Organising ongoing support as a franchisor

Running a successful outlet of your own does not automatically make you an accessible, responsive franchisor. Once an independent business owner starts operating under your franchise model, questions arise that you can no longer pick up naturally on the shop floor. That is why you need to decide how to organise ongoing support before signing your first franchise agreement. Within a franchise network, this help is not an optional extra, but an important part of the relationship.

1. Understand the statutory duty to provide assistance

The Dutch Franchise Act has been in force since 1 January 2021 and forms part of Book 7 of the Dutch Civil Code. Article 7:919 requires franchisors to provide the commercial and technical assistance that may reasonably be expected for the operation of the franchise, given the nature and purpose of the franchise model.

This is not a general guarantee of profitability. Franchisees remain independent business owners responsible for running their own businesses. However, simply providing a name, a manual and a telephone number is not necessarily enough. The appropriate level of help depends on factors including the franchise model, the systems used and the commitments you make.

Commercial assistance might include help with applying a sales approach or analysing disappointing customer conversion rates. Technical assistance might relate to equipment or software specific to the franchise. You do not have to resolve every query personally, but you do need to organise the support.

The law also gives franchisees a role. If a franchisee believes they need particular assistance, they must communicate that need. The parties then discuss it. You should therefore establish a clear process for these requests. A contractual clause such as ‘support provided solely at our discretion’ cannot simply override the statutory obligation.

2. Turn general promises into specific services

‘We provide comprehensive guidance’ sounds appealing, but says little about what a franchisee will actually receive. Turn your support offering into a concise overview that reflects the day-to-day reality of your existing business.

For each area, describe:

• The support need: what problems can the franchisee ask for help with?
• The person responsible: who receives the query and who can resolve it?
• The channel: when should they use email, a ticketing system or the telephone?
• The follow-up: when can they expect an initial response and a progress update?
• The limits: when is an external adviser or supplier needed?

Distinguish between an initial response and a solution. If a system fails, you can often commit to when someone will get in touch, but not always to when an external supplier will have fixed the problem. Do not promise a resolution time you cannot deliver.

Also set out what standard support covers and which additional services may be offered separately. An example might be an extra local marketing campaign requested by the franchisee. Do not simply present necessary assistance as a paid add-on: check whether it already falls within your statutory duty and existing commitments.

Include the key commitments in the franchise agreement and set out a practical process for requesting help. Make sure your recruitment materials, contract and day-to-day delivery all convey the same message.

3. Test whether your organisation can deliver the support

In your own business, you resolve many problems almost without noticing. You spot a scheduling error, help an employee with the till system or call a supplier directly. For a franchisee, that help needs to be available remotely through a process that others can follow.

During a trial period at your existing outlet, keep a support log. Record the query, its cause, the time spent and who provided the solution. Then distinguish between one-off problems and recurring queries.

Use this overview to assess your capacity. How much support can you provide alongside running your existing business? Who covers sickness or holidays? What knowledge do you alone hold? If every query ends up with the founder, the service is vulnerable.

Test a few realistic scenarios too. For example, ask an outlet manager to report a system failure without contacting you directly. Check whether the report reaches the right person and whether the person providing cover has enough information. This will reveal, before you expand, where arrangements work only on paper.

4. Follow up on support requests without taking over the business

A good support process does not end with advice. Briefly record the problem, the assistance agreed, who will take each action and when you will discuss the outcome. Before closing the request, ask whether the help provided enables the franchisee to move forward.

When performance falls short, factual analysis matters. Work together to establish whether the difficulty lies in execution, local conditions, a system or the franchise model itself. Do not automatically blame the franchisee, but do not take over the running of their business without clear agreements either.

Use recurring requests to improve your franchise model. Several similar queries may point to unclear instructions, an inadequate tool or insufficient support. Discuss these patterns without unnecessarily sharing confidential information about individual outlets.

Practical takeaway: before signing your first franchise agreement, draw up a single support overview, assign both a lead and a backup for each task, and test the process with real requests for help. Promise only what you can deliver, without limiting your statutory duty to provide assistance.