The prospect of owning your own business and being your own boss epitomizes the American dream for all kinds of people in all walks of life. For many of them, it is a dream that comes true, often through franchising.

People make the decision to become franchise business owners for a wide variety or reasons, and making lots of money is not always the central one.

That's something Peter M. Birkeland discovered during the three years he spent working on the front lines of franchise businesses while researching his book, "Franchising Dreams." In that book, Birkeland relates a telling conversation he had with two partners in a franchised cleaning services business.

The partners, Doug and George, were brothers-in-law who had known each other for more than 30 years and were in their early fifties. Both had left corporate jobs with six-figure salaries to become franchise business owners, and Birkeland asked them why.

"It sure wasn't for the money," was George's response. "I was tired of traveling all the time and being away from my family."

Doug credited "a midlife crisis" for his decision. He had been doing a lot of technical work, mainly with computers at a large corporation in Chicago, "and I just thought, that was it for me. I couldn't see myself doing that for another 20 years."

With their extensive backgrounds in the corporate business world, Doug and George were pretty confident about their chances for success as franchise business owners, but they got a dramatic wake-up call soon after they set up shop.

George made a sales call on a local company to pitch a contract for their cleaning services business, but he was shocked when the prospect informed him that he already had a contract with George's company.

In fact, the prospect had a contract with another franchise in the same company from which George and Doug had bought their franchise. That puzzled the two partners, because they thought they had an exclusive territory within the franchise system. A phone call to the franchisor soon disavowed them of that notion.

Included with the contract they had signed was a map of the entire metropolitan area where they were located, and a section within that area-what they thought was their exclusive territory-was highlighted in pink marker. Everything the franchisor's representative told them also implied that they would have an exclusive territory.

George and Doug took their map and their contract to an attorney who examined the documents and gave them the bad news: no exclusive territory. They were shocked. They told Birkeland that had they known the territory was not exclusive, they would not have bought the franchise.

Their story has a happy ending. Despite the unpleasant surprise they encountered at the outset of their venture, they stuck with it and built their franchise into a successful business. But their experience illustrates an important point for prospective franchisees: The time to seek out expert advice is before you sign the contract, not after.

Building a team of qualified advisors should be a high-priority item that is addressed early in the franchise search process by prospective franchisees. The first decision to be made is just how much help and of what type you think you will need.

There are three main areas where prospective franchisees can benefit from the assistance of specialists qualified in their particular fields. The first involves deciding whether franchise ownership is right for you, then sorting through the thousands of opportunities available if it is.

There are dozens of companies listed under the Franchise Consultants heading in the directory section of this publication, and the term covers a relatively broad spectrum of businesses.

Some franchise consultants specialize in helping existing companies start franchising their business. Others focus solely on helping would-be business owners find and purchase a franchise that is a good match for them. Some provide both types of services.

Obviously, if your interest is in buying a franchise rather than franchising an existing business, your needs will best be served by one of the latter two types. But since so much is made of the "independence" that franchise business ownership is supposed to provide, some might wonder why they should consider using the services of a franchise consultant at all.

Certainly, thousands of entrepreneurs have been successful pursuing franchise ownership as a do-it-yourself project, and that is an option that remains open to those committed enough to conduct an exhaustive franchise search and due diligence process on their own.

Those considering that path should give it careful thought. While the word "franchise" still conjures up the image of a mom-and-pop operation in some people's minds, franchising has evolved into a massive and highly sophisticated segment of the economy over the past two decades.

Franchised businesses generate a significant amount of economic activity in the United States, and they spur additional economic activity in non-franchised businesses, according to "Economic Impact of Franchised Businesses," a comprehensive study prepared for the International Franchise Association Educational Foundation by the National Economic Consulting Practice of Pricewaterhouse Coopers.

In 2001, the last year for which full data are available, there were more than three-quarters-of-a-million establishments in franchise systems in the U.S., the study reports. They provided almost 10 million jobs with an annual payroll approaching $230 billion, and they produced goods and services valued at about $625 billion.

Franchise businesses accounted for 3.2 percent of all U.S. business establishments in 2001. Their economic activity accounted for 7.4 percent of all jobs, 5 percent of all payrolls and 3.9 percent of all output in the private sector.

When economic activity occurring outside of franchising but triggered by franchised businesses is factored in, the figures are even more impressive:

Not surprisingly, franchising's robust economic climate has made it increasingly attractive to an expanding universe of potential franchisees. As franchising has grown more complex and sophisticated, so too have the entrepreneurs drawn to the field. Today's candidates for franchise business ownership often are holders of MBAs and PhDs, but they are seeking what franchising has always offered: the opportunity to be their own boss and control their own destiny.

It might seem logical to conclude that well-educated individuals with substantial business backgrounds would be less likely to seek the assistance of outside experts in conducting a franchise search.

Just the opposite is true, however. Over the course of their careers in other industries, many of these prospective franchisees have learned the value of tapping the knowledge, skill and experience of specialized experts in fields outside their own area of expertise.

They have learned that leveraging the knowledge, skill and experience those outside experts have to offer improves their own ability to make smart business decisions.

That is one reason why demand for the services of franchise consultants has been on the rise. Using a franchise consultant rather than trying to fly solo can save a prospective franchisee time, money and potential aggravation.

Some franchise consultants charge prospective franchisees no fee at all. Their income is derived from fees paid to them by franchisors who respect the processes the consultants follow and recognize the quality and fit of candidates referred to them after the consultant's screening process is completed.

Generally, such consultants receive the same fee from all franchisors, so there is no monetary incentive for them to refer a client to one franchise over another. A comprehensive screening process is conducted to determine what type of franchise will likely best fit a candidate's needs-and vice versa-and referrals are made on that basis alone.

As might be expected, the scope of franchise opportunities available through this type of consultant is limited to those franchisors that have a fee-paying agreement in place with the consultant. Prospective franchisees who are looking for more choice, and are willing to pay for it, might consider a consultant who does not accept commissions or fees from franchisors.

Such consultancies are similar in concept to fee-only financial planners, practitioners in a specialized niche of the financial services industry who sell their advice to clients but eschew the commissions and sales fees from specific investments that account for a portion of the conventional financial planner's income stream.

Regardless of which type of payment model a consultant uses, prospective franchisees should expect the same types of services. These should include assessment testing to determine whether your personality type is suitable for becoming a franchisee, screening to help you determine which type of franchise business is likely to be the best match for your needs, and help narrowing down the available choices to a handful of likely prospects.

The other two areas where prospective franchisees are most likely to benefit from expert advice are financial and legal. There are no hard and fast rules regarding when in the search process the prospective franchisee should seek this assistance, but sooner is better than later.

In general, aspiring franchisees should have some idea of how they are going to finance their venture by the time they get to the point of seriously considering specific franchise opportunities. An attorney should be retained at the stage when you are being given documents and contracts to review-and most definitely before you sign anything.

How important is it for prospective franchisees to seek professional help with these aspects of buying a franchise? Here is what the Federal Trade Commission says on the very first page of the Uniform Franchise Offering Circular (UFOC) document package it requires all franchisors to provide to serious sales prospects:

"Read all of your contract carefully. Buying a franchise is a complicated investment. Take your time to decide. IF POSSIBLE, SHOW YOUR CONTRACT AND THIS INFORMATION TO AN ADVISOR, LIKE A LAWYER OR AN ACCOUNTANT." (Emphasis added.)

The FTC's suggestion to those considering the purchase of a franchise business is good advice, and it's based on solid experience. After studying the franchise sales process for many years, the agency concluded that many inexperienced franchise investors might have avoided ruinous mistakes if they had first obtained professional assistance and guidance.

The FTC's admonition in the UFOC might make it sound like a lawyer and an accountant are interchangeable in terms of their role in functioning as a franchise advisor. However, experienced franchise owners suggest that it makes more sense to consult with both types of advisors, tapping the legal expertise of the former and the financial acumen of the latter.

"You definitely should have a lawyer to represent your interests during the sales process and the closing," says one veteran franchisee. "If you are going to be in business, you're more than likely also going to need an accountant at some point. It makes sense to start working with an accountant as early as possible in the process, and to get his or her opinion of the deal from a financial perspective."

Franchising is a fairly complex legal domain, so it's a good idea to retain an attorney who specializes in this area of the law. There are dozens of such specialists listed in the directory section of The Franchise Handbook under the Franchise Attorneys heading.

You can also contact your local bar association and ask for a referral to a specialist in your area. If you know any franchise business owners, you can ask them for a recommendation.

It is important to line up a qualified accountant familiar with franchising to handle your ongoing financial services needs when your franchise business is up and running. Some accountants may also be able to offer some assistance in putting together a financing package, but not all will.

Prospective franchisees usually end up drawing from a varied pool of resources in assembling this component of their franchise search team. Some franchise consultants offer assistance in this area, and some franchisors-but not many-offer their own financing packages. A larger number of franchisors provide referrals for qualified franchisee prospects to lending institutions with which the franchisor maintains an established and ongoing relationship.

Financing is available from a variety of sources, but the reality of the situation is that traditional lenders impose stringent criteria on applicants for loans to finance a new business. Having the support of an established franchise system with a recognizable brand behind you can work in your favor, but it's not a guarantee that you'll get the loan.

Lenders are keenly aware that no matter how well known and successful a particular franchise brand might be, the franchises that make up the system are individual businesses. Their success is what makes the brand successful, so you must be able to convince a lender that you have what it takes to start and run a successful business yourself.

No matter what type of financial institution you may be trying to borrow from, the most effective tool available to help you win their approval is a solid business plan. Unless you are confident in your ability to prepare such a plan on your own, you should consider adding a specialist in this area to your franchise search team.

Franchising is definitely a team sport, with the franchisor and its franchisees each dependent on the other for their mutual success. Putting together an effective team for you franchise search is a good way to get started on the right foot.