4 Tips for Running a Drainage Franchise

If you’re a practical person with a passion for helping people, you should consider starting a drainage franchise. As a franchisee, you’ll be able to run your own business in a way that combines low risk and high likelihood of profit, and with these top five tips for running a drainage franchise successfully, you’ll be unstoppable.

Drainage franchise networks are a great place to start your drainage career, even with no plumbing or drain care experience. Franchisor support and training will be provided to you, and you’ll be highly likely to succeed if you take advantage of it all and follow the proven business model provided to you.

Why start a drainage franchise?

The drainage industry is growing and is expected to reach £8.8 billion in revenue [IBIS World], so there’s really no better time to make an investment with a franchise in the sector. Commercial and domestic customers across the UK use drainage professionals to improve and repair their drainage systems, saving them time and money in the long-term, and keeping premises safe and odourless. 

If you’re a practical person that enjoys customer interaction and communication, capitalise on the suitability of your existing skills and the strong demand for these services today and start your own drainage franchise. 

Many often think that working in the drainage industry means working in the dark, and in isolation. However, our days are actually filled with interaction with people - from customers that we deal with when we turn up to a job, to the teams that our engineers and other professionals work closely with on a daily basis. —Lanes Group Careers

How to run a successful drainage business

1. Find the right financial fit

Research and due diligence are crucial prior to making a franchise investment, and if you want to be sure that you can run your drainage franchise successfully, you’ll need to invest in a franchise that’s truly the right fit for you, especially in the financial sense. The last thing you’d want to do would be to invest in and start a business, only to realise you can’t continue to afford the operating and running costs. Pay close attention to price.

The average cost of starting a franchise in 2018 was £42,200 [British Franchise Association], but the individual figure can vary a huge amount depending on brand name, franchise size and franchise location. In terms of examples within the drainage sector:

• DALROD - DALROD requires a minimum investment of £20,000, with franchise fees of £34,500 and a total investment cost of £70,000.

• Drain Doctor - Drain Doctor requires a minimum investment of £35,000, with franchise fees of £35,000 and a total investment cost of £85,000.

• Metro Rod - Metro Rod requires a minimum investment of £50,000. 

2. Find the right professional/career fit

Once you have your financial situation under control, and you’ve narrowed your list of opportunities down to investments that you can 100% afford, it’s time to choose a drainage franchise that’s right for you, whether that’s a franchise with a commercial focus, a residential focus, or an emergency repair focus. 

The work you’ll be undertaking will differ depending on the franchise, so look at the types of things you’d like and dislike to do in your day-to-day work, and go from there. Passionate entrepreneurs are more likely to be successful [Harvard Business Review], so finding the franchise that truly suits you and will be continually enjoyable to you matters more than you might think. 

Passion is what drives you. Passion keeps you going despite the difficulties that your business will inevitably come across. I had many opportunities to throw up my arms and simply give up, but my passion caused me to keep going. I couldn’t think about anything but making my business succeed.
— Mike Kappel, Forbes

3. Create a detailed business plan that paves your way to success

Once you’ve narrowed it down and found the right place to invest, it’s time to create a detailed business plan. When you’re building a business plan for a drainage franchise, you should be including all the common crucial elements, such as an executive summary, a business description, service descriptions and financial details, but you should also be including information more specific to home improvement franchises, such as:

• An equipment inventory
  
  
• Operational territory details
  
  
• A pricing structure
  
  
• Customer service guidelines and plans
  
  
• Strong market research on competitors in the industry

It’s a common myth that you’ll only need your business plan to either secure some funding from a bank or to show to your franchisor before you’re welcomed on board. However, a solid business plan for your franchise could help you out even years down the line, steering you in the right direction and keeping you consistently on course.

4. Invest time and energy into your marketing campaigns

Marketing is vital to the success of your franchise business, regardless of the sector you’re working in, and it’s often a fantastic opportunity to get ahead of your less advertising-savvy competitors. Essential marketing strategies that you should use to promote and elevate your franchise include:

• Launching an aesthetically pleasing and user-friendly website 
  
  
• Providing excellent customer service that results in excellent reviews
  
  
• Making all the content that you share valuable, well-written and cohesive
  
  
• Using social media to engage with customers
  
  
• Creating strong relationships with the media (print and digital)
  
  
• Examining your competition and locating gaps in the market
  
  
• Considering and responding to community drainage needs within your territory

5. Utilise all the ongoing training and support that you’re offered

Even once you’ve been onboarded and welcomed, your franchisor’s role won’t come to an end. You’ll likely be offered ongoing training and support opportunities, and you should keep utilising these as much as you can so that you can continue to develop as a businessperson and a franchise owner. 

Actively pursuing professional development ensures that knowledge and skills stay relevant and up to date. [...] With the professional world moving at a faster pace than ever before, standing still will cause you to be left behind as peers expand their knowledge and skills.
—Mike Crawford, The Business Journals

Become a franchisee in the home improvement industry and start running your own business today

There are so many opportunities in the drainage and plumbing sectors, but if this article has shown you that you might be better placed in a different sector of the franchising world, don’t fear. Browse Point Franchise’s UK franchise directory to find your ideal investment.