When I first started my wedding PR agency five years ago, I ran it as if I was 007. I kept my clients arms length from journalists because I was afraid that if I wasn’t a necessary go-between, I would be deemed irrelevant. I had no friends in PR because I was terrified that they would become my competitors. And I never divulged my professional secrets to anyone.
My motto was basically: Publicists are like secret agents. We never share our sources; we keep our clients informed on a need-to-know basis, and we always keep our pitches under lock and key.
But earlier this year, I decided to change the direction of my company. I began teaching small business owners in the wedding industry the basics of PR so that they could go and get publicity for themselves. You may be thinking, isn’t that basically putting yourself out of work? For years, that’s what I thought as well. But then I saw the light.
My motto was basically: Publicists are like secret agents. We never share our sources; we keep our clients informed on a need-to-know basis, and we always keep our pitches under lock and key.
The wedding industry, like many other niche industries, is made up of many small businesses that cannot afford a traditional PR agency retainer. Eventually, I realized that this particular market – let’s call them the 99% – were never going to become full-time clients anyway, and it wasn’t going to work to simply keep trying to convince them they needed PR. Instead, I pivoted in my business and created a specific way to help these smaller operations.
Earlier this summer, I published a DIY PR book, Marry the Media (it’s on Amazon if you’re curious) and began teaching workshops and webinars. I also shared my formerly best-kept secrets and guest blogged for industry magazines. It has been a lot of work, but this decision created several unexpected benefits for both me and my business.
Here are 5 lessons learned from sharing my PR secrets:
After a few years in PR, I had stopped feeling challenged and was, quite honestly, bored. While my clients changed, the essence of what I did on a daily basis didn’t. However, writing a book, learning about self-publishing, growing an email list, developing a webinar and learning the ins and outs of online marketing was actually…fun. It felt like going back to school and there wasn’t a single day I was bored.
When I told a friend I wanted to teach DIY PR, she asked me whether it would dilute my brand. Her concern was legitimate. After all, I had a reputation for working with top brands, and here I was suddenly going after a DIY audience of small business owners.
What I found was the complete opposite; choosing to teach and share what I know actually strengthened my credibility. By growing my own reputation as a teacher, I also stepped out of a so-called PR closet that many solo practitioners hide in, thinking that clients prefer larger operations than a one-woman show. Even though I’ve had periods when I’ve had staff and interns and contractors, my agency has always essentially been me. For years, I covered up this truth, using corporate speak (lots of “we”) and pretending “we” were bigger than “we” were.
Now, I no longer pretend we is actually just me. It’s my name on the book cover and I’m standing in front of people at workshops. I realized that selling “me” was what I should have done all along. My clients don’t want a big, faceless agency. What they want is somebody authentic, intelligent, respected, and connected who they can trust. Now, I feel like I am that person.
Before I decided to go in this new direction, back when I was 007, I was rarely invited to speak or share my expertise. People likely saw me as someone who was interested in getting new clients and nothing more. But now that I am willing to share and educate others, it’s different. Editors are enthusiastic about publishing my articles because PR is always an on-demand topic for their readers. B2B companies invite me to speak to their clients, which exposes me to a larger audience. Industry influencers are more eager to collaborate with me because I have value I can pass on to their audiences. And more doors keep opening.
I realized that selling “me” was what I should have done all along. My clients don’t want a big, faceless agency. What they want is somebody authentic, intelligent, respected, and connected who they can trust.
The book and several accompanying DIY products I’ve launched provide new revenue sources for my agency. It’s still only about 15% of the total, but I see the growth potential. To me, the most important benefit is that now I’m no longer stuck selling my time. By converting my knowledge and experience into products, I’m now selling value, which is easier to scale.
All in all, my decision to open up and teach the PR skills which I used to hoard is changing my business for the better. I hope that more publicists realize the potential benefits of sharing their knowledge.
About Sasha
Sasha Vasilyuk is the founder and CEO of I DO PR, a public relations agency for wedding and lifestyle brands. She is also an award-winning journalist published in USA Today, Harper’s Bazaar, Newsweek, Huffington Post, Los Angeles Times, and San Francisco Chronicle as well as the author of Marry the Media: How to Gain Publicity for Your Wedding Business.
