Looking for a reprieve from corporate culture or controlling bosses? A stable U.S. economy and burgeoning growth in small businesses have created the right climate to start your own PR firm.
Joan Gladstone, who in 1989 founded Gladstone International in Irvine, Calif., following a 15-year career with big firms, said that the stable economy could be the impetus for businesses to seek outside consultants to design and implement PR programs. Her PR/public affairs firm employs seven full-time staffers; clients include Deloitte & Touche Resources Connection, Lewis Homes Management Corp. and American Suzuki Motor Corp.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics ranks PR as the third fastest growing industry in the decade 1996-2006. Coupled with an unemployment rate under five percent for the last 15 months - the largest in more than 30 years - this points to how lucrative a leap into self-employment might be.
Now Is the Time
The economic climate also was just right for Bill Patterson, president and founder of Reputation Management Associates, which Patterson launched in late October because of the increased need for "niche PR" and the 2.2 percent unemployment rate in Ohio where the firm is headquartered.
"Big companies with in-house PR departments now want another PR firm to provide investor relations and then another one for media training," he says. "The days of the specialized PR firms are in."
Industry-specific PR is at the forefront of the industry. Entrepreneur Marc Hausman, who launched his PR firm three years ago at age 24, knows how valid that forecast is.
He tapped into the Washington, D.C., market at the right time - just when technology and telecom companies were at a peak. He provides media relations for these companies and says branding himself and his company with that forte turned his small business into the $2 million company it is today.
Gladstone, while speaking in Boston at the recent PRSA conference, agreed that niche-PR is a must for those starting their own firm. She pointed out several specialization areas riding the wave of popularity in PR today:
- crisis management
- employee communications
- media relations
- new media
- financial communications
- issues management
- multicultural communications
Gladstone also named several industries that are popular targets for PR just now: food and beverage, health and hospitality, technology, real estate and telecom are among them. Aligning yourself with one of these industries can increase your chances of success as a PR entrepreneur.
After you've identified an industry and specialty, defining your image becomes the next step and challenge. Gladstone provided a number of suggestions for networking and publicizing your name in the PR arena:
- Talk to economic forecasters about future trends in PR and business. Go to your local university and locate studies about economic forecasts. Consider joining focus groups or roundtable discussions.
- Make friends with the media. The best PR people know the beats of local reporters, write well-tailored press releases and are sensitive to deadlines. Provide reporters with exclusives and you're sure to win favor.
- Talk to the Chamber of Commerce about what businesses they are trying to attract to your region in the coming year.
- Join a professional or trade association
- Become involved in local professional and business organization chapters to network with local businesses and media.
Gladstone said the most difficult part about flying solo is not receiving a regular paycheck.
Her advice? Don't even think about starting you own firm unless you've saved six months of salary.
Costs include renting office space and equipment. In hot markets like New York, Chicago and D.C., rent can be "shocking," Patterson says. Hausman set up shop in the D.C. suburb of Silver Spring, Md., where the rent was significantly lower.
Finally, how important, and costly, is networking in your start-up marketing strategy? Gladstone suggests budgeting about $400 a month to go to about three events per week. Hausman, however, says networking was not part of his strategy. He preferred building strong relationships with the media and potential clients over time.
(Gladstone, 949/475-6979; Patterson, 614/486-5000; Hausman, 301/408-4500)
Small Business Fast Facts
- 23 million small businesses in the United States
- Small businesses provide 67 percent of workers with their first jobs
- Represent 99.7 percent of all employers
- Provide 47 percent of all sales in the US
- Account for 28 percent of jobs in high technology sectors
Source: SBA