A question comes up in almost every first conversation I have.
“What’s the difference between what you do and what a franchise broker does?”
It’s a good question, and most explanations you’ll find online are written by one side trying to win. So here’s my attempt at an honest comparison, including the part where a broker is the better choice for you.
The short version
The big difference between a career ownership coach and a broker is that a coach does not sell franchises.
A broker represents brands. Their job is to match you to one of them.
I don’t represent any brand. I’m your coach and your liaison, and I’m on your side of the table. My job is to help you figure out what you actually want, and then to help you find out whether business ownership is a way to get it.
Sometimes the answer is no. That’s a win too.
What a broker does well
I want to be fair here, because brokers do something valuable.
If you already know you want to buy a franchise, if you’ve done the thinking, if you know the model and the investment range and the role you want to play in the business, then a broker can move fast. They know the brands. They know what’s available in your territory. They’ll get you in front of options quickly.
That’s real value. If that’s where you are, a broker is the better fit, and I’m happy to point you toward one.
Who I’m for
The people I work with are usually earlier than that. They’re ready for a career change – they just don’t know what to change to.
They’re directors, VPs, and senior managers. They’re burned out, or they were just laid off, or they’re done trusting the next org chart. A lot of them have never seriously considered owning anything, and most of them can’t yet say out loud what they want their life to look like in five years.
That’s not a failure. It’s just an earlier stage, and it needs a different kind of help.
What the work looks like
We go on a journey of discovery, education, and awareness.
We look at your income, lifestyle, wealth, and equity goals. Not as a worksheet exercise – as the actual criteria for any decision you make next.
We look honestly at what staying put will look like in one year, and in five. That question does more work than any other one I ask.
We explore options. Franchises are one of the opportunities we look at with clients. So is a different job, a different industry, or staying put with a clearer head.
I offer choices, and a way of weighing them against what you told me you want. I don’t tell you which one to pick. That part is yours.
The two-word test
Here’s the fastest way to know which one you need.
Are you Ready, Willing and Able?
If you know what you want to buy, you have the funding lined up, and you’re ready to move, you don’t need a discovery process. We would only frustrate each other. A broker is the better fit.
If you’re not there yet – if the honest answer is “I don’t know what I want, I just know it isn’t this” – then a discovery process is exactly the thing.
One more difference worth naming
Neither of us is paid by you. That’s standard in this industry and it isn’t a red flag on its own.
Where we differ is in two places.
A broker is paid by franchise brands. I have a portfolio. Franchise brands are in it, but so are funding partners, accountants, bookkeepers, and executive placement firms. If you use something in that portfolio, that company pays me. Which means I’m not sitting across from you needing the answer to be a franchise.
And I don’t know what my fee will be. Not when we start, not while we’re working. It keeps me from steering you toward one path over another – including toward ownership at all. Staying where you are is a live option in every conversation I have, and it has to be, or none of the rest of this is worth anything.
I wrote more about how that works here: How does a career ownership coach actually get paid?
And the outcome I actually care about
Not everyone I coach ends up owning a business.
Most of my clients go on to find their dream job instead. Others discover they were meant for self-sufficiency and simply never had anyone help them through the journey.
We celebrate when a client comes to a point of clarity about their career and their next steps. Regardless of the outcome, we celebrate when someone can finally picture what their ideal future looks like.
I hope this helps you in your research of your next career step.
