successful you are and the quality of life you can live. If a small business makes healthy profits, it can stay up and running and keep paying staff wages, and has the potential to grow. Therefore, we now look at eight ways you can maximise your profits when running a small business.

Limit your use of paper

Reducing the business’ use of paper is good not only for the environment but also for cutting costs. It is difficult to go 100 percent paperless, but making an actual effort to use less will help you save costs associated with paper too; for instance, printer toner, storage cabinets and binders. Replace paper with electronic forms and filling systems. You can email invoices to clients and vendors and cut back on costs of postage, envelopes etc.

Don’t dedicate as much time to low-value activities

You’ll want to focus your time on actions that will positively impact your business. In order to effectively achieve this, you need to stop doing activities that don’t add any value. Often, when small businesses grow, they tend to dedicate too much time on activities like payroll, invoicing, accounting and secluding, which are essential but low value. Processes like this can occupy an unnecessarily large amount of the employees’ or business owner’s time. Therefore…

Take advantage of automation software and online solutions

You can’t avoid these essential activities, but you can find ways to achieve them without spending lots of time on them. Therefore, you should look to automate operations to save time. In recent years, there have been developments of mobile solutions to these low-value activities. Therefore, it’s possible for small business owners to manage their employees, clients and bills anytime, anywhere – often in a single platform solution too. There are plenty of free applications that can be downloaded.

Make it as easy as possible for customers to purchase your product or service

If it’s difficult for a customer to complete a purchase, they may become irritated and use the services of another business instead. Try to make it as simple and straightforward as possible. Remember that it’s important to try to increase sales to already existing customers, rather than focusing all your time on enticing new customers. Be sure not to neglect your current customer base to maximise profits.

Keep on top of timings

If you want to limit waste and optimise how you use your resources, you need to keep track of how time is being spent. This could either be completed manually in a shared doc or using time tracking software like Tsheets, Everhour or Tick.