Franchise Brokers, Referral Consultants and Career Coaches Can Help You Find the Right Business Opportunity 2022 Franchise Supplier Rankings: Top Franchise Brokers, Referral Consultants, and Career Coaches

With thousands of franchise concepts to choose from, getting started can seem overwhelming. Entrepreneurship is about finding the right opportunity — a business model that aligns with your comprehensive goals, both personally and professionally. Ideally, there should be a progression of discovery that, through the process of elimination, leads you to the franchise you were meant to own.

Franchise brokers can help you navigate this search, free of charge. As highly trained and knowledgeable consultants, a franchise broker's first order of business is to focus on you. Using interviews, assessments and other techniques, they methodically gain an awareness of who you are, what you want, and how your preferences will determine the best franchise opportunities for your individual needs. Next, they'll present several franchise matches for mutual review and discussion — while urging you to keep an open mind through the process. As you progress, working with the broker to narrow your choices, they'll make introductions to brand representatives, provide referrals for professional advisors, and help arrange validation sessions. In the closing stages, they'll help prepare you for Discovery Day meetings and serve as your own personal sounding board when it's time to make a decision. Franchise brokers are your personal navigator for the entrepreneurial journey.

Related: Considering franchise ownership? Get started now and take this quiz to find your personalized list of franchises that match your lifestyle, interests and budget.

Entrepreneur announced its annual Top Franchise Supplier rankings, a multi-faceted directory which includes the best of the best service providers in the industry. When it comes to selecting your own personal navigator, below are the Top-9 franchise brokers who earned a well-deserved spot on our 2022 list:

1. IFPG

The International Franchise Professionals Group (IFPG) is a membership-based franchise consulting network with more than 1,300 franchisors, franchise consultants, and vendor members. Together, IFPG members guide aspiring business owners through the process of identifying and investing in franchise businesses. IFPG's purpose-driven mission is based on integrity, ethics and collaboration. "Our commitment to continual improvement has attracted the most respected franchise consultants, franchise brands, and suppliers in the industry," says Don Daszkowski, founder and CEO of IFPG. "People join IFPG for our innovative events, education, and a multitude of offerings and become part of an extended family with an amazing culture. We always strive to offer tremendous value and support to our members, and it has worked! Our massive growth and recognition as the No.1 broker network only fuel our desire to be the best." On providing the best level of support for clients in the franchising industry, Daszkowski states, "Because of our membership-based structure, we have created a level playing field for our members. We have fostered a fair and inclusive environment with a collaborative community that always has the best interests of the franchisee candidate in mind. At the end of the day, we are changing lives for the better through franchise ownership — and we take that seriously. We are committed to supporting our members with the knowledge and connections to make the most successful placements."

2. FranChoice

FranChoice provides a free franchise consulting service to individuals considering franchise ownership. Our expert consultants can help people find a franchise business that is a great fit for them through our customized, in-depth consultation process. By focusing on a person's background, skills, and goals for business ownership, FranChoice is able to effectively assist people in evaluating opportunities to find their best fit. FranChoice been in business over 19 years, having made introductions that led to thousands of awarded franchise units.

3. Franchise Brokers Association

Franchise Brokers Association (FBA) is known as the "Smart community standing for the good in franchising." Founded in 2008 on a mission to provide the access and understanding of ideal franchises, we accomplish this goal by providing a human touch in the franchise discovery and award process. FBA has a network of highly trained, character-verified, and emotionally intelligent franchise brokers. They help franchise buyers to find, vet, fund, and own optimal franchise opportunities. FBA also developed and launched the Franchise Training Institute (FTI), our five-week introduction to the franchise brokering profession. As the Franchise Brokers Association continues to grow, we're constantly re-committing our mission to empower people, businesses, and communities secure franchise opportunities with truthful and clear guidance.

Related: Finding Post-Pandemic Franchise Opportunities With Broker Consultant Groups

4. BAI Business Alliance

The BAI Business Alliance has served as the industry's "Great American Franchise Resource" since 1991. BAI's consultants bring qualified referrals to our franchise brand partners. By combining the franchisor's professionalism, communication, and knowledge with our training, tools, and support, we're able to recruit the best franchisees into the system. We charge no annual fees to our consultants, franchise partners, or suppliers, as our main focus remains quality, not quantity.

5. FranServe

FranServe Inc. was founded with one goal: to help entrepreneurs achieve their dreams of business ownership through franchising. We love changing people's lives! As the largest franchise consulting and expansion organization in the world, we're committed to connecting entrepreneurs to franchise opportunities, introducing franchisors to qualified candidates, and training the industry's most knowledgeable franchise consultants to make it all happen. FranServe's culture, technology, reach, and scale are helping us revolutionize the industry.

6. FranNet

FranNet is the franchise industry's most respected leader in matching individuals with business ownership opportunities. For over 30 years, FranNet has matched thousands of prospective business owners to rewarding franchise opportunities. FranNet has more than 100 experienced consultants across North America and is the only locally-owned and operated franchise consulting firm. FranNet uses a proprietary profiling tool to determine which unique business fits their client's goals, skill sets, and interests. When a FranNet consultant refers a client, you can be sure they are a well-matched lead. CEO Jania Bailey discusses what makes FranNet one of the best in the business. "With over 35 years of experience in the franchise industry, our consultants are the franchise development experts. Rated No. 1 in quality, our ability to place the right entrepreneurs with the right franchise brands is unmatched. FranNet is passionately committed to the growth of the industry because we ourselves are a part of it. Our consultants are also franchisees! If you're going to help grow the franchise industry, you need to be in the franchise industry." Bailey goes on to describe FranNet's level of support in the industry: "FranNet takes a two-pronged approach in our work. We first make sure that every franchise brand we represent meets strict validation standards. Having the right brand fit is just as important as finding the right client. Second, we go through an extensive validation process with our prospective franchisees. We walk them through every aspect of the buying process, answer their questions, guide them through their goals and ultimately match them with a few brands that will meet their goals. This two-part strategy ensures that we are creating quality, lasting growth in the franchise industry. Finding the right clients, with the right skills and matching them with the right brands."

Related: 5 Good Reasons to Work With a Franchise Broker

7. The Entrepreneur's Source

The Entrepreneur's Source^® is a network of Career Ownership Coaches™ who are dedicated to helping others achieve business ownership by providing franchising education in a safe space to discover hundreds of leading business possibilities. Career Ownership Coaches come from a variety of backgrounds and industries, but all of them have a strong desire to help others. While not classified as a franchise consulting service, we're a career ownership organization with over 100 highly-trained coaches helping people achieve their dreams of financial freedom nationwide.

8. The Franchise Consulting Company (FCC)

FCC, The Franchise Consulting Company offers free consulting services to prospective franchise buyers. Our organization consists of franchise experts who work with clients to help them buy and/or sell franchise concepts. FCC crafts custom-made strategies for clients, based on individual preferences including your requirements, what you're trying to achieve, and your talents and skills. FCC strives first to understand if franchising is right for you, and then which franchise concepts best help you achieve your goals.

9. The You Network

The You Network is a resource unlike any other in franchising. Our team includes the most senior-level, qualified consultants in the industry, all of whom have previously owned their own businesses, allowing them to speak from both experience and the heart. All of our advisors have "been there, done that" and have now pledged to share their unique experience and knowledge with you. They do so because they love franchising and want to encourage the next generation of new owners that will help the industry continue to thrive.