This Q&A approach has been helpful to some of you, it seems.

Robert: if it is of any value, perhaps Monsieur Jenkins and myself, plus any of my other learned colleagues, can reply to a series of questions your students ask of us. Where we can add something of value, we do. Where we cannot, we individually stay quiet.

In this way we can answer not only general questions, but also trade-specific ones, too. Ethics questions are usually a good starting point! (grin)

What say you?

I didn’t even realise that what I was doing WAS something called ‘Business Communication’ for many, many years!

‘Business Communication’ as a term seems to imply that you instinctively ‘know’ what it means, whereas the reality is that it can mean anything you want it to mean.

It is PR? Yes, but it is also employee comms, stakeholder comms, investor comms, political lobbying, online comms, community comms… you name it, if it has words, pictures or video attached to it is probably belongs to us.

The challenge for folks like you and I is not so much the ‘what’ but whether we can actually contribute anything of value. For example, I would be lying and doing my client a disservice if I said I was a Communication Consultant who understood corporate video.

The challenge we all face is being honest and saying what our true experience and interests are, rather than bluffing and hoping we can say enough of the right things to get the job.

[Disclaimer: Lee is my partner in sometimes crime at commscafe.com]

I am going to quibble with a couple of his views on “business,” though (not communication).

Lee is asked: At what intervals do you demand payment from your clients?

Lee answers: 50% up front, 50% within 7 days on completion. They receive a 10% discount if they pay in full up front (saves me having to chase them for payment). If the project is a long one (lasting more than 2 months) I work out a 30% upfront, stagger interim payments monthly, and a 10% final amount on completion.

Allan answers: I usually have no or small expenses before the job, so my terms are net cash 14 days (i.e., pay in full 14 days after the invoice date). I send the invoice the day after the job. Jobs that go over a month are billed at the end of the month for the work-in-progress.

I never give a discount for early payment, but charge interest and fees for late payment.

If the client wants me to contract a printing job, I hook them up with the printer directly… I don’t “hold other people’s money” anymore.

Lee is asked: Have you ever had any clients who have not paid? What have you done?

Lee answers: Yes, once. Repeated calls, letters and emails to them. When that has failed just write it off as a bad debt (and let my peers and friends know about it).

Allan answers: back in 1991, a client who didn’t pay — a friend and colleague — nearly bankrupted me. Since then, I am stone cold about late payers. After a couple of reminders, I send it to my attorney.

Honest people who are going to pay you, but can’t right then, are going to tell you way ahead of deadline. Anyone who waits ’til after deadline, and then sails in with “well, you know… I just talked to bookkeeping….” needs a little court time.

Allan

I am not the type of person who can do the same thing all day every day. I would get bored really fast, so it is comforting to know that PR will most likely give me the variety to keep me on my toes and motivated to do my best work.

I know my class would have additional questions about what you do for a living, perhaps you would let us pick your brain sometime?

I’m graduating in December and I just want you to know how inspiring it is to hear (or read) other peoples career testimonies.

There are so many options out there and this interview truly gave me soem great insight into the world of business, public relations and marketing.

Being able to write that out must make you proud of where your career has taken you!

Thank you for sharing that.