25+ Questions to Ask Franchise Owners Before You Invest

Why Validation Calls Are the Most Important Step in Franchise Due Diligence

You can read every page of the Franchise Disclosure Document, analyze Item 19 financial data, and tour the corporate headquarters — but nothing replaces a candid conversation with someone who is actually living the franchise experience day to day. Validation calls with existing franchise owners are the single most important step you can take before investing.

The FDD tells you what the franchisor wants you to know. Existing franchisees tell you what it is actually like to operate the business: the real startup costs, the actual revenue trajectory, the quality of support, and whether they would do it again knowing what they know now.

Franchise sales teams are skilled at presenting their brand in the best possible light. That is their job. Franchisees who have been operating for two, five, or ten years have no financial incentive to sugarcoat their experience. Most are willing to be honest with prospective buyers because someone did the same for them.

How to Get Franchisee Contact Information

Every FDD includes Item 20, which lists the name, address, and phone number of every current franchisee in the system. The FDD also lists franchisees who left the system in the past fiscal year. Both lists are valuable.

Current franchisees can tell you about the present state of the system. Former franchisees — those who sold, transferred, or chose not to renew — can tell you why they left. If the franchisor discourages you from contacting former franchisees or makes it difficult, treat that as a significant red flag.

How Many Calls Should You Make?

Plan to speak with a minimum of 10 to 15 franchisees, and ideally more. The goal is to identify patterns, not just individual experiences. One unhappy franchisee might have a personal issue. Five unhappy franchisees citing the same complaint reveals a systemic problem.

Diversify your calls across:

• Geography — Different markets perform differently
• Tenure — Speak with both newer franchisees (1-2 years) and veterans (5+ years)
• Performance levels — If possible, talk to both strong performers and those who have struggled
• Single-unit and multi-unit operators — Their experiences and perspectives differ

25+ Questions to Ask Existing Franchise Owners

Financial Reality (The Numbers)

1. What was your total investment to open, including everything the FDD did not account for? The Item 7 estimate often understates real costs. Franchisees know the actual number.

2. How long did it take to break even? The time from opening to consistent monthly profitability is critical for your cash reserve planning.

3. What does a typical month look like in terms of revenue and expenses? You are looking for a realistic picture, not a best-month anecdote.

4. Are you making the income you expected when you signed? This question reveals whether pre-sale expectations matched reality.

5. What are your biggest ongoing expenses beyond royalties and rent? Hidden costs (technology fees, required vendor pricing, marketing co-op shortfalls) add up.

6. If you had to do it over, would you invest in this franchise again? The single most telling question. Pay close attention to hesitation, qualifiers, and tone — not just the word “yes” or “no.”

Franchisor Support and Training

7. How would you rate the initial training program? Was it sufficient to prepare you to operate the business?

8. What does ongoing support from corporate look like in practice? Some franchisors are highly engaged. Others are absent after you open.

9. How responsive is your franchise business consultant or field support rep? The person assigned to help you is your primary lifeline. Their quality matters enormously.

10. Has the franchisor followed through on the promises made during the sales process? Broken promises — especially about marketing, technology, or support — are a common source of franchisee frustration.

11. How has the franchisor handled system-wide challenges (economic downturns, supply chain issues, competition)? This reveals how the franchisor performs under pressure.

Daily Operations

12. What does a typical day look like for you? This grounds your expectations in reality. Some franchise owners work 30 hours a week. Others work 60+.

13. How many employees do you have, and what are the biggest staffing challenges? Labor is the number one operational headache in most franchise systems.

14. What is your role in the business day to day — are you working in it or managing it? This depends on whether you plan to be an owner-operator or a semi-absentee owner.

15. What surprised you most about running this franchise? The answers to this question are consistently the most insightful comments you will hear.

Biggest Challenges

16. What is the hardest part of operating this franchise? Every business has pain points. You need to know what they are before you commit.

17. Have you ever considered selling or closing? If so, why? Even happy franchisees have had tough stretches. Their honesty here is revealing.

18. What is the biggest mistake you made in your first year? Learning from others’ mistakes is the entire purpose of validation calls.

19. If you could change one thing about the franchise system, what would it be? Patterns in these answers reveal systemic weaknesses.

Territory and Marketing

20. Do you feel your territory is adequately protected? Encroachment — the franchisor placing another location too close to yours — is a frequent dispute in franchise systems.

21. How effective is the national/regional marketing fund? Franchisees contribute to advertising funds (typically 1-3% of revenue). Some get excellent marketing support. Others feel the fund is poorly managed.

22. What do you spend on local marketing beyond the required fund contributions? This reveals whether the brand’s marketing generates enough awareness or whether you need to supplement significantly.

Technology and Systems

23. How would you rate the technology platform (POS, CRM, scheduling, reporting)? Outdated or unreliable technology creates daily operational friction.

24. Does the franchisor invest in improving systems, or has technology stagnated? Ongoing investment signals a franchisor that is thinking about the long term.

25. Are there required vendors or purchasing requirements that feel overpriced? Mandated vendor relationships where the franchisor receives rebates can inflate your operating costs.

The Big Picture

26. Knowing everything you know now, would you choose this franchise over other options? Different from “would you do it again” — this asks about comparative value.

27. What advice would you give someone considering this franchise? Open-ended questions like this often produce the most candid, unscripted responses.

How to Conduct Effective Validation Calls

Before the Call

• Review the franchise’s FDD data on VetMyFranchise so you understand the brand’s financials before calling
• Prepare your questions in advance but be ready to go off-script when interesting threads emerge
• Identify the franchisee’s location and tenure so you can contextualize their answers

During the Call

• Introduce yourself honestly. Tell them you are evaluating the franchise and would appreciate 20 to 30 minutes of their time.
• Start with easy questions (how long have you been open, what’s your background) before diving into financials.
• Listen more than you talk. Your job is to gather information, not to sell yourself.
• Ask follow-up questions. When someone says “support could be better,” ask “Can you give me a specific example?”
• Take detailed notes. You will not remember everything from 10 to 15 calls.

After the Call

• Immediately write down your overall impression and any gut feelings
• Track answers in a spreadsheet so you can identify patterns across multiple calls
• Flag any answers that contradict what the franchisor told you

Red Flags in Validation Responses

Watch for these warning signs across your calls:

• Multiple franchisees cite the same unresolved complaint. One person’s issue might be isolated. The same issue from five different owners is systemic.
• Franchisees are reluctant to discuss finances. Successful owners are usually willing to share general financial information. Consistent reluctance may indicate embarrassment about poor results.
• Several owners mention they would not invest again. If more than 20-30% of the people you speak with express regret, the system likely has fundamental problems.
• Owners describe a dramatic gap between sales promises and reality. This suggests the franchisor’s sales process is misleading.
• Former franchisees describe adversarial relationships with corporate. Litigation, bullying tactics, or refusal to approve transfers signals a toxic franchisor culture.
• The franchisor actively discourages you from making calls. Any franchisor that tries to limit your contact with existing owners is hiding something.

Combine what you learn from validation calls with the data in the FDD and analysis from tools like VetMyFranchise to build a complete picture. No single source of information is sufficient — but validation calls come closest to giving you the ground truth about a franchise system.