The conventional wisdom to launching a new PR agency in the
current economic climate might be for the principals to make sure
their straightjackets are snug. But Aldina Tracey and Dawn Peeples
are among those PR pros tossing conventional wisdom to the wind.
The two PR veterans recently founded Tracey Picon Communications,
which offers PR strategies for the financial services, publishing,
telecommunications, consumer and b-to-b marketing. Initial clients
include Barbra Manzi, founder-president of Manzies Metal Inc. and
Katherine Switzer, author of "Running and Walking for Women over
40: The Road to Sanity and Vanity" and the winner of the 1967
Boston Marathon. Tracey and Peeples come from the corporate PR side
via Avon Products Inc. and AOL, respectively. So in this era of
downsizing, what can other PR pros who may want to start their own
shop - either by following a dream or a job loss - learn from
Tracey and Peeples? A few tips on getting started and what to do
once you are up and running.
Create a Living Business Plan: Keep a "plan for all seasons"
nimble but keep your business firmly on course.
A living business plan allows you to be flexible in the early
days but yet keeps you solidly on track. It helps to lower
anxieties when clients aren't beating down your door in the
anticipated volumes, because it reminds you that "you expected" it
to be this way in the beginning.
Leading with a living, work-in-progress, plan (at TPC nicknamed
FRED for Fast Response, Expedite Decisions) permits you to focus on
the "here and now" without losing sight of your goals for the
future.
- "What are my revenue goals for 1Q, 2Q, 3Q and 4Q?"
- "What are my short and long-term operating expenses?
- "What are my clients' immediate to mid-term needs?"
- "What continues to bring new customers in the door?"
- "How am I going to serve as client lead, administrative
assistant and CEO?"
Think Big. Operating a boutique agency doesn't preclude you from
servicing large clients.
Regardless of how you choose to "smart size" your firm, it must
be seamless to the client as big companies often demand a highly
engaged and well-informed single point of contact.
- Start by turning your former employers into clients. Offer to
service "special projects" with a short time frame to better gauge
client expectations and your staff requirements. - Expand offerings when you're able to provide quality service
through expert full-time or experienced part-time support. - Create strategic alliances with other agencies to offset any
capability gaps and to provide a broader menu of services.
Mind Your Own Business. You're in business so it's time to start
acting like it.
- Don't allow "delusions of grandeur" or the "vision" of owning
your own agency to obscure your judgment and cause you to neglect
the details. Positioning, marketing, distribution, logistics,
pricing and segmentation are real issues and they have to be dealt
with up front and visited often. Conduct the same analysis on your
business as you would if you were positioning a client. Define your
niche, marketing strategy, etc. on a monthly basis and sell, sell,
sell. - Find out if your vendor contacts are more loyal to you or the
corporate brands you represented before hanging your shingle. If a
trusted long-term vendor fails to promptly return your call or give
you the same level of service once you're running your own firm,
sever the tie immediately and don't look back. Starting from
scratch may be tough but it will save you headaches and the rude
awakening that you're no longer the treasured marquis account when
you least expect it. - In an industry built on relationships, the lines can often get
blurred. In the safe haven of cushy, corporate environments vendor
partnerships have more to do with the power of the brands than the
individuals on the frontline.
If You Need Money, Ask. Don't listen to the naysayers.
Despite the unpredictable state of our nation, would-be
entrepreneurs have plenty of capital-raising alternatives. There
are the traditional financing strategies - personal savings, angel
investors and small "share" offerings. Consider these options
also:
Family and Friends
- Tap personal ties
- Asset sales
Bank Loans
- SBA Backed Loans
- National Banks
- Community Banks
Non-bank Creditors
- Credit cards
- On-line credit resources
Corporate Support
- Strategic Alliances
Feed Your Passion for PR. Remember why you decided to go into
business for yourself in the first place.
- No one in their right mind would leave the security of the
corporate PR world for double the work and half the pay, unless
they were driven by the promise for what solid PR brings to the
business world. Partner with your clients. Do good work. Be a
positive reflection on the rest of us and have some fun. It's a
crazy, wild ride. But as entrepreneurial PR people, we wouldn't
have it any other way, so enjoy it.
CONTACTS: Aldina Tracey, 718.740.8572; [email protected]; Dawn
Peeples, 718/740-8572; [email protected]