A lesson I have learned throughout my time in the business world is that entrepreneurship is about constant evolution. As you face challenges you evolve to overcome them and prevent them in the future. If you don’t close one sale, you evolve into a better salesperson. If one tactic isn’t working, you evolve your strategy and do things differently. I suppose this applies to life in general, too. I recently made the decision to dissolve my public relations firm of 4 years, Mashman Ventures.
Since April 17th, 2020 my sole focus has been on building it into a leading firm in the personal branding space. I had the opportunity to scale the team, create a vision, launch a training platform, build its website from scratch, represent my business with Meta in Washington D.C., land quotes in Forbes and Entrepreneur, and help many individuals address problems with their personal brands and see results. Clearly, there were also challenges. From contract disputes to changing the business model to eliminate retainer services, maintaining client retention, and understanding the finer details of how to keep and scale the business, it was all a part of the game.
In 2024 I felt that I needed a change. That the spark had run its course on the business, but not the service nor the vertical. Mashman Ventures felt overplayed and almost cliche, coming as an annoying and ironic surprise. We were never the traditional PR firm. Sure, we would make introductions to press relationships and help with some typical tasks such as press releases and managing testimonials, but at the core, we were a consulting firm. I remember one particular conversation with Dennis Yu of Blitzmetrics and he said:
“So you’re effectively a consulting firm?”
I felt offended. I wasn’t offended at him per se because I knew his intentions were pure, but it planted a seed.
In May 2024 I made the decision over dinner with my fiancée, to dissolve Mashman Ventures entirely, cease all activities and launch what is now Mashman Consulting Group. The idea scared me, but what was scarier was thinking about what launching a new business entails. I had done it several times before and helped my clients do the same, but to do it again? Mashman Ventures was supposed to be the vehicle that I’d build into a billion-dollar public relations firm. Within the following weeks, I would come up with the logo and marketing materials, talk with my Chief Consultant Eric Chow, and execute this new endeavor.
I am proud to say that Mashman Consulting Group successfully launched on July 18th, 2024 and is a consulting firm that specializes in personal branding and individual reputation management. We are taking the very best aspects of our approach, expertise, and strategies to continue our mission of helping public figures optimize and scale their personal brands.
Although it has been intimidating, it has also given me an adrenaline rush. In weeks to come we will continue onboarding clients and will have a physical headquarters out of Little Rock, Arkansas with a beautiful view of downtown. I decided it was time to establish some local roots which will eventually help us build an international business. Our work will primarily be done online with clients from varying locations, but the local touch helps with networking and provides a sense of community pride.
I would be honored to have you follow along for this new venture and if you are wondering if you should pivot or take a leap of faith just know that you aren’t starting over. You are armed with all of your experiences and knowledge and I can safely say you will likely be able to get more done in less time. What took me 4 years to do for Mashman Ventures, I was able to do in a week for MCG, including getting a Google Knowledge Panel in less than 3 days, albeit it is quite barren (for now).
Mashman Consulting Group’s early Google Knowledge Panel.
You can visit Mashman Consulting Group’s website at https://mashmancg.com and can find us on social media @mashmancg.
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