I agree even with the raw interpretation what the panel suggested – do PR yourself. Why? Entrepreneurs need coaching, not someone doing it for them, because many of the bootsrapping 1st-timers are also 1st time entrepreneurs too. Until someone puts in the effort and/or makes their mistakes, they WILL NOT value ANY professional help, let alone PR.

I have an article on my blog on the subject ( http://leanstartups.com/why-early-stage-startups-dont-need-business-consultants.html ) and one of the main points I am making is: “Vast majority of true 1st time entrepreneurs don’t know what they don’t know.”

So why get angry about journos telling entrepreneurs to do it themselves. They are helping you! An educated client is a much better client than a naive one.

BTW there are plenty of founders out there who can do their own basic legal work. Attorneys love using scare tactics, that is how most are taught to “market” themselves. I personally don’t have a law degree, but I will whip up NDA, IP assignment, or register TM without any need of an attorney. That is commodity type stuff they bump down to paralegals anyway. There are times for a good attorney and there are times you should know how to do it yourself.

I talk to people all the time who have tried to “bootstrap” their printing – whether it has been through an online service like Vistaprint, a copy shop at a national chain like Staples or Kinko’s, or off their own office printer. Rarely are they completely satisfied with the results, but they go that route because it’s cheap. Well guess what – if it looks cheap to you, it looks cheap to your clients, too.

It’s the same way with PR. Hiring a professional, while more costly, will yield better results than what 95% of entrepreneurs will do on their own.

I agreed with a lot of the statements the panel said last night. As a “bootstrapper,” cost is paramount. In the tech and new media space, a traditional PR strategy isn’t going to be the best use of cash.

As an entrepreneur I wear a lot of hats, as cash flow improves I will jettison some off to qualified people I hire. Believe me, if I had the cash I would gladly hire the extra help, when it becomes appropriate. For now, Inquisix’s strategy is pretty much what the panel was suggesting– and of course it helps that I worked in PR in a former life.

I agree with Bobbi though, it would have been a more robust discussion were there the addition of one of the new breeds of PR professionals. Perhaps the discussion could have touched upon when is it appropriate to hire a PR firm and how to suss out the best fit for one’s company and strategy. But that may be another panel all together.

Just as traditional media is changing to remain competitive, so is Public Relations.

Good question Bobbi.