Selling Point If you've got sales experience, GlobeNetix is sold on you.
By Devlin Smith
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
The folks at GlobeNetix, an ISP franchise, know exactly the type ofpeople they want for franchisees, and they'll do whatever ittakes to attract them-including financing their franchisefees.
In January, the Houston-based company launched JumpStart, aprogram designed to bring top sales professionals to the franchise."Lots of folks are interested in franchising, in owning theirown business, but may not have the means to participate in thetraditional franchise opportunity," says Ben Litalien,GlobeNetix founder and president.
The JumpStart program includes a plan that provides GlobeNetixfranchisees with financing for the $25,000 franchise fee, reducingfranchisees' start-up costs to about $7,500.
Over the next two years, GlobeNetix will travel to 30metropolitan areas in the United States to meet with prospectivefranchisees. Evaluating a person's sales experience andprofessionalism, the company will select one JumpStart franchiseefor every 20,000 businesses in a city. In Houston, for example,where there are a little more than 100,000 businesses, GlobeNetixwill have five JumpStart franchisees.
GlobeNetix is looking for entrepreneurs with experience inconsultative selling and will run the franchise full time,distributing Internet services to small and midsized U.S.businesses. A technical background isn't required.
"Many prospective franchisees don't have a salesbackground," Litalien explains. "We're using thisprogram to attract people who are already familiar with the salesprocess, and that's what's going to allow them to jump intoour franchise."
Besides the franchise fee, start-up costs include $7,500 fortraining, supplies, and a technology package that includes a laptopand a digital camera.
