Starting an Overseas Education Franchise Business: Things to Consider

Are you planning to start your overseas education franchise business? If yes then you are about to enter a booming sector that has lucrative business prospects. Most businesses require years of hard work before they start generating revenue. The overseas education business has a comparatively faster return on investment. Below is the list of few things which you need to consider before starting an overseas education franchise business.

Selecting the Best Possible Location

One needs to research the best location for their office. Shifting the location afterwards is a tedious task. It is better to select a good location in the beginning itself. It saves you a lot of time and money which otherwise gets spent unnecessarily. The location you need to choose should be such that it is easily accessible to staff, prospects and clients. The location should be good enough to be shown to the overseas partner institutions.  Another concern could be the presence of the rival agencies. While it might not sound believable, setting up your office near your rival could actually increase the chance of visitors coming to your office.

Establishing University Tie-ups

Having a university tie-up is highly beneficial. It boosts your profile and the potential students will be more willing to trust you if you have a working relationship with the foreign universities. You will be able to deal with clients confidently and you will have access to senior officials of the partner institutions. Another advantage is that your income will never dry up.

Making Good Use of Technology

Businesses are utilizing technology more and more. This is partly because clients are used to fast-paced communication and speedy service. All the agencies should use technologically advanced tools in order to reach out to as many students as possible.

Build a Marketing Plan

There are many players in the study abroad consultancy business. A new entrant might have a hard time getting noticed much less getting ahead of competition. You should make proper use of all the media available to boost the visibility of your services. You must create appropriate content for radio, TV, print media and advertise based on the target audience. Social media is a great platform for you to advertise yourself. Every social media platform has its own rules and regulations to follow. Having a strong online presence is extremely important in today’s scenario where everything is available online. People are more likely to engage with familiar brands and a good social media presence will help you build the same. Another way is word of mouth publicity which is yet another good way of marketing your brand. You can request your clients to write testimonials which can add to your credibility.

Get Accreditations and Certifications

Before setting up a business of your own, you need to find the legal formalities that you need to take care of. It is compulsory to register your agency with local bodies and to take a license. For example, if you are working with the US universities, then you need to get a membership of AIRC i.e. American International Recruitment Council. For UK universities, it is British Council Training for Agents. These legal and professional certifications help in enhancing the credibility of your organization.

Build Expertise

You need to build expertise in one or more areas to stay ahead of your competition. Trying to cover a lot of markets at the same time will make it difficult for you to keep up with the rapidly changing overseas education sector. What makes you stand out is the segment you specialize in.

Building a Business Model  

In order to scale up your business via franchising, you first need to create a solid business model which can be replicated in different locations. The business model that you create can then be passed on to your franchisees and implemented by them.

Conclusion

Starting an overseas education franchise business has a good return on investment as compared to other businesses. In order to franchise your business you need to follow certain procedures. You have to select the best possible location and establish the university tie-ups while making good use of the technology. You have to also build a good marketing plan and get accreditations and certifications. Building a business model will certainly help in replicating the same to successfully franchise your business. All the Best!