Jim’s Test & Tag celebrates another year of growth whereby we have proudly served more than 15,000 clients across Australia, with continued growth anticipated in 2018.
Jim’s Test & Tag provide our clients with a program to assist with their OH&S obligations around electrical safety. These include testing and tagging of electrical appliances, testing emergency and exit lights and the testing and servicing of fire extinguishers.
Divisional Manager, James Jacka, said Jim’s Test & Tag has experienced consistent growth for the last 14 years and based on the continued increase in demand for our services we see no reason why this would change over the next few years.
The Jim’s Group has noticed significant trends during the last 12 months and these include:
- As people’s lives get busier they are increasingly looking to outsource jobs ranging from servicing fire extinguishers to testing and tagging electrical appliances;
- The most consistent jobs for Jim’s Test & Tag was Testing and Tagging of Electrical Appliances; and
- There is continued success for customers and Franchisees alike who work with the Jim’s Group.
One of Jim’s Test & Tag success stories of the year was working with a Franchisee named Dave Pollard. He owns a Territory in South Australia and has had great success since setting up his own business. Whilst he had a terrific business that had exceeded his expectations he identified that he could take it to another level by focusing on providing his customers with an understanding of our first aid kit service. David’s clients were very receptive to this service and this had a significant impact on his bottom line.
“We are extremely proud of the success of the business and in particular the individual successes of our Franchisees. We have a number of Franchisees turning over more than $200,000 per annum and it is common practice that our franchisees earn more than $100 per hour,” said James Jacka.
Whilst we have delivered great lifestyle opportunities to our Franchisees, we also provide opportunities for a significant capital return on their initial investment. We have an existing Franchisee who currently has his business on the market for more than $250,000.
In 2018 Jims Test & Tag is anticipating a busy 12 months involving further increased growth in both Franchisee and client numbers.
Jim’s Group is currently hard pressed to recruit enough Franchisees as customer enquiries have surged in 2017 and continue to grow. Even though franchise numbers have risen five per cent over the past year, the number of leads have grown by 15 per cent since 2016.
CEO of Jim’s Group, Jim Penman, said he attributes recent growth to an increased focus on outstanding customer service, with automated review and feedback systems.
Recent improvements in customer service are driven by heavy investments in IT. Jim’s Group now spends more than $1 million dollars per year on software development to increase efficiency and improve service to customers and Franchisees.
Increased customer demand is even more remarkable given:
- Franchisees are encouraged not to compete locally on price;
- Customer surveys suggest that around 75% of leads result in work being done; and
- Advertising is being scaled back. In some areas, the advertising contribution of around $150 per month has to be given back to the Franchisees because it is simply not needed.
Customers are also reassured that Jim’s Group work is covered by a Warranty Fund that is funded by a once-off charge to new Franchisees (mostly $100). For example, the Group’s biggest ever pay-out was $120,000 to replace a very large fence that proved to be substandard. But such claims are rare, as evidenced by the fact that the Warranty Fund is currently $70,000 in surplus.
The sheer volume of current leads has made it much easier to put on Franchisees than in the past. In addition, there are leadership opportunities in the growing number of new Divisions – 52 at last count.
Of the existing 3800 Franchisees, the age range varies from 20 to 73 years of age and includes people from myriad backgrounds and cultures. During 2017 there has been growing interest in owning a franchise from two distinct groups of people:
- Those who are familiar with earning good incomes but finding themselves less employable as they reach their late 40s or early 50s; and
- People who simply want an independent and balanced lifestyle with more family time. Though the average Franchise income is around $100,000 per annum (Jim’s Group does not record what Franchisees earn), top Franchisees can earn into the millions.
To enquire about booking a Jim’s Test & Tag service or becoming a franchisee, please visit https://www.jims.net/ or call 131 546.
About Jim’s Group
When Jim Penman studied his PhD in history, it wasn’t remotely on his radar to build a multimillion dollar global franchise business. Jim mowed lawns part-time to make his way through university. In 1982, having failed to secure an academic post, he launched a full-time business with a marketing budget of $24, In 1989 he began franchising. By focusing relentlessly on service to Franchisees and customers, and being highly selective as to who he put on, the business grew into what is now a national brand.
From mowing lawns, to cleaning houses or installing antennas Jim’s Group has 52 Divisions and 3,800 Franchisees in Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the United Kingdom. The Group estimates that it serves more than 100,000 customers each week.
The Jim’s Group headquarters is on a sprawling campus in Mooroolbark where Franchisees regularly meet for training and business development. It also doubles as a popular reception centre, with a special focus on church groups and non-profits.
