How do I grow?

Is this the million dollar question? Probably.

One of the ways you can grow your client base and generate fresh leads is to engage in PR activity.

Nab a spot on Stuff or a slot on Seven Sharp, and watch your web traffic go nuts. And the tail is longer than you might think. I’ve seen clients generate leads days, weeks, and sometimes months after a public relations piece appears in the media. It’s a worthwhile investment, if done well. (You can talk to me about how to maximise that opportunity.)

But this piece isn’t just about how you can grow your business – it’s also about how I’m growing mine.

Is the perfect business size some kind of mythical unicorn?

I’d heard quite a bit about the “adolescent stage” in a business journey – that transition from owner-operator to employer. And I’d also heard arguments for and against developing an offering to offer more, better, deeper services. Because, let’s be honest, having staff is hard work. There’s a lot of responsibility, and more often than not, your employee is dependent on you for their total income, and their livelihood.

It’s something I’ve struggled with on and off for the past 18 months or so. I have too much work for one person, possibly too much to take someone on.

Also, I’m terribly fussy. I want things to be done well, with lots of regular client contact, an ‘always on’ approach and relationship building at both ends of the PR spectrum – with businesses and the media that will love them.

So where does that leave me? Well, next week I’m taking my two sub-contractors out for lunch. Zoe, who writes some bloody incredible (and, where appropriate, very funny) social media content for my clients and Rachel, who is studying to be a midwife but has a sharp commercial writing style that’s absolutely perfect for annual reports and business-to-business media releases. It’s working pretty well, but there’s a gap.

Now, I’m looking for a third person to help me manage the pure PR side of things – a person with excellent media relationships, or the ability to quickly establish them, a great phone and email manner, ability to spot a strong story and a trouble-shooting unicorn.

If you know someone like this – or you ARE that person – I’d love to hear from you for some casual contract hours in 2022.