What is the minimum qualified commission a prospect must earn within 12 months of beginning operations for the referring Belocal franchisee to receive a referral fee?
Belocal Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
We may pay a referral fee of $10,000 to the first of our franchisees that introduces a new prospective franchisee to us who is not associated with us, The N2 Company, or any of our affiliated businesses and is identified to us as referred by the prospective franchisee on their initial application if: (a) we approve the new prospect, (b) we and the prospect sign a Franchise Agreement within 6 months after the referral is made, (c) the prospect pays us the full initial franchise fee applicable to their franchise, (d) the prospect timely begins operation of its business, (e) the publication managed by the prospect goes to print, and (f) the prospect earns at least one qualified commission (currently a qualified commission is at least $3,000 (excluding fees charged by the franchisee to the client for ad management services) within 12 months of the date the prospect begins operations of its business. If we pay the referral fee, we will pay the fee after all of the above conditions are met. The prospect turned franchisee must also be in good standing under its franchise agreement at the time. You must be in full compliance with all Franchise Agreements between you and us (or our affiliates) in order to receive a referral fee. This referral fee is available only if the new prospect's Franchised Business manages a new publication or acquires the rights to manage a Bridge Publication; it is not available for transfers of existing Franchised Businesses. This referral program is subject to all state and local laws and regulations. We reserve the right to terminate, cancel, or modify such referral program at any time. Franchisees should refer to the Referral Program Policy document for additional rules and information. No more than one referral fee will be paid to franchisees living in or operating a Franchised Business within the state of Washington, and no franchisee, regardless of location,
Source: Item 1 — THE FRANCHISOR AND ANY PARENTS, PREDECESSORS, AND AFFILIATES (FDD pages 8–12)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Belocal's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, a referring franchisee can receive a $10,000 referral fee if they introduce a new prospective franchisee who meets specific criteria. One of these criteria is that the new franchisee must earn at least one qualified commission of $3,000 (excluding fees charged by the franchisee to the client for ad management services) within 12 months of starting their Belocal business. This commission threshold is a key performance indicator tied to the referral program.
For a Belocal franchisee, this means that to be eligible for the referral fee, the prospect they refer needs to achieve a minimum sales performance within their first year. The $3,000 qualified commission acts as a benchmark for the new franchisee's initial success. It also ensures that the referring franchisee only receives the referral fee if the new franchisee is actively and successfully operating their Belocal franchise.
It's important to note that several other conditions must also be met for the referring franchisee to receive the $10,000 referral fee. These include Belocal's approval of the new prospect, the signing of a Franchise Agreement within 6 months of the referral, payment of the full initial franchise fee, timely commencement of business operations, the prospect's publication going to print, and the new franchisee remaining in good standing under the franchise agreement. The referring franchisee must also be in full compliance with their own franchise agreement. This referral fee is available only if the new prospect's Franchised Business manages a new publication or acquires the rights to manage a Bridge Publication and is not available for transfers of existing Franchised Businesses.
Belocal also retains the right to terminate, cancel, or modify the referral program at any time, so franchisees should refer to the Referral Program Policy document for additional rules and information. These conditions highlight the importance of understanding all the requirements and potential changes to the referral program before relying on it as a source of income.