Who Cares What Franchisors Call Their Offices?

Posted on April 2, 2010 by Lizette Pirtle

Many franchisors make the mistake of calling their offices Head Quarters, Head Office or Corporate. It is sometimes difficult for my franchise startup clients to understand why this choice can be a mistake; after all, most of them are setting up to grow a large business and they identify this growth with those terms. It is only until they stop to think that what they call their franchise offices sets the tone of their relationship with franchisees that they understand the importance of choosing the right name.

Most franchisees come from a corporate background; they broke away from their past employment for different reasons but most of them share a dislike for the corporate structure. The terms “Head Quarters, Head Office or Corporate” remind your franchisees of what they left. These terms set a distant, formal and dictatorial relationship between franchisor and franchisees. They do not inspire trust. Many franchisees detest anything that reminds them of their days in the corporate world of bosses, ties, boring meetings, and having to follow someone else’s agenda all the time.

The terms “Head Quarters, Head Office or Corporate” were commonly used in the early years of franchising; but as franchisors began to see the dynamics they created they started moving away from them. Today many franchisors use more appropriate terms to refer to their offices. The most commonly used is Support Center. I happen to like this term because it really conveys the relationship and the role of the franchisor. But by no means is it the only appropriate term.

When I work with start up franchisors I encourage them to think of creative terms to refer to their offices; terms that carry their philosophy, as well as the informality or formality of the relationship they want to have with their franchisees. Let’s consider some:

  • The Oven, for a Pizza franchise
  • The Garage, for a Movers franchise
  • The Tree, for a wood restoration franchise

I can create all kinds of positive stories and philosophies around the above industry specific terms. What about the following more general terms:

  • Innovation Central
  • Communications Central
  • Resource Center
  • Operations Improvement Central

Just like the name of your business has helped you succeed; what you call your franchise offices has a tremendous impact on your relationships with your franchisees and thus on your success as a franchisor. Make sure you spend enough time and energy choosing the right one. If you are currently using a name that maybe creating problems, change it. The effort to make the edits in your Manuals and other documents is well worth it.

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