A PR start up: One year on

Of the many experiences we have had over the past year in setting up our strategic communications and reputation management consultancy, the nicest has been the willingness of other business owners to share their own learnings. Some fellow practitioners who are two and five years ahead of us were generous with their time and advice that came from their own first-hand experience, said: “there is no need for you to make the same mistakes we did.” This has encouraged us to share our insights with readers of Influence.

So one year on, was it the right decision? To answer this question here’s the top four learnings we can share with you based on our own experience:

Learning 1 – find a mentor

We have had the advantage that the business was set up as a joint partnership and we benefitted from being able to talk through every twist and turn in our journey with each other. If you are a sole practitioner, getting a second opinion is even more important.  Identify colleagues or business owners who can be mentors. Don’t shy away from getting advice or a second opinion. It is essential to validate that you are on the right track at each stage of the journey and it will help avoid going down a rabbit hole, potentially saving you time and money.

Learning 2 – use your marketing communications skills

As communications practitioners, the fun part in creating a consultancy was applying our own PR skills to ourselves! We have used everything within our discipline to create our footprint from press releases, interviews, public speaking, events, sponsorship, social media to networking. We knew it had worked when a fellow practitioner said: “I keep seeing you everywhere.” If you were to ask us which was the most effective, we would say: “They all make a contribution, but the most effective is networking.”

We are the type of practitioners that are willing to roll up our sleeves and try our hand at a new skill. We have done all the marketing communications activities ourselves. The great benefit to this is that you will know your business intimately. This is key to identifying where your client work will come from. It also added an unexpected stream of business when other practitioners asked us to develop marketing communications strategies for their businesses. 

Learning 3 – business development

The public relations industry has not always been ahead of new developments. It was, for example, behind the curve on social media. It has subsequently looked to recover lost ground. Stay up to date with developments and spend time researching opportunities. As a small-sized enterprise, one great advantage is our agility. Spot these new trends and get ahead. It can create new business opportunities that may not have been in your original business plan.

Learning 4 – business model 

Take time to develop your business model. We wrote white papers, undertook research and designed our own project plan. Whilst one may think that there is no time, given the mammoth number of tasks one is faced with when setting up a business, it proved to be a good discipline. Schedule regular meetings to review your plans, financial forecasts and new business pipeline to ensure the company remains on track.

Creating your own business means a lot of hard work, requires you to hold your nerve and, as with any investment, takes time to shape and mould. We have also had the confidence to stand by our own decisions which is extremely rewarding. We have undertaken some very interesting client work and, we hope, made a difference to the clients we advise. It has also resulted in us having gained both unique experience and perspective. We are practitioners who have worked in consultancy, in house and, now, are business owners. And when your first invoice gets paid and the funds are in your bank account it is a great feeling and you know you have really launched your business. 

To answer the question “Was it the right decision?” one year on, the answer is “Yes.” 

Mike Evans and Elizabeth Maclean are co-founders and co-managing directors of Herdwick Communications.