Frequently Asked Questions

Our website is accessed both by those looking to invest in a franchised business and those that are looking to improve or maintain their franchise's brand image.

Those looking to start a franchised business benefit from having a list of recommended franchises based on a transparent algorithm.

These recommendations highlight those which have gone above and beyond to create and maintain a positive brand image which is valuable to those looking to start their own franchised business. Franchisors also benefit by increased interest in their franchising options once they have proven themselves to be a reputable franchise.

Due to the nature of our service, there are a number of franchises which offer a great franchising opportunity which may not be featured in our rankings.

Our rankings consist of the franchises which we have found to achieve results on a consistent basis. As our listings can only contain a limited number of franchises, we have opted to display the best based on our internal processes for research and analysis. There certainly is a train of thought that would indicate that no single franchise fits all requirements.

These franchises simply meet their objectives, in our opinion, consistently and thus are ranked as the best in our rankings. We certainly urge those looking to start their own franchised business to perform their own research in order to determine which franchise is the best fit for their project, but to utilize FranchiseRankings.com as a resource for their own research.

There certainly can be cases where there are franchises we have yet to be introduced to, especially since the franchising market is growing.

Franchisors that believe they offer exceptional value making them worthy of being featured are welcome to introduce themselves to us.

We use our SmartRank algorithm to create our lists of recommended franchises.

Learn more about how our SmartRank algorithm works here.

Those looking for franchises can use our recommendations free of charge.

We do not charge anyone for access to view our rankings.

Our transparent SmartRank technology enables us to use an algorithm to determine which franchising companies are the best.

The SmartRank algorithm uses multiple data sources and multiple points of comparison to propose which franchising companies have shown consistent top-level performance across the board.

The algorithm bases each franchise's placement within the rankings on the combination of different facts including how a franchise is reviewed online by buyers and franchisors, sentiment analysis conducted based on how they are referred to online, information gathered through third-party information brokers, and our own research.

The SmartRank algorithm uses a large number of factors to determine placement within the rankings.

Review Factors

Number of Reviews: The total number of both text and video reviews. Franchises with a greater number of total reviews with fare better.

Average Rating: The average rating of the reviews a franchise receives. Franchises with a greater average will fare better.

Reviewer Quality: An analysis is conducted on who the reviewer is. Reviews by employees or franchisors at well known companies are given more weight by the algorithm.

Insight: Franchises with reviews that elaborate more on the experience will fare better.

Relevance: The relevance of the review to the topic of sharing their experience with the franchise will get more weight.

Type of Review: The type of review and the balance of text versus video reviews is taken into consideration. Buyers should be able to read reviews while also having the option to watch video reviews.

Age of Reviews: Newer reviews are given more weight as the value of an opinion decreases over time. franchises often change processes and can improve or deteriorate over time. franchises with more recent reviews will fare better.

Time-Related / Numerical Information: Reviews are given more weight when they provide information about time or statistics.

Category-Relevant Language: Reviews are given more weight when they provide information about time or statistics.

Organic Reviews: Reviews that have not been incentivized are given more weight in the algorithm.

Reviewer Contributions: More weight is placed on reviews written by recurring reviewers that have made additional contributions to the website.

Emotional Language: Less weight is placed on reviews that were emotionally influenced as reviews that use less emotion are looking at the service from a logical perspective.

Duplicate / Similar Reviews: The algorithm takes into consideration whether the review is unique or seems to be a copy of another review.

Sentimental Factors

Website Metrics: Third-party tools are used to determine the quality and quantity of links to the franchises website. franchises with a more established presence online will fare better.

Brand Metrics: The algorithm looks to how the brand is represented and referred to online. franchises with a stronger and more positive brand reception will fare better.

Engagement Factors

Profile Engagement: Franchises which answer questions on their profile will fare better.

Review Engagement: Franchises which respond to and interact with reviewers will fare better.

Contributor Program: Franchises which have contributed to the FranchiseRankings.com blog will fare better.

Self-Prescribed FAQs: Franchises which have created their self-prescribed questions based on what they are commonly asked will fare better.

Quarterly Profile Updates: Franchises which login and update their profile on at least a quarterly basis will fare better.

Negative Reviews Resolved: Franchises which work with negative reviews to resolve the issues they have with the product or service will fare better.

Profile Factors

Key Facts: Franchises which have submitted all of the necessary key facts for their profile will fare better.

Claimed Profile: Franchises which have claimed their profile will fare better.

Review Requirement: Franchises get an additional benefit in the algorithm if they have received at least three written and two video reviews.

Additionally there are factors that could negatively influence a franchise in our algorithm.

No Reviews: Franchises that have no reviews at all will be penalized in the algorithm.

Platform Abuse: Franchises that have been found to be exploiting the algorithm may be temporarily or permanently penalized in the algorithm.

Fake Reviews: Franchises that have been found leaving fake reviews either positively or negatively will be penalized.

Our SmartRank algorithm is published on our website.

Both those seeking and those offering franchising can see the factors that influence how companies are weighted in the rankings. This provides an even playing field for all franchising companies and also provides buyers with clear insight into why one franchising company might be recommended while another is not.

Users can review any franchise they have either used for their franchising initiatives or they have worked for in the past.

We allow for both employee and customer reviews.

You can search for the company you wish to review here.

When leaving a review each user is required to authenticate through LinkedIn.

In addition to LinkedIns own authentication processes, each review that is written or recorded is filtered further through an algorithm to identify the possibility of the review being written either by the company being reviewed or a competitor.

Of course.

If your experience with a franchising company has been negative, you can leave a negative review. We ask that you provide details about what was specifically negative about the experience to help the franchise improve. franchises are also encouraged to response to reviews or work out issues that their buyers have had.

At this time we do not provide reviewers the opportunity to update their review directly.

You can request the removal of a review here. We do not remove reviews except in circumstances where the removal of a review is a benefit to buyers. We do not acknowledge or respond to requests for the removal of a review.

You can contact our support team to get help with leaving a review.

By default we display the most recent reviews received in addition to the most help and most critical reviews.

Users can filter the reviews by rating, the year they were received, or the type of review. Additionally, users can change out the reviews are sorted by either the most recent, highest reviews first, or lowest reviews first.

If you would like to share the specific review simply click on the title of that review to be directed to its unique page and URL.

Copy the URL from your address bar and paste it in the social media post.

From time to time we remove reviews that are written on false pretenses or are proven to be malicious in intent.

Its not uncommon for franchising companies to write reviews for their own franchise or for competitors to obtain a competitive edge. We analyze different trends on how different franchises attempt to do this and may retroactively remove reviews if we find a pattern.

Of course.

On each franchise profile franchising companies are able to respond to the reviews they receive. They are also able to answer questions on their profile and offer some frequently asked questions to help buyers.

To have a profile on FranchiseRankings.com you must first register.

To begin the registration process, click on the Register link at the top right of the screen. You will be asked for information about your franchise during this process.

Having a profile on FranchiseRankings.com and being included in our directory is free.

To learn about marketing opportunities including an enhanced profile with additional promotional benefits, click here.

We provide franchises on FranchiseRankings.com the ability to include key facts about their franchise, their logo, a description for the franchise, and the URL to their website.

Companies can also upload common questions and invite their customers to leave reviews.

We recommend being as honest as possible.

When adding information to your profile, it should be factual and accurate as of the time youre updating your profile. Also disclose what sets your franchise apart from others in your industry.

franchises that have registered on FranchiseRankings.com can log in using the credentials they set when registering.

Those credentials can be reset at any time from the log-in page by requesting a new password. It will be delivered to the email address that was used during the registration profile.

Alternative, franchises can also claim their profile using an email address at the same domain as their posted website.

In other cases where this cannot be achieved, a representative of the franchise can contact the support team for assistance. Additional verification may be required.

Most commonly potential investors find franchising companies through our rankings.

From our rankings the users can access the franchises website directly to contact them.

Additionally, registered franchising companies are included in our directory by default. Users looking through the directory can access the franchise profile and can be directed to the franchises website through this method.

Enhanced profiles have the ability to upload additional information about their franchise in the form of whitepapers, webinars, infographics, videos, case studies, and their certifications & accreditations.

Those interested in upgrading to an enhanced profile can learn more here.

Our registration process outlines how to be involved in the rankings.

Additionally, you can review the process for being included in the rankings by logging in and selecting the upgrade option.

You can contact our support team from an email address located on the same domain included in the profile page.

The winner seal is included in your member area after logging in if you are one of the franchises included in our rankings.

After logging in, you can access your badges by selecting Badge & Seals under Resources in the navigation menu.

We offer different promotional tools for recommended franchising companies to make use of.

This includes being able to include their retargeting code on their profile to build their advertising audience, the ability to submit a professional article to the FranchiseRankings.com blog, and have a press release submitted highlighting their achievement in the industry.

Sponsored franchising companies have access to different promotional features as mentioned previously in addition to an enhanced profile.

Enhanced profiles have new elements to add to their profile including case studies, webinars, and adding a video to their profile.

To sign up, you can log in to your profile and choose the upgrade option.

Alternative, if you do not already have a franchise profile, you can register your franchise by clicking on Register at the top right of the page and sign up for a paid sponsorship during the registration process.

You can fill out our contact form.

Alternatively, you can send an email to support@FranchiseRankings.com.