Sonya Madeira Stamp
Managing Partner
Rice Communications

SMALL and mid-sized businesses in Singapore are just being cautiously optimistic, reflecting the mood of the larger business community. Until we see a sustainable and more predictable global economic recovery through the end of the year and into 2011, it does make good sense to remain prudent in forecasting growth. Furthermore, certain sectors have yet to emerge from the slump and we’re merely seeing growth in areas that were in fact resilient in the midst of the recession, such as construction, biomedical and pharmaceuticals, and manufacturing.

Where our business is concerned, we are anticipating steady growth; not as extraordinarily sharp as other sectors might experience. Unlike other communications and marketing-oriented fields, public relations is not inevitably vulnerable to prevailing economic conditions. In a downturn, PR leads as an alternative, cost-effective platform to advertising and product or corporate branding roadshows that entail heftier marketing budgets. Being an SME gives us an edge over bigger multinational firms in lean times because our pricing is more competitive, and the approach and services are significantly more flexible. As the economy improves and companies re-energise their external audience outreach, PR remains a strategic part of the marketing mix, further providing agencies like ours opportunities to gain market share and increase revenues.

   
Read more in the 24 August 2010 issue of The Business Times.