Q1: Why did you decide to start a PR business?
I wanted to work in marketing and that along with advertising is what I studied at Bournemouth University. As part of the course, I had to get a 6 week work placement. The only thing I could find was an intern position at an PR agency that was two bus rides from my house. I really didn’t want to take it.
I’m so glad I did because I loved it. It was too late to change my degree, so wanting experience I got a job doing the PR for a local business and enrolled in a Chartered Institute of Public Relations course to get my professional qualification. After uni, I struggled to find a PR job and ended up working as a Group Marketing Manager for a Vauxhall dealership until an opportunity came up at a PR agency. I quickly made my way up to PR Account Manager working on accounts like Go Ape and Montezuma’s Chocolate. I was only there a year or so before I was pushed to set up on my own.
In 2008, I started my own agency working with fashion, beauty and foodie businesses from across the country securing them coverage on the editorial pages of magazines such as Vogue, Country Living and Cosmopolitan. But a toxic client zapped my energy, shook my confidence and after 8 years I closed the business.
Behind the scenes I had been making candles and decided to turn this hobby into a business and Kiss Air was born. We made soy wax candles infused with fabulous fragrances, we were shortlisted in awards, stocked in independent shops across the country, had celebrity fans and thanks to my PR skills featured in a host of magazines. Over the last few years, I lost the love for candle making but plodded on unsure what to do.
When the pandemic hit in March 2020 I set up a free Facebook group sharing my PR knowledge with other small products businesses. I loved getting to know other business owners and their stories, giving them the confidence to pitch to the press and celebrating with them when they get featured. My love for PR was re-ignited and I went back to PR and started doing PR for brands but that wasn’t lighting me up…it was teaching others to shine in the media spotlight that did. It hit me that I could coach small product based businesses how to do their own PR to reach new audiences and grow their business. So in September 2021, I launched Louise Cox PR.
Q2: How does your business differentiate itself from other businesses?
As well as being a PR, I’ve owned numerous product businesses – handbags, jewellery, candles, personalised gifts – you name it, I’ve done it. So I know what goes into creating and sourcing amazing products – research, time, money, blood, sweat and tears. I also know it’s not just about the product – a business needs customers and to do that they need to get visible. Deciding how to do that is a minefield – social media, blogging, PR, advertising, influencers, email marketing, collaborations…the list is endless. When I coach, I primarily share PR knowledge and the process to get featured in the press but I also give support on other ways that businesses can get visible.
I’ve also created a community, The PR Hub, for my clients where they can bounce ideas around, champion and support each other. Business can be lonely at times and it’s important to me that there is a support system in place for those days when nothing seems to be going to plan.
~Business Game Changer Special Promotion~
Q3: What are the most common problems faced by women starting or running their own business and how can these problems be overcome?
One word – confidence.
There’s a little voice in their head saying you can’t do this, you won’t be successful, who do you think you are trying to run a business? A lot of the time that little voice is listened to even though there is nothing supporting it. I remind my clients that throughout their business journey there have been times when it got tough, they doubted themselves and wanted to throw in the towel but they didn’t, they dug deep and to look where they are now.
Learning to do something new is always scary. We put up a barrier, make excuses about time, money and confidence and totally forget about all we’ve achieved so far. Everything in life has been learnt from knowing nothing and it’s no different in business.
As a coach, it’s my job to be encouraging and instil confidence in the businesses that I work with. We all need someone to say “you’re doing great” or help reframe a thought from a negative to a positive.
Overcoming confidence issues in business is a process. I highly recommend positive thinking (which I know isn’t always easy!), an attitude of gratitude and visualisation as well as having a supportive network of like-minded people.
Q4: What are the key elements of a successful business?
Success looks different for everyone and the first thing I ask my clients to do is define what success looks like to them. From there they can put a plan, which is a key element for reaching that success, in place.
Planning is the roadmap from getting where you are now to your success. It might seem a long way off but break it down into manageable steps that will edge you closer to your goals every day. Also, keep connected to your why. Why you started this business – because it will encourage and motivate you along the way.
Q5: How should women business owners face the fear of failure?
When it comes to failure it needs to be faced head on otherwise we don’t move forward because we avoid doing the things that need doing. I believe one of the biggest causes of fear of failure is perfectionism. As women we want everything to be perfect – the website, the packaging, the Instagram reels – but if we strive for perfection anything other than this is seen as a failure.
Three ways to overcome the fear of failure include:
1. Redefine what failure is and give it a new perspective. Is it actually failure or a lesson learned?
- Remain positive at all times. Bob Proctor said “Thoughts become things”, so also focus on what you want instead of what you don’t and what could go wrong.
- Make a plan because as Benjamin Franklin said “If You Fail to Plan, You Are Planning to Fail”. Know where you are going and put the steps in place to help you get there.
Q6: What three pieces of advice would you give to a woman planning to start her own business?
1. Do what you love. Your business needs to light you up otherwise you’ll struggle with motivation. Passion will get you through the hard times in business.
2. Done is better than perfect. As I mentioned before, as women we want everything to be perfect but overthinking and procrastinating means it never gets done. So embrace the imperfection and stride toward your success.
3. Don’t do it on your own. We all need someone to show us what to do and encourage us. Whether you read a book to find the answers, seek them out in a Facebook group, ask the business friends you’ve made or find it in the posts of a coach on Instagram – we all need someone to help us to get us to our destination. It’s OK to ask for help.
Bio
Louise Cox is a PR coach for product based businesses helping them to master the PR process to shine in the media spotlight to reach new audiences and grow their business. With her Chartered Institute of Public Relations qualifications and over 15 years experience Louise has worked with a variety of businesses from skincare, to jewellery, chocolate and home fragrance. Louise specialises in product PR – getting products featured on the editorial pages of magazines, newspapers and online media. Through her courses and 1:1 training her clients have been seen in the likes of Top Sante, Psychologies, Woman & Home, The Telegraph, Country Living and The Independent.
Louise has owned product businesses and knows all about the highs and lows., so understands that doing PR, while juggling everything else should be easy, manageable and effective.
Louise lives in Bedfordshire with her boyfriend and dogs, Dot and Bert. She has a love of coffee, cocktails, Formula 1 and good (or terrible) chick flicks.
