--- title: "Item 19 Validation Call Questions: What to Ask Franchisees" description: "Use these Item 19 validation call questions to ask Franchisees smarter, more specific questions about performance, fit, and day-to-day reality." url: "https://www.franchisegrade.com/learn/blog/franchise-risk/item-19-validation-call-questions" canonical: "https://www.franchisegrade.com/learn/blog/franchise-risk/item-19-validation-call-questions" markdown_url: "https://www.franchisegrade.com/learn/blog/franchise-risk/item-19-validation-call-questions.md" type: "Article" topic: "Franchise Risk & Due Diligence" author: "Franchise Grade" published: "2025-04-23" updated: "2025-04-23" keywords: - "item 19 validation call questions" - "questions to ask franchisees" - "item 19 questions for franchisees" - "franchisee validation questions" - "how to buy a franchise business" - "buying a franchise business" --- # Item 19 Validation Call Questions: What to Ask Franchisees Use these Item 19 validation call questions to ask Franchisees smarter, more specific questions about performance, fit, and day-to-day reality. ## Key takeaways - Item 19 validation calls should test the conditions behind the numbers, not just confirm that the numbers exist. - Start every call by understanding the Franchisee's market, ownership style, tenure, and stage of growth. - The strongest questions connect performance to operations, staffing, local demand, and Franchisor support. - Look for patterns across several calls rather than leaning too hard on one especially positive or negative conversation. - An Advisor can help you compare what Franchisees say with what the FDD actually discloses. A validation call can be one of the most clarifying moments in the franchise buying process. On paper, Item 19 gives you a financial snapshot. On the phone, existing Franchisees can help you understand what those numbers actually mean in daily operations, in local markets, and in real ownership decisions. That is why strong Item 19 validation call questions should do more than ask whether someone is happy with the business. They should help you connect financial performance to staffing, ramp-up time, customer demand, owner involvement, and the consistency of franchisor support. When you ask the right questions, a validation call becomes a working due diligence tool, not just a confidence boost. ### Key Practical Takeaways - Item 19 validation calls should test the conditions behind the numbers, not just confirm that the numbers exist. - Start every call by understanding the Franchisee's market, ownership style, tenure, and stage of growth. - The strongest questions connect performance to operations, staffing, local demand, and Franchisor support. - Look for patterns across several calls rather than leaning too hard on one especially positive or negative conversation. - An Advisor can help you compare what Franchisees say with what the FDD actually discloses. ## What Item 19 Can Tell You, and What It Cannot Item 19 is the section of the Franchise Disclosure Document where a Franchisor may provide Financial Performance Representations. The FTC explains that Franchisors are not required to include this information, but if they make sales or earnings claims, those claims must appear in Item 19. The [FTC consumer guide to buying a franchise](https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/consumers-guide-buying-franchise) and the [FTC Franchise Rule compliance guide](https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/documents/plain-language/bus70-franchise-rule-compliance-guide.pdf) both reinforce that point. That makes Item 19 important, but it still has limits. It may show averages, medians, subsets of outlets, or company-owned results that do not perfectly mirror the unit you would buy. A number on a page can point you in the right direction, but it rarely explains why certain units perform better, how long it took to reach stability, or what level of operator skill was required to get there. Your validation calls are where you pressure-test those details. Need help turning Item 19 into better validation calls? A [Franchise Grade Advisor](https://www.franchisegrade.com/about/advisors) can help you translate the disclosure into smarter questions before you speak with Franchisees. ## Start by Matching the Franchisee to the Numbers One of the most common mistakes in validation is asking detailed questions before confirming whether the person on the phone is even a useful comparison point. A high-performing multi-unit operator in a mature territory may not tell you much about what a first-time owner can expect in a brand-new market. Before discussing financial performance, establish the context around the operator and the unit. - How long have you been open, and how long did it take before the business felt stable? - Are you an owner-operator, semi-absentee owner, or multi-unit operator with managers in place? - What type of market are you in, and how would you describe the local customer base? - Did your opening timeline, ramp-up period, or early staffing needs match what the Franchisor described during discovery? - If you were compared to a group in Item 19, do you believe your business is a fair example of that group? ## Questions That Reveal the Story Behind Performance Once you know the operator profile, shift from surface-level satisfaction questions to questions that connect performance with execution. **Revenue quality** - What drove your early traction most: local marketing, repeat customers, referrals, or brand recognition? - Did your revenue build steadily, or were there clear turning points that changed the pace of growth? - How seasonal is the business in your market, and how do you plan around that? - Which revenue assumptions felt realistic after opening, and which ones needed adjustment? **Expense and margin realities** - Which expenses were easier to manage than expected, and which needed more attention? - Were labor, rent, marketing, or inventory costs generally in line with what you modeled from the FDD? - What does a healthy margin structure depend on in this business? - Where do newer Franchisees most often underestimate the effort required to protect profitability? **Owner involvement and management load** - What does a strong first-year owner need to personally handle in this business? - How much of your performance comes from following the system well versus individual sales or leadership ability? - What parts of the business become easier with time, and what parts always need active owner attention? **Franchisor support and execution** - Which parts of the Franchisor support system mattered most during ramp-up? - When you needed help with operations, staffing, or local marketing, how responsive was the support team? - What did the Franchisor do especially well, and where did you need to figure things out more independently? - Looking back, where did support most directly affect performance outcomes? ## Listen for Patterns, Not Just Positive or Negative Quotes A useful validation process usually involves multiple calls, not one or two. The [IFA guidance on making your franchise decision](https://www.franchise.org/franchising-overview/making-your-franchise-decision/) encourages buyers to speak with several current and former Franchisees and to look for patterns in their feedback, not just isolated comments. As you review your notes, organize answers into a few practical buckets: - What successful Franchisees seem to have in common - What slower-performing Franchisees wish they had understood earlier - Which assumptions were confirmed by several people - Which answers changed depending on ownership style, market maturity, or local competition - Which issues point to a system-level pattern rather than a one-off opinion Want a second set of eyes on your validation notes? [Franchise Grade Advisors can help you sort recurring patterns from one-off comments](https://www.franchisegrade.com/about/advisors) so your calls lead to a stronger decision. ## Questions That Help You Assess Fit, Not Just Performance Some of the most valuable validation questions are not strictly financial. They help you assess whether the business fits your style, your goals, and the kind of operating rhythm you want. - What kind of person tends to do well in this franchise, based on what you have seen? - Who tends to struggle, even if they were excited at the beginning? - If someone had my background, what part of the business would you tell them to study more closely? - What surprised you most about the pace, structure, or decision-making required after opening? - If you were making the decision again today, what would you evaluate more carefully before signing? ## Bring Your Questions Back to the FDD Strong validation calls should improve your reading of the FDD, not replace it. If several Franchisees describe longer ramp-up periods, different staffing needs, or higher working capital pressure than you expected, go back to the disclosure and review the assumptions you were using. Item 19 should be considered alongside Items 5 through 7, Item 11, Item 17, and Item 20 so you can compare financial performance, ongoing fees, support structure, contract terms, and system turnover in one decision framework. Franchise Grade also provides a helpful starting point in its [guide to Item 19](https://www.franchisegrade.com/learn/franchise-risk/item-19-explained). Reviewing that material before your calls can make your questions more precise and easier to tailor to the system you are evaluating. ## When Expert Guidance Can Make the Calls More Useful Validation is most useful when your questions are tied to the right comparison points. That is often where buyers benefit from outside help. An experienced Advisor can help you identify which Franchisees to prioritize, which metrics in Item 19 deserve deeper follow-up, and which answers should send you back into the FDD for closer review. That kind of support can save time, but more importantly, it can help you avoid drawing broad conclusions from a small sample. A smart validation process is structured, comparative, and grounded in the way franchise systems actually operate. Ready to pressure-test a franchise opportunity with someone objective? [Speak with a Franchise Grade Advisor](https://www.franchisegrade.com/about/advisors) to sharpen your validation questions, interpret the answers, and compare what you hear against the rest of the FDD. ## Turn Good Calls Into a Smarter Decision The best validation calls leave you with more than reassurance. They leave you with a clearer picture of what drives results, what conditions matter most, and whether the opportunity fits the way you would actually build and run the business. That is the standard to aim for. When you approach Item 19 validation this way, you move beyond simple confirmation and toward real decision-making confidence. You are no longer asking whether someone else succeeded. You are asking whether the economics, operating model, and support structure create a realistic path for you. ## Frequently asked questions ### What questions should I ask franchisees about Item 19? Ask whether their unit performs above or below the disclosed figure and by roughly how much, what their first twelve months looked like against it, which costs the Item 19 excludes that surprised them, and what they actually take home after debt service and their own compensation. Ask the identical questions of every owner so the answers compare. ### How do I verify an Item 19 earnings claim? You cannot audit it, but you can triangulate. Compare the disclosed figure against what several current franchisees report, check which subset of units the Item covers, and confirm whether it reports revenue or profit. If it discloses only revenue, build the expense side yourself from owners' actual cost ranges. ### Who should I call from the Item 20 list? A mix: owners at different tenures, in markets comparable to yours, and — most importantly — several who left the system in the past three years. Former franchisees are listed precisely so you can reach them, and they generally explain the difference between the projection and the outcome more candidly. ### What if a franchisor has no Item 19 at all? Then no one in the system may legally make an earnings claim to you, including the sales team, and any figure you are given verbally is a compliance problem worth noting. You build the financial picture yourself from validation calls, your own cost quotes and the fee schedule in Item 6. ### How many validation calls are enough? Enough to see a pattern rather than an anecdote — usually five to ten, including at least one former franchisee. Fewer leaves you relying on whoever answered the phone. Speaking only to the names the franchisor supplies gives you a curated sample; the Item 20 list lets you choose your own. ## Franchise terms in this guide - [Working Capital](https://www.franchisegrade.com/tools/franchise-glossary#working-capital) — Working capital is the cash you hold to run the business before it funds itself — payroll, rent, inventory and your own living costs through the ramp-up. - [Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD)](https://www.franchisegrade.com/tools/franchise-glossary#franchise-disclosure-document) — The Franchise Disclosure Document is the 23-part disclosure a franchisor must give you at least 14 calendar days before you sign anything or pay any money. It is the single most useful document in the entire process. - [Item 19 — Financial Performance Representation](https://www.franchisegrade.com/tools/franchise-glossary#item-19) — Item 19 is the only place a franchisor may legally publish figures about what its franchisees earn. It is optional to include — and its presence, scope and honesty tell you a great deal. - [Item 20 — Outlets & Franchisee Information](https://www.franchisegrade.com/tools/franchise-glossary#item-20) — Item 20 is the three-year unit table: how many outlets opened, closed, were terminated, were not renewed, were reacquired or were transferred — plus contact details for current and former franchisees. - [FTC Franchise Rule](https://www.franchisegrade.com/tools/franchise-glossary#ftc-franchise-rule) — The FTC Franchise Rule is the federal regulation that requires franchisors to deliver a standard-format FDD at least 14 days before a sale, and prohibits earnings claims outside Item 19. - [Owner-Operator](https://www.franchisegrade.com/tools/franchise-glossary#owner-operator) — An owner-operator works in the business full time, and many franchisors require it for at least the first year or two. --- *Source: [FranchiseGrade](https://www.franchisegrade.com) — independent, FDD-derived franchise research.* *Cite this page as: https://www.franchisegrade.com/learn/blog/franchise-risk/item-19-validation-call-questions* *Training, indexing and quotation are permitted — please attribute and link to the source URL above. 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