LIBERTY TAX SERVICE Franchise Complaints
UnhappyFranchisee.com asked: Are LIBERTY TAX SERVICE Franchise Owners Happy? If you’re familiar
with the Liberty Tax franchise, please share a comment below.
Entrepreneur magazine has ranked the Liberty Tax Service franchise #3 behind McDonald’s & Subway. However, some commenters who claimed to be former Liberty Tax franchisees left stern warnings on the Franchise-chat forum.
This post was originally published
BostonTax wrote:
I’m a former Liberty Tax Franchisee
I hope you are ready for a little enlightenment! I held a successful Liberty Tax Franchise for 5 years until I decided to let the franchise agreement lapse. I did this for a few reasons:
1. The royalty fees were outrageous! 14% went to normal royalty while and ADDITIONAL 5% went for so called advertising royalties. The ad royalties were supposed to be put back into your local market to build the brand name. This was never done! All advertising in addition to the ad royalty I had to pay for because it did not fit into Liberty’s concept of advertising. I don’t know exactly what the concept was because our AD could not give an answer and the approved methods changed by the week.
2. Corporate was totally unresponsive to the needs of the franchisees. The AD system is designed to recruit anyone who can write a check for 100K. No other skills or ability required.
3. The minute you are behind in a royalty payment, they send you a notice to cure. After that, if you don’tpay, they try to terminate your franchise agreement.
4. Upon termination, Liberty enforces through legal proceeding a 2 year, 25 mile radis non compete clause that is in the franchise agreement. This is enforceable in the Eastern Division of the Federal District court, where, at least 2 Liberty friendly judges preside.
5. Liberty does not recognize chargebacks for bad debts as an adjustment for your royalty fees. All royalties are based on your gross, not your net collectable. This was an ongoing issue with them and the accounting department did not have the ability or the inclination to resolve!
My best advice is do not go with these guys, they are bad news. If you like to have people collect royalties and provide no support, then this is the franchise for you! It is very expensive to get into, the initial fee is around $32K just to buy the territory plus those pesky royalties. You can’t make money on this concept.Most of the surviving franchisees I’ve talked to in the last 2 years have experienced great difficulty not only in making a profit, but in the corporate support or lack thereof.Remember, 19% of your gross is getting kicked back to Liberty, which is excessive by any standards. Please do yourself a favor and call former franchisees ,those that are currently getting sued (they are very likely to talk, as I found out), and current ones to try to get the straight poop.
Barbara Green wrote:
I too was a Liberty Tax Franchisee and I agree with everything you said.
The only reason for purchasing any franchise is because the business model is a proven marketing success as evidenced by the profitable franchisees. That is why you pay a license fee of $25,000. Being profitable is not in the cards for a Liberty Tax franchisee. Liberty Tax’s market/ business model is aimed at individuals who have very simple tax returns, i.e one W-2 and standard deduction which is why they were very successful in Norfolk, Va. That market is full of military people with one w-2.
Liberty will sell anyone a franchise at any location, in any georgraphic area, even if there is not a chance in hell of the franchisee being successful.
At one time, I too owned a Liberty Tax Franchise for one tax season. It was only one season because of the behavior of the Regional Manager who called me on January 15th demanding and screaming “Why had I not generated 200 tax returns and that maybe this business was not for me. I was stunned and confused since employers are given until January 31st. to give w-2’s to employees. Apparently, he thought that I was in Norfolk, Va. where that is possible.
It only goes downhill from there. The bottom line is I lost all of my investment in this businees (approx. $80,000) because I closed it rather than becoming a victim of this unethical company. NOthing would make me happier than to be a part of a class action lawsuit.
WHAT DO YOU THINK? DO YOU OR HAVE YOU OWNED A LIBERTY TAX SERVICE FRANCHISE? ARE LIBERTY TAX SERVICE FRANCHISEES HAPPY? WHY OR WHY NOT?
.
Disgruntled Spouse:
JTH does not “have your wife’s back”. He has wined and dined so many franchisees to get them to think he’s singling them out. He did that to me, too, and I mistakenly thought I would become an AD.
He is more than a crook. PLEASE have your wife protect herself. She is in for a wild ride like so many of us have been through. I cannot tell you how many years I had been invested in this crooked franchise, almost since the beginning.
Make sure you plan out an exit stratedgy…….a way to make money that has nothing to do with taxes, because she will either have to walk away completely, or get sued…….not much choice in-between. I fear of saying too much on this board since I want to remain anonymous, however I am highly educated and with tons of experience. I knew one year into the five year contract I had made a grave mistake and have been paying the price literally, ever since. Thousands of dollars have gone to legal.
Please protect yourselves. Yes, every contract is slanted in LT’s favor to the Max. Please consult a FRANCHISE attorney right now, so they can help you exit as painlessly as possible. JTH will take your money, your livliehood, your house, your first born too. There is no stopping his destruction. He will stop at NOTHING to make himself come out ahead and throw you under the bus, even if he verbally says otherwise, like “I have your back”. That’s bullshit. It will never happen in a way that’s beneficial to anyone other than himself.
I am waiting with baited breath to see him and LT come crashing down. Hope they get him good. And his many women with all his money. And his banks he bought offshore. I have never been so excited to see a person’s downfall than his. He has made so many people around the country miserable with his antics.
Please get the expert advice you need and please post here again and let us know someone was able to help you. Good luck.
@sanfran – Were you a AD at one point? I have spent the last week re-reading the previous posts and still only at the half way point.
My territories are more like the JH model of writing basically nothing. Nothing has panned out but paying and working for absolutely nothing. Liberty has not even paid it’s way. I did not take out corporate loans nor bank loans, so just throwing good money just to keep John’s empire going.
I knew starting my 3rd tax year, that this model does not work unless you are first in the Liberty system and you basically write fraudulant business which I shoved out the door everyday!
I followed the Liberty fraudulent business practices and got into a heap of trouble. Most of my clients are getting audited and owing big money. I can’t say they don’t deserve it though, since they were very hip to the Liberty system of fraud. When I got my first territory, I was the only one in this area. I brought the name here to this part of Texas and received absolutely no support. What SanFranDan has said is similar to my experiences with these hoodlums. To my great disappointment, I followed and maintained the Liberty model of ripping people off and making questionable tax returns, a fact I should have had stronger morality to resist. When you owe Liberty so much cash, you do things that you should not do, just to get out from under them.
I understand that to be an AD, all you need is money. You but an asset that does not exist except for whats in the head of John Hewitt and Liberty Tax.
No Franchizee……….I never became an AD, thank goodness. I already have enough headaches trying to part with this company several years after I finished my 5 year contract, that had I been an AD, it would have been even worse. As it is, this company has the worst lawyer sleazebags working for them. But I’m sure JTH is pulling all the punches and calling all the shots. No doubt in my mind.
There are Super Bowl parties, New Year’s parties, Christmas parties……….when JTH is arrested and thrown in jail, I will throw the biggest party in my life and you are all invited! :)
@ Texas Tee – I am sorry for your heartache. I did not go through any of their systems but I to, had questionable tax returns, but most were sent away, since I have a background in knowning fraud. But upfront it is costing me and I don’t have a lot of returns even to this day. It seems from this board a lot of people were taught poorly and encouraged to do things they normally would not of done. I hoping the IRS is taking note. People know H&R and Liberty encourage fraud in EIC and the IRS has been aiding and abetting, through not enforcing the current laws, which of course the last 4 years is getting more and more teeth. I kept telling the fraud’s in my area, you will be caught and you go down first before I do….
Who has met John personally? I have not but, since I have not made any money with them, I refuse to pay to go and meet him or anyone else.
@SanFran – I am glad you were not an AD. Did you listen to all the calls? I have and boy are they a joke even to this day….
@ Fraanchizee-I have met John personally- have been to VB on a few occasions-to the pep rallies etc. Lots of booze running there!! Atlease the get you drunk before they &$&^#&*@^*#& ya!
What is the most experienced tax CEO saying on the conference calls these days? What is the new strategy for getting returns in before the “free” season starts for Firefighters, police, teachers, ministers, soldiers, plumbers, bus drivers, janitors, painters, drug dealers, crack hoes, homeless, etc.?
Unfortunately I’ve met him several times. He’s the world’s biggest idiot, in my opinion and the opinion of so many others. He thinks his s–t doesn’t stink, but it does and HE does even more.
If it were legal to physically harm him, I would in a heartbeat.
The best thing that ever happened was this class action lawsuit from customers in So. Carolina………….thank goodness for them. Now he will be brought to justice and go to jail forever. In hindsight those phone calls were a joke, just like everything he does……..it’s all a sham, a scam, a front………and we all got duped.
The world’s most experienced tax CEO has no idea how to do taxes…….but he’s a pro at being a con-artist and getting people to part with their hard earned $$.
It’s amazing how signing one 5 yr. contract could turn my life upside down for years & years. Texas tee: You’re right……..you’re buying into the “hype”, nothing tangible, the asset that depreciates faster than anything else you will ever experience. And then when you leave after 5 years, the trouble really begins. Don’t ask me questions, but it gets quite ugly. It will come back to bite him, thank goodness there are people out there to hunt him down and bring him to justice. Let him squirm. There is NOTHING he can say that will be anywhere near the pain & suffering he has caused so many.
Anything he has gotten, he has bought with our $$. The Entreprenurial Magazine award?? PLEASE!! He’s in bed with all the judges in the Eastern District Court in Virginia as well. They have to be reaping some sort of reward or payout.
As I’ve said before, the day he is stopped will be the happiest day in my life and I will throw the biggest party anyone around here has ever seen. Waiting patiently.
@San Fran-I CAN’T WAIT TO COME TO YOUR PARTY!!!!
Awesome, Mike……it’ll be the best party of this century….complete with fireworks, the whole 9 yards………such a celebration. After such a somber experience I will be thrilled to party for the occasion of his downfall.
Aa a former franchisee I can honestly say I was never encouraged to do something illegal, but I got out in 2009. I do remember the conference calls and wished I had taped them because what was said was always amazing. Whether it was Danny dressing up as Lady Liberty and going to a hospital and going floor to floor to give out donuts until he was chased our or Annie Fuller “live” at 8:30 in the morning at a Stop n Go gas station approaching a guy buying beer and asking him if he filed his taxes. When he said he hadn’t she bought his beer and took him with her to file them. If the CEO would condone such behavior I’m sure he encouraged questionable tax practices.
Every time I turn on TV or the internet I see adds for Turbo tax and HRB, Liberty can’t compete. There will always be a low end market that needs assistance or dosen’t have access to the computer but eliminate the bank product and there is no market for those individuals. They will do what they do for other products and that’s use the free system. The market in retail is turning to the middle/uppper class market. Between regulation for tax prep. services, the evolution of the internet and the reduction/elimination of the loans the lower end market is going away and so is the business model that made John Hewitt successful. Which means for current franchisees that it’s very unlikely that LIberty will let anyone walk away.
@SanFran – If I can make some chump change, I will try and go to your party!
@Bill – I heard that phone call and it was WTFrick am I into. He trys to sell like they are professional’s but then the Annie and Danny dog and pony show show’s up and it is Romper Room all over again. Of course the new gal used the word Awesome for about 1 tax season. We were about to send her a thesarus (sp), but of course could not afford that even after that season.
@Texas Tee – At least you all are out of this racket.
I am glad I don’t know John, and really don’t want to know him. His business has very little to do with tax preparation, I am still trying to figure that out, what this is, other than a way to launder money through loans and bank products, CIF and SAF and 50/50 – I can’t keep up with all the promotions. Giving away flat screen t.v.’s if you bring in enough send a friends. All that does is encourage and promote fraudulant returns. I hope the IRS is watching all of this.
@Mike – Today’s call was per John, if you aren’t writing 10 tax returns, you need to go out and write FREE ones, so you have 10 every day. Hello! How are the bills being paid Mr. Most experienced CEO in taxes? Apparently, he gets a kick back and the Zee just works for free? I am still in the dark about all these promotions pays my bills? Anyone know how that works??? Last time I checked, money does not grow on trees nor does it fall from the sky and pay bills…
@Franchizee- I remember those days very well, yes if your aren’t doing 10 per day, go out and give them free ones!! LOL, to think so many are now scrambling to get even free ones, so sad. Even worse, when those fifties go out to those that have already filed or have child support, Liberty says, don’t send them to collections, SOMEDAY, they will have excellant credit and will pay you back with a complicated return, yah probably a sch D with all that investment income they earned buying TAX shares!!! LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLO~~~!!!!!!
In NJ it was hard to give away a free return. People are skeptical of your ability and maybe suspicious as why you would do it for free. In 4 years never got close to 100 free returns.
@Bill = Yup, I have never been close to the 100 required free return. You are right people are skeptical. On the other hand, once you start giving free returns in a closed population base, then people refuse to pay any price for the return.
One of the first calls I listened to was a man out of one of the Dakota’s and he was on the call. Someone was interviewing him about his office. He followed John’s steps and he was barely able to stay afloat, because he was in a small community and everyone expected a free return and since it was free, why should they pay for it. I wonder if he is still with Liberty. He was not drinking the Kool-Aid any more!
@Mike – We all know, those people just stay at a certain level to qualify for the EIC and get everything they can off the backs of the working people. Those people will rarely amount to anything be keep a scamming. John does not live in the real world called Reality Ville.
The IRS should put a block on people’s ssn, to receive EIC for no more than 5 years in a row, because there a whole bunch in my area that just live off those money from everyone in their family. I just had a grandma and she has 3 grandkids and I told her “prove it”. Haven’t seen her back!!
@anyone: the gurus and the conference calls, what percentage of tax returns are they saying that have been completed yet? If they are saying start doing free returns- the SUPER MEGA-OPPOLIS of PEAKS must be over.
@Mike – Apparently regionally we are 60 percent down from last year. A lot has to do with the EIC regulations. Some of my people cannot get the info that their kids live them or they are the actual parents…..Super Mega Freak is not happening!
I am with Mike – I knew this was going to be a bust and people are getting CIF at one store and going from store to store applying for taxes, in my area a person could could scam off with 300 plus and doing sending a “fraud” get even more money!
Ya!! Daily calls end on Tues!! Thank goodness, I can’t handle anymore BS!
There is a post on the Yahoo message board under”Tax” that Liberty came out with new software and it’s not very good. Any truth to this?
Just there are updates almost daily – The signature’s are a little testy and taking awhile to come back from the servers. Apparently the loan’s are being the little buggers and getting the signatures.
Liberty’s ICA checks is really stealing money from the poor victims. For every ICA check, ICA loan is costing the taxpayer almost $384.00 (150.00 annual fee, $195 interest, and 38.95 for processing and transmitter fees) plus preparers fees. The $150.00 annual fee is very well hidden in the loan documentaion. Neither the preparer or tax payer initials or signs for this fee. The annual fee is not clearly disclosed like the rest of fees.
When the Taxpayers do the second Esignature for the check the amount they are signing shows one figure and then when the check prints it is $150.00 less than what they signed for.
My computer crashed when I got the first copy of Liberty’s in house software. If was filled with spyware, unusable forms and no idea how to handle multiple states returns. White smoke came out of my computer, so I guess a new pope was elected…
I saw on the History Channel today the story of Jonesville where they drank the Kool-aid. I wonder if Liberty should advertise on that show? Sorry, no worry: they don’t advertise.
@Texas Tee – I have thought that same thing about the Kool-Aid drinkers that swoon all over him and his people…..Come on people get a life.
Cute about the white smoke. Well it would of been true had it been in 2005. You were early because everything has been downloaded since I have been here.
Don’t even get me started with that software. I had sooooo many problems because they had a ton of their own spyware in there to spy on the franchisees and then got kickbacks from the software companies and pocketed all that money instead of telling franchisees they would recieve a small refund…………corporate was totally USELESS when it came to solving these software problems. I was on the phone with them for HOURS trying to load it or to work out the kinks, but to no avail.
JTH took all our $$, never advertised and KEPT all kickbacks from the software people while spying on us with his own software. YIKES. Truth is stranger than fiction.
I thank my lucky stars each & every day I am out of that CULT. Bruised and poor, but out of there once & for all.
@SanFran – How did you find out they were spying on you? Is that why some zees use their own machines? They have a different system now. Of course starting next tax season, your processor has to come from their vendor and not put together in someone garage….
Back when they first came out with there own software I had lacerte on one of my computers and the lacerte(Intuit) program crashed. Later own they told us not to install our quickbooks(Intuit) on the same computer as their taxsoftware. So they had built a program/system that looked for other tax products to make sure no one was gaming them.
I knew a Jackson Hewitt franchisee and their system was very advanced. He had several stores and he could monitore his employees remotely when they signed on, what volumne of work they were doing. I’m sure the people that designed that software also had built in capabilies to monitor the franchisee. I personally understand the right of the company to protect it’s interest if their providing u with value but this isn’t the case with Liberty.
The hidden fee of $150.00 is the kind of practice that will doom Liberty. What’s the highest amount of these loans.
Hey everyone
Hang in there a bit for the short term
I’ve got a lot of numbers and a lot of experience in the tax business
For your short term this week is going to close the gap some. 60% is a lot to overcome and it’s not going to happen to pull you even. I’m guessing liberty is going to close the week 20-30% down. That’s not good at all but if you can hang in there this week it should give you a little more cash to help if you are looking for the exit and need to fund some legal help.
If you’ve got stock I would sell. The big player has 10x the business and tons of cash and tons of advertising. They can weather a bad season and their numbers are down but only about half of what liberty’s numbers are.
Customers won’t be back when their checks are 150$ short
Lawsuits are going to be increasing significantly with the “auditions” for waivers
Lawsuits are going to go through the roof with the 150$ fee (is there any product remotely that high for an annual fee?)
If you are asked to do free returns now when there should be no shortage of paying customers what does that say? It says to me that someone is more interested in total returns prepared to affect stock price rather than franchisee bottom line.
The franchise model can work but its a business plan designed for a big business to get a small business to generate revenue and have that small business pay the operating expense.
Taxes are a habit business for “good” clients. Even if they aren’t totally happy they usually come back because they only have to be a little less happy once a year. The ral client isn’t a “good” client. They will go wherever is convenient but as soon as they feel ripped off they won’t come back. You can’t build a business base on that when you are hiding 150$ charge.
Don’t buy a new liberty franchise
If you are set on buying by an established one and research research research why the owner is selling the “cash” cow
@Bill – They still state don’t put anything on the computers. I keep my personal stuff on another separate computer. Of course I have taken a couple of their computers and use them in different locations so I can access Zee Net at my home office and other office.
The fee for bank product is $9.00 for Liberty’s take. Two years ago it was $20.00. Last year it was $9.95. As for the loan’s is it between $20 – $50. their cut, but nothing for franchisee but all the service and headaches. Mad customers etc. The loan’s are a way of Liberty getting more than the royalties. It is a beautiful thing for them, piss poor product for the zee and the poor customer. If I not mistaken, Liberty will have their cut even prior to the zee getting paid. I try not to offer bank products, just so John cannot have his retirement fund.
Also as I have been reading previous post’s. It looks like the 5% marketing royalty was probably Danny’s payroll and John’s retirement fund!
Franchizee:
I bought a new computer to tie it in to my network of other computers and the whole network crashed. My computer “fix it” guy was the one who told me there was a ton of spyware in there and traced it back to the LT software.
What I want to know is that when they “get” JTH, could they PLEASE close down the whole freakin’ company??? Sorry, folks. But it makes me burning mad that JTH has made this into a stock co. now and cashed out, leaving stockholders high & dry…….I just can’t fathom that name continuing on…….everytime I pass an LT office I physically get sick.
Computer woes and kickbacks are a way of life at Liberty. When I first got the ‘recommended’ system from CDW, a Liberty vendor, I had a lot of hassles in their shipping and pricing. CDW advertised the identical system for less than what the Liberty price was. I asked them about that and they said it was for ‘special’ software installed for Liberty. When I asked about the special software, I never got an answer as to what it was. Later I found out from one of my friends who worked at CDW, Liberty was given a commission on each computer sold. This was usually paid to JTH Tax Inc or the Real Estate entity. Needless to say, the computer that I was required to buy broke down almost immediately and had to be shipped back to CDW. I was without a computer for 4 days, but I had bought some E Machines for the preparers and I set up one as the processor. Thank goodness I didn’t network at the time, otherwise I would have been out of business.
Kickbacks were given to Liberty not only by CDW but also by the Tax software company as well as the banks which included Republic, HSBC and a couple of others. I found this out because the software company mistakenly told me so when they thought I was calling from Liberty Corporate. Don’t you just love these guys?????
Are you stating that they are able to see what a person is doing even after you leave the company and are using their old computers?
If that was the case, it sure would make more sense how they are finding people starting their own tax businesses, where they should not know….I guess those computers will be set off line for now on and not used in a new tax business.
Thanks SanFran!
I am stating that every time you transmit files to corporate, they have their spyware embedded in your computer. I Don’t know if they can spy on you after you leave, but I wouldn’t put it past them. Advise is to either clean the hard drive totally of set up a new computer.
Thanks TexasTee. That is exactly what we have suspected. We will never use them for any other businesses, just for games and such! I do know that the AD’s are very encouraging in keeping the computers, which is not what other businesses are interested in! They usually want them back.
@Greg – what is this $150 fee you keep typing about? Is this with the ICA Loan?
Is tax season over, really getting slowWER! Mega-speed bump was just that, what is the Most Experienced CEO saying?
I predict a lot of office closings this year!
This board will be full of new members.
@Mike – According to John, the IRS is finding a lot less returns being filed. What is scary, could that mean that many that were filing earlier, were potential or down outright fraud? 40% in first peak? Makes one wonder. Also they are holding refunds longer which gets people to have to cover their own Feb rent or drug habit payment (just joking)! Also 8867 is not being prepared properly by tax preparers and they are coming up as error reports on the IRS side, so they have to go through them just to see about the refund.
@balancetrend – That is what my crystal ball is showing!!!
@Franchizee- I suspect if the fraud is reduced, the number of returns will be reduced at least for this season until the crooks figure another way around the IRS system..
Although I wish the best for all the Liberty Franchisees that are stuck under LTS, John must be crapping a brick–if one is up in returns with LTS then you are a hero, if one is down in returns they become the instant zero- and are targeted for removal or coaching because they are obvioulsy not “following the system”—HEY JOHN, YOU ARE NOT FOLLOWING THE SYSTEM!!
Anyone a current zee, have you received any numbers from your AD this tax season? I have not seen any.
Also, I think the IRS has hit a nerve with the frauds and like Mike state’s they may have a come back next year, but like any crook, put up any little resistance, they will move somewhere else. IRS could do a ton more to really stop the bleeding of taxpayer money, just by blocking EIC for especially the “grandmother’s” of these grandkids they take care of on $4,000 a year!! Or just not give EIC if you make under $18,000 a year with kids. You are obviously using the government to raise your kids and grandkids and getting EIC on top of it! You aren’t doing the job, we the taxpayers are doing the job!! Don’t give EIC to people with just cash businesses, they just don’t qualify. Must have a 1099 and a bank account. They can file taxes, they just can’t get EIC. I mark a lot of EIC questionnaire – No they don’t qualify…
@Franchizee, when or should I say if, you get some numbers from your AD please share-would like to know how we are alll doing against some other stats. I just drove by the local free VITA and they are PACKED-we get what we voted for!
According to the CPA’s and IRS – Free returns have 50% error rate. It’s too funny. When a person ends up owing the IRS plus interest and penalties – Now that is the cost of FREE!!! WEEEEEEEE….I always tell people, so how free was that error, which would not of been done with a paid return? Free is a misnomer.
I will let you know, if anything shows up.
VITA returns full of errors but person does’nt know until they get a review for some reason.
I was 60% behind. Just caught up today. Worked hard in the last 8 days. I expect to pass my last years numbers but in a small amount. Fees are even. Really depending on send a friend and getting back people who had gone to bad preparers for a couple of years and have come back to our office.
Also cutting HR’s fees by $30.00. They are up over $400.00. I guess free aint free.
Good luck!
I am down by 40% but don’t have a first peak. A lot of people moved in the past year. I was off by 40 returns last year but down by $10K and I put my expenses down also.
For me too early to tell.
Free is never free, someone is going to pay for that service one way or another.
Unfortunately, if someone goes to VITA, they think the return is right as long as the refund is large enough.
@Mike – Most people think everything is good to go especially when they are refund shopping and stop that place that gives them the most…..or CIF or send a friend. Bad service for people overall.
I am new to Tax industry and wanted to play safe so choose the 305 royalty with $2500 security deposit.
Very slow ….surprised to know they don’t advertise nationally at all but they take royalty.
They want franchise to spend money on marketing How can they charge royalty for advertising
I am new to Tax industry and wanted to play safe so choose the 30% royalty with $2500 security deposit.
Very slow ….surprised to know they don’t advertise nationally at all.
They want franchise to spend money on marketing. How can they charge royalty for advertising?
The CEO knows how to keep momentum and that is what matters, not the success of the franchisees. He hires motivational type cronies to come at you. You know you are losing your ASS so you call with concern and get REMOTIVATED for his MOTIVES only.
Oh, I got served from the General Inspectors Office today with a lein. Waver “Auditions” are illegal, any free labor is!! Thanks Danny Hewitt for those motivational Corporate conference call tutorials of mandatory attendance for my motivated, financed ass!!
HOW exactly, do you MAINTAIN MOMENTUM? Here are 11 ways to keep people bobbing up and down in John Hewitt’s lap:
1.ACTIVE APPRECIATION. People are more WILLING to help keep that car moving when they KNOW that they are CARED for.
(Let’s see- Top Gun on my first year, wow! Stay at your beachfront home, wow! Put me on a Conference call and tell me what to say cause I am nervous, wow! Finance me since I am on welfare and have no business ownership skills, wow, you are too kind Liberty Tax WOWWW!)
2.BE BALANCED. Attempting to do everything at once will leave you drained of ENERGY. Be CONSISTENT.
(Let’s see- Daily Conference calls, AD followups, Daily Projections, Supervised discussion board, Zeenet with Announcements, Promises of Support and Accurate Reports–well that should be WOWW enough to satisfy an appearance of balance in the system for operations, accounting and marketing. It will only take you a couple years of navigating and thinking you are stupid for not finding everything yourself so Corp can look balanced and consistent that answers were there all along as they change things almost daily.)
3.CONSTANT CONNECTION. CLEAR COMMUNICATION of GOALS and OBJECTIVES ensures CONNECTION to your VISION.
(Let’s see- Yep they make those goals clear with your daily projections emailed of how successful you will be today. Of course you are confused because that is not the budget you turned in and you don’t know why you can’t hit those numbers nor the 1000 required returns they say is average when you signed up. However, when your AD finally answers the phone, they let you know your market is just different and they will coach you on how to get those numbers up and focus on return count-not losing your ass daily.)
4.CONTINUED COOPERATION. TEAMWORK is VITAL to forward movement. DELEGATE as needed and SOLICIT SUPPORT.
(Let’s see- Yeah, my DMA Area Developer and surrounding zees counted on me staying positive and helping each other not cry. They even sent me indigent packages on my first year. Thanks for the free balloons and coupons my marketing budget could not afford….oh wait, that 800# connected people to their offices, not mine because I was not in the georouter program yet. Slaps head- No wonder my phone never rings and I saw tumbleweeds for a while as I racked up debt with my large financed marketing dollars with all that down time I had looking at an empty office. I was delegated to go market for everyone else as they supported Corporate with info to box me in and sell territories near my marketing for the next year and not even tell me.)
5.DEEP DEVOTION. Those who are DEVOTED have already COMMITTED to making the project a SUCCESS. They often do more than expected.
(Let’s see- I am devoted because I am a poor single mom and this company GAVE me financing, they sure must be devoted to my success. I sure showed them how to double a store when it started at $30k gross in the first place. Chest out, cape on…I even did 5 times the free returns they asked me to do and marketed for surrounding zees so devoted to the brand because Corporate showed me how devoted they were to me. My AD even came over and fixed a computer and bought me a memory upgrade at no charge. WOW)
6.ELIMINATE EXCUSES. Nothing will kill momentum faster than excuses. The only thing worse than an excuse is the regret it causes. LEAD with a sense of URGENCY.
(Let’s see- How about we use all the competition’s numbers as a reason to kill all the crying. We soooo much better than them all and John was going to buy them ALL out and even got offers to be CEO of them all and begged to merge with them all which he declined for our behalf, right? The tech issues and more, all are growing pains..keep your eye on the ball even if you have no clue where to throw it, just throw it and keep pumping numbers NOW and do the paperwork confusion later at the end of the month or so….actually just let the AD fill in the spreadsheets, it will be close enough. WOW that takes a load off.)
7.GIANT GOALS. You tend to ACCOMPLISH MORE when you have FORWARD MOVEMENT. This allows you to ACHIEVE GREATER results.
(Let’s see- #1 in 2012 or was it 2020? Yeah, I want to be part of that. I will tell all my friends nationwide to find a store because we are all going to be part of the #1 company in the industry. Uh huh- we all making money, it only cost us $43 for every new customer? When did I ever get a profit of $43 a customer myself anyhow….no wait gotta keep momentum, this is seasonal…only have 16weeks no time to think about it)
8.MONITOR MOVEMENT. Be certain that you are MOVING FORWARD towards your DESIRED DESTINATION.
(Let’s see- Plan, monitor and react. They sure do. They even tell us when to fire employees so they don’t get unemployment from us. Big favors we get from their eagle eyes all the time.)
9.ONGOING ORGANIZATION. Disarray quickly leads to disintegration. Managing your resources is KEY to the overall HEALTH of your project.
(Let’s see- Announcing something new everyday. John is on a plane right now doing something healthy for our futures..can’t talk long on the call, he is breaking up as the plane is leaving so just listen to what the guests and Corp employees on the beginning of conference calls said to do little ones…we have combined 1000 years of tax experience grasshopper!)
10.RELENTLESS RESOLVE. It’s DOGGED DETERMINATION that DRIVES you to the next level.
(Let’s see- Everything is resolved at all hours of extended support times. It may take days or weeks for someone who has NO IDEA of what support you need until they search it and they get paid per ticket to sit in their underwear at home and call you to stay on the line for HOURS AND HOURS to Get er done so you become operational again. I called my 14 year old kid to install the signature pads in the other 3 offices who then let Corporate know it was a driver installation problem everyone in the Country was missing that step. But they were working on it and even disabled the mandatory need for them until they get it right. WOW, they let us have an exception so we can keep making them money, oh I mean us, I mean them…well we got dogged tired so must have been doing something right they wanted us to do.)
11.STAY STOKED. STRONG MOTIVATION keeps everyone on TARGET.
(Let’s see- A boot camp coming to town near you, a fanatical tour, a motivational speaker after podium apologies, some bam bams and a convention so we can pretend we will someday see a profit and be the elite #1 in the industry. Some stats and inflated numbers that we don’t understand or find out later to be false. A media team who does not put out commercials, but blocks negative media hits as much as possible such as people complaining on their Lady Liberty fan facebook page and so on. Oh wait, a free book now and then!! John’s top 10 focus points. John’s favorite summer reads list. A personal visit from an Area Developer. A personal visit and friendship from his own son!! A personal call from John Hewitt. A personal invitation? And a dinner!! Me? Why me? I am special!!WOW)
Let’s see….why did we not see? Uh of course, because they were busy with the smoke and mirrors and the pony show which IS their business. They knew every store kill date the day we signed. Pyramid scheme with the best cheerleaders. They even picked Annie Fuller who was had flaws to look human. Not everyone could be too good to be true or we would have been a lost audience. Some had to be sacrificed.
Thought you might enjoy puking to some of these memories.
Deja Poo, but good for anyone who has not heard this shit before.
Sorry for you Sharon. You won’t succeed, raise your kids, keep your husband and your house and RUN to a lawyer’s office and get out of contract. Don’t be a new Mark. This is not a business, it is a scheme…IMHO from years of experience being so highly rated for a franchisee to look up to and be on the TOP GUN list and 2 hour conference call.
Funny story, I was told on my cell from Danny Hewitt who led the call, NOT to say the same boring stuff about following the system as most are saying. Instead, PLEASE say something different and exciting like how you went to all the homeless shelters and your seminars and other pavement pounding marketing drives, etc. It finally got to my turn in that long Top Gun call and when he asked, “tell us all, how did you do it (got such growth in numbers)?” I said,….. wavers. -.- He said what else? I said that’s it, just wavers. -.- He stumbled in disappointment and said okayyy.. on to the next top gun from (next guest)…..lol. I was so thankful to just not listen to the zees who all got coaching calls ahead faking the call anymore. I sat to do a return and wondered right then, really? Am I a Dallas Cowboy cheerleader or a business owner?
-You know who! ;-)
@momentumsells! EXCELLANT POST-made my day, welcome to the website, I hope your expererience ends better than mine. with the HEWITTS….remember”this is how we HEWITT!!