The global COVID-19 pandemic has changed the landscape of our personal and professional lives; accelerating change and forcing people and companies to adapt like never before. One truth we have learned during this period is that transparent and open communication are more important than ever.
We have seen this in our operations. Proactive and transparent communication strengthened existing customer relationships. Many franchisees took on new customers because their previous service provider could not proactively meet their needs. As a result, during the initial period when many businesses were shut down entirely, and even more saw drastic cuts in revenues, U.S. Lawns franchisees, on average, saw their businesses hold strong.
Still, the COVID-19 situation continues to evolve and is far from over. As we all adjust to doing life and business differently, we also recognize the need to create a Discovery Process that is communication forward, accessible and transparent. Our process has always sought to help candidates better understand not only the U.S. Lawns offering, but franchising as a whole, as we felt this best enabled them to make an informed decision.
But that wasn’t enough anymore. As the world changed around us we wanted to find new ways to add value. We wanted to make sure that every candidate had every opportunity to feel and experience the U.S. Lawns culture and brand. We’ve added more “touch points” to reinforce our brand values and are looking at ways we can use technology to create more meaningful experiences.
The last thing we are looking to do is “hard sell” a candidate for whom our brand is not going to be a good fit. We are asking someone to consider a relationship with our brand that will last at least ten years, so the aggressive sales tactics of yesterday don’t make sense. As such, the Discovery Process is designed to help determine mutual fit and is broken down into three phases, each with its own distinct purpose:
Assess
To begin the process you’ll speak with members of our franchise recruiting team to assess your personal goals and objectives in pursuing business ownership and determine if U.S. Lawns might be a good fit to help you achieve them. We’ll exchange some high level information to learn more about you and to answer your questions about the U.S. Lawns franchise opportunity. You’ll also have the opportunity to review the U.S. Lawns Franchise Disclosure Document which explains our franchise offering in detail.
Align
Here you will continue to work with our recruiting team, digging further into the details to align goals and expectations. You’ll have a chance to interact with some of our franchisees and key members of our support team to clarify your vision of life as a U.S. Lawns franchisee. You’ll begin to experience the U.S. Lawns culture and values through our Brand DNA and evaluate alignment with your own core values.
Affirm
By now you’ve learned what you need to know about U.S. Lawns in order to make a decision about joining our team. We will work together to affirm all you have learned and schedule a call for you to have a one-on-one conversation with our president, Ken Hutcheson, to be formally approved to move forward. We’ll then prepare and execute franchise agreements, schedule new franchise training and celebrate the next chapter in your career and life.
The entire process generally takes about four to eight weeks depending on the comfort and readiness of the candidate. We look forward to helping you explore the U.S. Lawns opportunity.
