PR Perspective: Going it on your own?

By Elizabeth Schilling

Marketing Manager

Workinpr.com

Ten years after starting up, only one in ten small businesses will still be in operation. With that kind of statistic, why would anyone want to start their own business?

Lots of reasons.

Andrew Carnegie said the sole purpose of being in business is to make a profit. But that was Andrew Carnegie, and starting and operating one's own business means different things to different people. One of the most important things, according to small business start up experts, is to know your reason.

For some, it simply means owning the clock by which one works; for others, it represents an opportunity to build an empire of employees, assets and influence. Yet for another group, it may be the opportunity to make more money and to build something for themselves with the 60 hours they work each week instead of plowing it into someone else's business. Whatever the reason, knowing the why is one of the keys to success.

Another key is knowing what you want to do. If you do want to work for yourself, experts offer the sage advice to start a venture you know intimately. Since the likelihood, dear reader, is that you are an expert in PR, let's assume that the business start up is your own PR agency or consultancy. That brings us to a third key, which is knowing yourself - both your strengths and weakness - and what you would bring to a small business endeavor. Whether or not, in short, you have what it takes.

Excellent advice comes from Mary Beth West, APR, principal of Mary Beth West Consulting and an advisor to PRSA's New Professionals Affinity Group. In an online article, Starting Your Own Public Relations Consultancy, A New Professional's Guide to Going Solo, Mary Beth talks about how to achieve success as a solo practitioner. Truly enjoying your work is important, she says. Also crucial is mastering certain tasks, such as dealing with clients effectively and managing vendor relations with printers, graphic designers, and creative services. She also cites the importance of basic business skills, such as managing cash flow to pay bills - and employees, if you have them - on time. While PR Professionals who start their own agencies are one step ahead of the game since they know the importance of marketing and PR and how to do it, possibly the most important piece of advice she offers concerns the S-word. "If you don't like being a salesperson, then don't even go there, " adding, "The biggest surprise - an unwelcome one for many people - is that starting and maintaining your own business requires excellent sales skills."

For the person willing to face the S-word, however, there are many resources for starting a small business.

Probably the oldest and most time-honored resource is the Small Business Administration (www.sba.gov). To aid preparation and understanding for the would-be entrepreneur, it offers many online resources as well as test questions, such as:

• Are you a self-starter? It will be entirely up to you to develop projects, organize your time, and follow through on details.
• How well do you get along with different personalities? Business owners need to develop working relationships with a variety of people including customers, vendors, staff, bankers, and professionals such as lawyers, accountants or consultants. Can you deal with a demanding client, an unreliable vendor, or a cranky receptionist if your business interests demand it?
• How good are you at making decisions? Small business owners are required to make decisions constantly - often quickly, independently, and under pressure.
• Do you have the physical and emotional stamina to run a business? Business ownership can be exciting, but it's also a lot of work. Can you face six or seven 12-­hour workdays every week?

If you have links, comments or information pertaining to the editorial you would like to share, please feel free to email me at info@workinpr.com. Space permitting, I'll include them in the next newsletter.

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