WSI franchises are all about one thing: profits.

We want to make money, and we know you want to make money. According to British franchising authorities, some 90 percent of franchises in the UK are operating at a profit, every single year. There are profits to be had in franchising, and it’s easy to see why — resources and training, combined with local independence and minimum of investment.

We offer our franchises a great many advantages in reducing the amount of investment required to get moving. Above all, a new business owner wants to get a return on investment as soon as possible, to start operating “in the black” and gaining those wonderful profits that are so important to making life go smoothly.

WSI franchises have access to training programs and support tools from the Corporate Office. We teach you what you need to know, without the fluff and time wasted that can come with other business training courses. After all, this isn’t an abstract course about the principles of business management — these are practical, focused training sessions about what you will be doing day-to-day as a businessperson. Your time is valuable, and we want to make the most of it in our training so you can focus on turning a profit.

Like all franchises, a WSI franchise offers a number of advantages over going into business completely solo.

This comes with a few compromises, inasmuch as you’ll be working with our training department and learning to use our tested and developed formula for serving your clients. But the advantages in security and understanding what you have to do far outweigh the few concessions you’ll have to make, and here’s one of the reasons why.

With any other small business opportunity, the market is something of a murky affair.

Perhaps you always wanted to open a computer repair shop, but don’t see any in the city you live in. Is this because of the Best Buy around the corner? Or is it business regulation in the city? Is there a thriving “do-it-yourself” culture in the city where people trade knowledge and perform computer repairs among themselves? How would you know any of this? Where would you start?

With a WSI franchise, you have the opportunity to research what we’re all about right up front. Your fellow franchisees can share their insight with you, all the costs of starting up are laid out right for you in a clearly-explained package to purchase — even the training schedule and materials are put up for you to look over from the beginning. There are no secrets or hidden gimmicks that you have to stumble over in surprise later; we’ve done the research already and can answer any questions you have.

There is a sense of security that comes from owning a WSI franchise.

Anyone who owns their own business will tell you the same:

Even when times are hard, there’s something both personally and practically satisfying about owning your own business that isn’t quite the same when you work with or for someone else.

In a traditional employment arrangement, even fairly high-level employees can be kept in the dark from time to time. Consider what happened with Enron, MCI-Worldcom and so on. For a more humorous example, consider the movie Fun with Dick and Jane starring Jim Carey. Even as the company was imploding all around him, he was “promoted” to be the company spokesman and take the heat. Funny yes, and a bit of a stretch, but really it was only amusing because to at least some extent, we certainly can imagine it happening!

A WSI franchise represents much more than just another job — it represents a totally new set of options you’ll have once you get started. In a traditional employment arrangement, you’d be surprised at just how many of your options are dictated by your employer.

When you’re working for someone else, they dictate:

Your vacation time…Sick days…Bereavement or maternity leave…And, of course, how much money you make!

Sure, there’s flexibility built into any traditional employment system, but the fact is that they have an extensive amount of control over how you live your life. It doesn’t have to be that way, and with a WSI franchise, you’ll not only have more control over when and where you can do these things, but you’ll also have the money to make the most of your new options.

So, we’ve mentioned a few times that the average franchise posts a return to profitability after the initial investment within one to three years. But what exactly does that mean to you? Sure, it means that’s the point where you’ve made back your initial investment and can start saving or investing money again.

But what exactly does it mean compared to a more traditional job?

Let’s start with a fairly common area of measurement: retail service…

…It can take a year of working as a cashier to be promoted to specialist or low-level management positions.

…It can take as much as five years to be promoted to higher management positions.

…There is no guarantee of being promoted, even if you work hard.

…Your hours, even after several years of work, are dictated entirely by the needs of management.

When discussing a WSI franchise, one of the first things people tend to be concerned about is the return on investment, or ROI. After all, we’re in business to make money. Providing excellent customer service and being a digital marketing pro is a great deal of fun, but it’s also nice to be able to pay the utility bills at the end of the month.

That said, the monetary concerns aren’t the only way to measure ROI, and the absolute value of the money isn’t the only question to consider, either.

First, you have to consider the rate of return.

A franchise is a considerable investment of initial money, and no matter how much it pays out in the long run, that’s not going to help if it doesn’t pay the money out quickly enough to meet your expenses and standard of living. If your rate of return isn’t quite what you need, it is time to consult with your mentor and with our guidance programs to try to change your strategy.

When presented with the options a WSI franchise offers, many people are initially skeptical, especially given the times we live in.

“In an economy like this, why would anyone take a risk and try to own their own business?” they ask.

Well, it turns out that there are a lot of reasons why someone might want to take on a WSI franchise, even in days like this.

One of the most important is that a WSI franchise does not prohibit you from taking on other work. Are you an aspiring writer looking for more time in your day to pursue your passion, but not ready to take the plunge into living on your writing fees alone? A WSI franchise allows you to control your schedule so that you can balance work and your passion on your terms, not someone else’s.

WSI franchise owners know that one of the best arguments in favor of the franchising model is the excellent return on investment it offers.

After all, many franchises reach profitability within one to three years. But sometimes a bit more detail is needed to clarify just what the return on investment for a franchise looks like.

We’ve discussed the comparison between franchise self-employment and working for a traditional company. A good way to look at the breakdown is the wage by hour comparison. How much were you making per hour at your previous job, and how much per hour now?

The reason that this is an effective way is that an hour of work is an understandable, easily-grasped measurement. You know how much you could type, data enter, manufacture, bake or sell in an hour of effort, and you know how to break down hours on the job versus pay in a period to figure out hours. It makes the concept simple to relate to.