How to Make a Career Change With a Drainage Franchise

The pandemic has given us all time to assess what we really want to do as a career. More people than ever are looking to change their careers and to become their own boss. So if you’re thinking of making a career change with a drainage franchise, here’s what you need to know to make it a reality.

Working long hours during the pandemic was difficult for many people. Especially if you’re working in a job that you don’t really enjoy. Recent surveys have shown that more people than ever are now looking to change their working situations. 

Whether it’s long hours, difficult bosses, or just a lack of passion for what you’re doing, running a franchise could be an enjoyable and profitable option for you. If you’re looking to make a career change with a drainage franchise, here are some things you need to know. 

Why start a drainage franchise?

The UK drainage network processes 16 billion litres of water every single day. With that quantity of waste and water travelling around the UK, it’s no wonder drainage franchises have been classified as an essential service provider throughout the pandemic [Ibis].

And with such a volume of water flowing through our communities, it’s no wonder that, on an almost daily basis, UK drainage franchises are called out to deal with blockages, cleaning and emergency maintenance. In fact, approximately 80% of all callouts in the industry are done on a reactive basis. 

As a drainage franchisee, no two days will be the same. You could be dealing with any number of different call-outs every day, and your services will always be in demand. 

How to make a career change with a drainage franchise

To make a career change with a drainage franchise, there are a number of things you should consider. 

1. Assess your suitability

First and foremost, assess your general suitability. The overwhelming majority of drainage franchises won’t require you to have previous experience in order to get started. However, make a mental list of some of the skills you know you already have. These could include:

• Organisation
  
  
• Reliability
  
  
• Efficiency
  
  
• Good communication skills

This is by no means an exhaustive list, but as a franchisee within a busy sector where you’ll often be needed to be at your best at very short notice, these are just some of the important skills you will need.

2. Research your options

Next, make sure you thoroughly research your options and you have a list of the advantages and disadvantages of each. There are many exciting drainage franchises currently working within this market, and there’s certain to be one for you. However, some will have different ways of working, and others may prefer you to work longer hours than others.

It’s important to tailor your options and make sure that the franchise you choose to work with is the right one for you. At the same time though, you’ll also have a good idea of the sorts of the things your competitors may do better or worse than you. This will be important information when you put together your business plan, as you’ll be able to demonstrate your knowledge of the market and your competitors. 

3. Put together a sharp business plan

Speaking of a business plan, you’ll need to put together a business plan that outlines your aims and ambitions for your drainage business. Depending on which franchisor you’re looking to go into business with. Each business plan will be slightly different depending on who will be reading it. Each version will need to be slightly different, but business plans should generally include:

• Set clear objectives and benchmarks
  
  
• An understanding of your market and your competitors
  
  
• Financial projections
  
  
• Sales and marketing plans
  
  
• An executive summary
  
  
• Location and premises plans

4. Location

You could put together a solid business plan, have all the financials worked out, and have a sharp marketing plan all ready to go, but if your business isn’t in the right location, your efforts could all go to waste. 

Having the right premises in the right location can really make the difference between a successful business and a failed business. Thankfully, as a franchisee, the likelihood of you failing is significantly lower than independent businesses, and a lot of this is due to the additional support that your franchisor will be able to give you. 

With economies-of-scale working in your favour, and with the strong purchasing power that your franchisor will have, you’re likely to find it much easier to secure the right location with the experienced guidance of your franchisor. 

5. Marketing

Finally, marketing has come a long way in a short space of time. Social media has changed the way we all consume information, meaning that businesses need to constantly looking for new ways to access new audiences. Here, your franchisor is going to be a big help.

Marketing costs money and sometimes, a lot of money. You can spend a lot of money just putting together a marketing strategy to help launch your business, but you’ll also need plenty of budget to keep financing your drainage business well into the future. 

Thankfully, your franchisor will be constantly on the lookout for new ways to innovate its marketing, meaning you’ll be able to benefit from a tried-and-tested, well-researched marketing strategy. 

Become a drainage franchisee and run a low-risk, high-profit business

Franchising in the drainage sector is one of the most popular business models currently operating in the industry. And with good reason. As a franchisee, you’ll be able to minimise your risks, while reaping all the rewards of a profitable business.

If franchising sounds like the right opportunity for you, you can see a number of different drainage franchising options by staying on Point Franchise. Or, if you’d rather see a sector-by-sector breakdown of opportunities in other sectors, you can have a look at the UK franchise directory.