“Franchise Today” Kicks Off Fourth Annual Franchise Legal Series

Houston, Texas – “Franchise Today” radio show begins its fourth annual “Franchise Legal” series this Thursday, April 11 and culminates with the IFA Symposium (May 5-7) recap on May 30. The eight-week series – double the content since its debut in 2010 – will deliver compelling insight from the perspective of leading legal minds within the franchising world.

“Each year we continue to expand the ‘Legal’ series based on growing listenership and the enthusiastic response from the franchising community,” said “Franchise Today” host Paul Segreto. “We are thrilled to have the opportunity to share the expertise of incredibly talented and well-respected leaders in the profession. The value they bring to our audience is immeasurable.”

Segreto and his guests will delve into the day-to-day legal issues facing franchisors as well as timely hot topics – private equity in franchising, social media legal considerations, franchise sales best practices (from a legal perspective), franchisor litigation issues, and international franchising challenges. “Listeners will walk away with a deeper understanding of legal matters and tangible advice and recommendations to help franchisors succeed in a competitive and litigious business environment,” said Segreto.

In line with presenting the franchise community with best practices and advice, the “Franchise Legal” series features an impressive lineup: Michael Laidhold of Plave Koch PLC, Lee Plave of Plave Koch PLC, Amy Cheng of Cheng Cohen LLC, Barry Heller of DLA Piper LLP, Mark Kirsch of Gray Plant Mooty LLP, Lane Fisher of Fisher Zucker LLC and Jonathan Redgrave of Redgrave LLP. Rounding out the two-month series with an IFA Legal Symposium Recap will be IFA’s Dean Heyl, director state government relations and public policy and tax counsel. Though several IFA staff members have contributed to “Franchise Today,” Heyl’s appearance marks the first time an IFA staff attorney will participate as part of the ‘Legal’ series.

Hosted by Paul Segreto, president and CEO of Franchise Foundry, the show’s newly expanded format is a series of multiple episodes with industry leaders, experts and key players sharing their unique perspectives on the chosen topic. This year’s series also included “Voices in Franchising” featuring IFA President and CEO Steve Caldeira and “Franchise Finance & Multi-Unit Franchising” in March. New to the “Franchise Today” lineup is a summer-long Franchisor Spotlight Series where some of the leading franchisors share best practices they’ve implemented for improved unit-economics and franchise growth. Additionally, Segreto is planning six to eight special event broadcasts throughout the year for a total of approximately 60 live shows in 2013.

For more information or to listen to live and archived shows, please visit http://www.blogtalkradio.com/franchisetodayshow.

Heavy-hitters in Franchising on Franchise Today in 2013

Media Contact: Sara Schulte, Fishman Public Relations, (847) 945-1300 ext. 256 or sschulte@fishmanpr.com
For Immediate Release

“Franchise Today” Announces 2013 Interview Schedule Featuring Heavy-Hitters in Franchising
Franchise radio show announces new format with in-depth, multi-part series

Houston, Texas – January 25, 2013 – “Franchise Today,” the franchise-focused radio show on Blogtalkradio.com, kicks off 2013 with a new multi-part series format featuring some of the most respected names in franchising. Following the recent merger between franchise development companies FranchisEssentials and Franchise Foundry, the platform is now a production of the latter and is poised to continue its growth within the industry.

Hosted by Paul Segreto, president and CEO of Franchise Foundry, the show’s newly expanded format continues to focus on presenting the franchise community with best practices and advice on various aspects of management and development. Each series of multiple episodes will feature industry leaders, experts and key players sharing their unique perspectives on the chosen topic. The first of nine themes centered on marketing and included guests such as CEO of PostNet Steve Greenbaum on promoting your brand, Jeremy LaDuque of ElementsLocal on the challenges and opportunities of online marketing, Steve Baxter of Satmetrix on the customer experience as a key marketing component and Sandy Lechner of SproutLoud on the brand management value proposition.

“Our goal with ‘Franchise Today’ is to help educate franchisors by providing volumes of information on the most pertinent issues in the industry,” said Segreto. “Over the past four years, we’ve been able to build a community of listeners both here and internationally that is hungry for knowledge and best practices. I’m excited to be part of a resource that can aid franchise professionals and create success at all levels.”

Upcoming Q1 series include February’s “Voices of Franchising” featuring IFA President and CEO Steve Caldeira, just days before the IFA convention, as well as Nancy Weingartner from Franchise Times; “Franchise Finance & Multi-Unit Franchising” in March; and the fourth annual “Franchise Legal Series” made up of eight parts culminating with the IFA Symposium recap for April and May. New to the Franchise Today lineup is a summer-long Franchisor Spotlight Series where some of the leading franchisors share best practices they’ve implemented for improved unit-economics and franchise growth. Additionally, Segreto is planning six to eight special event broadcasts throughout the year for a total of approximately 60 live shows in 2013.

For more information or to listen to live and archived shows, please visit http://www.blogtalkradio.com/franchisetodayshow.

About “Franchise Today”:

Hosted by industry veteran Paul Segreto, “Franchise Today” is a production of Franchise Foundry, a full-service franchise management and development company. The radio show has grown to thousands of listeners, including international, and focuses on sharing advice and best practices from the leaders of the franchise community. Segreto and his team’s goal is to educate franchise professionals and help franchisors succeed at all levels. The new format promises multi-part series throughout the year as well as several special event broadcasts. Franchise Foundry also co-produces FranSummit, a social media and digital marketing workshop. To listen to “Franchise Today” live or hear archived shows, visit http://www.blogtalkradio.com/franchisetodayshow.

A Special Thank You to Franchise Professionals Ahead of the IFA Convention!

Are we there yet? That’s what I posted on Twitter about the upcoming IFA Convention in Las Vegas. I truly feel like a kid in the backseat of a long family road trip. I can’t wait to get there. I’ve been looking forward to it for quite some time. But now that it’s within reach, only a couple of days away, my excitement is peaking. Yes, are we there yet? How many more hours until we get there? Well, when we do get there I’m going to do this and that. Let’s just call it the kid in a candy store syndrome.

It is an exciting time in franchising. Riding the heels of the positive Franchise Business Economic Outlook 2011 report, and news about even the slightest loosening of business credit, it’s definitely an exciting time to be a part of franchising.

Year-long improvements at the IFA, a new CEO and President, Steve Caldeira, who by the way was just named to the board of directors of the Small Business Legislative Council, a new and improved website and social media presence, some great new people including Matt Haller complementing some great IFA veterans including Alisa Harrison, Paul Rocchio and Scott Lehr, just to name a few, just lends to the strength of the franchise community. Great work over the past year by IFA Chairman Ken Walker and anticipation of Jack Earl, a multi-unit franchisee, as incoming Chairman further exemplifies the focus of the IFA. Definitely too many to thank on the recent segment of Franchise Today as we only had an hour. But I believe all of you at the IFA and everyone else in franchising knows who you are.

To the many guests my co-producer Joe Caruso has scheduled to be on Franchise Today over the past year, I thank you as well and look forward to meeting all of you in person at the Convention. Again, many to mention but allow me to try…

Many thanks to Steve Caldeira for taking the time out of an unbelievably busy schedule to discuss the franchise business economic outlook, Alisa Harrison for helping to coordinate Steve’s appearance as well as her guest appearance on Franchise Today, and to Ron Feldman and Darrell Johnson for their great insight into franchise finance.

Of course, I can’t forget the many lawyers Joe has scheduled for both our popular legal eagle franchise series and individual segments where we discussed a wide range of riveting, relevant topics within franchising. To Warren Lewis for his great Franchise Sellers Handbook, to Lane Fisher for his fabulous perspective on Franchise Performance Representations, to Jonathan Redgrave for his discussion about the legal aspects of social media within franchising. To Michael Webster, franchisee attorney and strategic chair at the International Association of Franchisees and Dealers, and to Leslie Curran for her insight into utilizing franchise brokers effectively. And, to Arthur Pressman, who took time out of vacation on the Cape to spend an hour talking about franchise litigation. To all the attorneys that appeared on Franchise Today, I say thank you.

On the pr side, I thank Brad Fishman and Rhonda Sanderson for two very candid conversations on Franchise Today. Of course, thank you to my most recent guest, Jack Monson, another pr genius. To Mary Ann O’Connell who is always a pleasure to speak with, to Michael Stone for sharing his vision with the Professional Athletes Franchise Initiative, and to Nancy Weingartner and Franchise Times for time spent visiting with me both on and off the air, always providing compelling franchise news and sneak peeks at upcoming issues.

On the technical side of things I thank BJ Emerson and Jeremy La Duque for their insight into social everything. And let’s not forget the franchisors and franchisees that Joe has brought through our virtual studio including Amy Nichols and Deb Evans, and Dave Melton who shared his experience and success as a Dominos franchisee.

What an unbelievable “who’s who” in franchising that Joe Caruso has brought to the table for Franchise Today. Certainly, I’ve missed some and I do thank you as well. And look forward to meeting everyone at the IFA Convention.

Last, but definitely not least, I do thank my co-producer, trusted advisor, and sometime chaplain and therapist, but mostly friend, Joe Caruso. Without him Franchise Today would not be the leader in franchise media as it is today. I can’t thank you enough.

Female Franchise Candidates: The Smart Choice For Growing Your Brand?

I just finished reading an interesting article about female entrepreneurs. It made me wonder how many franchisors have specifically targeted female entrepreneurs as franchise candidates. Even those “man-in-a-van” franchises could probably benefit by an influx of female franchisees. Maybe a paradigm shift is in order? It’s an interesting proposition to ponder.

Just recently, on Franchise Today, I had a conversation with Leslie Curran, Franchise Attorney and Partner at Plave Koch. As part of our time together, Leslie provided some insight on the Women’s Franchise Network. Of course, this group is mostly comprised of female franchise professionals within the upper ranks of franchise organizations, or at firms providing services to franchisors. A fabulous wealth of talent for sure.

I’m guessing there are female franchisees within the group. But most likely that number is relatively low. I wonder what the discussions would entail at a Women’s FRANCHISEE Network meeting? I envision discussions about improving systems and processes, as opposed to rants and raves about lack of support and other “blame it on the franchisor” issues as is typical in many predominantly male franchisee meetings. I know that may not be fair to say, but I can only go by what I’ve witnessed over the years.

As we know, the foundation of franchising is built upon relationships. And, what gender is better at relationships? Male or Female? No doubt, female. And, what gender pays more attention to detail? I cast my vote for female all the way. And, what gender is more apt to communicate and share information? Well, it’s unanimous, female once again.

So, are female franchise candidates the smart choice for growing your brand? Or, maybe, it should be the obvious choice.

What We Can Learn From Female Entrepreneurs
By: Jill Brown on Entrepreneurs Mindset

Our latest recession created a revolution led by female entrepreneurs ready for a new beginning. According to the latest polls half of all businesses are owned by women and contribute roughly $3 trillion to our Female Entrepreneurs economy; a complete turn around from yesteryear.

Female Entrepreneurs were always held back from the business arena by stumbling blocks including sexual discrimination for being female. The negative images from the “old boy’s network” of overly emotional stressed out mommy’s wanting to “play business mogul” was always a major contributor to mental bombshells that attacked success.

Women were not given the same opportunities or access as men. But women learned how to cultivate positive images and turn those negative stumbling blocks into stepping stones.

The female entrepreneur learned early on that it was far more difficult to obtain funding as in bank loans than it was for a man. While a women’s business plan was just as good as any man’s business model, men seemed to have a more personal closer relationship with banks. But in the end, women are less eager to give up their vision and think their way into winning.

The future female entrepreneur learned the super conscious secret – to believe and achieve. Whatever your mind believes you can achieve. Women used it passionately to empower and eliminate negative mindsets. Female entrepreneurs tap into intuition and allow it to work for us. And female entrepreneurs have a different take on building a business.

Women can blend easier than a man; aspiring to balance their family life, leisure, and business, but the most important motive for both is the start of their own new enterprise.

Women are more motivated by the outlook of more flexibility and equilibrium between family, work, and leisure whereas men are motivated more by the aspiration of becoming an entrepreneur and escaping slaving for others.

Female entrepreneurs work smarter not harder when it comes to building a business. Not to say they are not challenged but they are in tuned to seek out technology and innovative ways to balance their lives and manage their time.

When it comes to creating new enterprise women’s goals differ from men’s. The fact that by starting their own business they attain a higher position for themselves and their family is less important to women than to men.

In general, female entrepreneurs know that they are responsible for where they are going; women have that positive action to conquer in the midst of adversity – meet it, greet it and defeat it.

While many of us still hold self-limiting fears and surrender to the dictates of others there are many up and coming female entrepreneurs that dare to be different and can visualize the success.