• by Alison Hill , Columnist, August 16, 2012

Back in the ’90s, when I started my boutique PR agency, I really could have used a mentor—someone older, wiser, who knew how to launch and market a small business. Maybe if I’d had someone to bounce ideas off of, I wouldn’t have made the mistakes I did: like renting a second office on Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles when I was headquartered an hour (or more) away in Orange County. I think I used the Melrose office twice in a year. Or hiring full-time staff and then trying to make them fit every client’s needs; now I know better and work like a film producer, handpicking the right crew for each project. And don’t even get me started on client boundaries on those early days. I had none. I always put the client first—ignoring my own business’ needs during the work week and trying to cram them in on weekends. 

What I really needed back then was a mentor from SCORE, the nonprofit organization that offers free business counseling from retired professionals who’ve got decades of experience in starting and growing a business. If I’d had someone like that, I would have used my money and my time more wisely—and I would have had more fun along the way, too.

I thought about this recently when I met Tom Patty, a celebrated advertising executive from Chiat/Day who now volunteers with SCORE Orange County. I’ve watched Patty in action as he led a lively workshop for small business owners and opened their eyes about marketing, social media, and the good, bad, and ugly of customer relations. Patty also works one-on-one with entrepreneurs such as Tasha Oldham, a documentary filmmaker who owns a Venice, Calif.-based business called My Story Inc, making documentary-style films for and about small businesses. 

Oldham started her film career working for David Lynch, and later produced “Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmerman” for the Travel Channel, so she had plenty of creative chops. But while she was great at helping entrepreneurs tell their stories, when it came to managing her own business, she needed guidance. Enter Tom Patty. 

After meeting with Patty over the course of two years and gaining the benefit of his business expertise, Oldham was able to grow her business significantly: Now she’s not only making marketing films for small businesses and entrepreneurs, but for Fortune 500 companies.

“Tom was instrumental in teaching me how to think much bigger,” says Oldham. “He was able to broaden our approach, and the impact he had on our business is invaluable.”

In fact, Oldham recently received SCORE National’s 2012 award for Outstanding Woman-Owned Small Business. The award is sponsored by Constant Contact, which specializes in helping small business, nonprofits, and corporations connect with their customers through email marketing, online surveys, event marketing, and social media. Constant Contact has also been working with SCORE Orange County for the past four months, and in that short amount of time, has already hosted eight workshops on using social media.

“Social media is the new word-of-mouth in the digital age,” says Kelly Flint, Constant Contact’s Area Director for the West. “And most small businesses know that word of mouth is the number one way to attract new business—but they’re not sure how to translate that into a social media presence.” 

So SCORE Orange County and Constant Contact have teamed up to present frequent, well-attended social media workshops designed especially for small businesses. In three-hour workshops focused on real-world case studies, participants learn best practices for using Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, e-mail marketing and other social tools to find customers (the right customers).  The sessions focus on case studies of real world small businesses—their successes and mistakes, their time-saving tips, and their advice on what to avoid.  

“Rather than spending time trying to use social media to search for prospects, we shift the focus to building relationships and trust with existing customers,” says Flint. “When you do that through social media tools, new business will find you.”

I have to admit to being a little envious of the entrepreneurs who—thanks to SCORE and Constant Contact—are starting their businesses so much better equipped than I was 20 years ago. Of course, back then “social media” meant picking up the telephone (remember that?) and cold-calling a potential business prospect.

But I’ve become extremely impressed with the generosity of the mentors who donate their time to help today’s fledgling business get off the ground.

“The volunteers at SCORE are a diverse group of men and women who come from all kinds of fields and backgrounds,” says Dennis Wright, SCORE OC Chapter Chair.  “But whether chemists, ice cream store owners, executive assistants, or management consultants like me, we all share a passion to help others enjoy success in their business endeavors.” 

Adds Kelly Flint of Constant Contact, “We know that small businesses are the heroes of our economy— and if small businesses succeed, our country succeeds.”