Running a business is a great way to earn a living. You have a great deal of freedom about what you do with your time, and you have the autonomy to make most of the decisions about the way you run your business. The buy or build decision is one of the first.
While those things are true about any business you run, there are some other areas that differ based on what type of business you get into. The two most fundamental options for running a business are building your own enterprise from the ground up, and running a franchise.
Both of these options can be quite lucrative. You probably know people who have been quite successful in both categories. So when you choose to join their ranks, how do you decide which route to go? Think about some of these considerations as you begin this internal debate.
What Your Market Needs
The market is probably the single most important element of the decision-making process in every aspect of running a business. If the market isn’t there, nothing else matters. You will not succeed. The buy or build analysis is mute. Conversely, when there is an unmet need in a market, a business can do well even with mediocre management.
If you are in a market that lacks some of the top franchises, it can be an obvious choice to go with one of them. The corporation has built their franchise plans to match up with the exact situation where you are, so you will have a high likelihood of having everything fall into place. It is just a matter of following the plan and doing the work. By the same token, if your market seems to have a niche market that is unmet, you may be able to find success with a startup. And of course, an online business is an ideal route for budding entrepreneurs.
What Your Talents Are
There are really three main parts to running a business: Generating a product or service, marketing it, and managing it. Entrepreneurs who feel they lack the creativity to do those tasks from the ground up may feel more comfortable with a franchise. After all, it provides an established product, a framework for marketing, and a system for managing it.
But if your personality is such that you thrive on developing new things and you have a skill for marketing and management, you might be more satisfied and fulfilled by building your own business. It’s all about your personality, so spend some time doing some self-examination to get an idea of whether buy or build really suits you best.
What Your Future Plans Are
For many people, they view their business no differently than other people view a job. They expect to put in 30 years on the job and then sail off into the sunset. Others like to build one business, liquidate it, and build another. This group is known as serial entrepreneurs, and they get as much satisfaction from the beginning and end of their time with the business as they do from the time in it.
Franchises are ideal for the long haul. Their owners can simply sell out to another franchisee who can pick up right where the previous owner left off. Conversely, serial entrepreneurs derive so much of their satisfaction from that process of building value in a startup that they will be more content with developing a new business. Once again, the buy or build decision comes down to self-examination and understanding exactly what motivates you, what inspires you, and what brings you satisfaction.
Despite the differences between new businesses and franchises, there are certain common threads that must be inside you. You must have high standards for the work you do, a high degree of involvement in daily operations, a determination to be successful, and of course, a willingness to work hard. From there, it’s all about hashing out the details and identifying just what type of business is best for you.
