Sharon McRill: Serendipitous Investors

Before this video I had no idea about what the Betty Brigade was. Now that I do I am very amused, as this industry is something I just discussed with a friend last week when we analyzed our networking abilities. We joked about opening our own service. I had no idea that this was a popular concept here in Michigan. It seems as though this type of service is one too frequently overlooked. With the age of the Internet and search engines it is quite simple to connect yourself with a contact of your own needs. When approached that way it is a cold call and there is no relationship in the beginning. That is where this service seems wonderful. The concierge has made it their profession to create relationships that their clients will benefit from. The truth is that in life it is not what you know, but whom you know. This industry proves that. I was a little unsure about the idea of franchising this service. It is a very personal service business. Everyone has their own contacts and their own abilities. Not all people will be able to meet the abilities of Sharon. When they do not, but are under that franchise name, it may reflect negatively on the franchise as a whole, discounting their reputation. What type of training will be provided to the franchisees? Will there we a database of contacts that all franchises has access to? Something I liked was when Sharon mentioned that she was originally timid about discussing her idea with others. Later she realized that no two ideas would be the same. This is true because when I thought about this service last week, I would have never thought to stress the dog walking. This is a service that many people need and will pay excellent money for. Although I wouldn’t be confident to be shouting my own idea from a rooftop until I had built a strong, reputable name for my company that no competitor could mimic.

The Betty Brigade introduces franchising. I am surprised how low cost Sharon ball parked for the franchise. But she then explains how little it takes to run a business like hers. It more or less takes the right person as opposed to the right stuff to run their own brigade. The conversation she had with the Asian woman and the last statement she makes in the interview opened my eyes a little bit and from a marketing standpoint, it makes sense. The more people you tell about your business, the more potential customers or investors you will have. One more thing i took away from this interview was that you just never know who you are talking to. It could turn out to be someone with great connections to HSBC and Chase. Sharon, where do you think you will take your franchises? -Dave Howard