Enterprise Nation

Having spent 15 years making & developing programmes including Changing Rooms, Don't Get Done Get Dom and Ready Steady Cook, Claire Richmond spotted a gap in the market. She saw that experts needed a way of letting the TV industry know they existed and the industry needed fast & easy access to experts who could comment on a subject. So at the age of 43, she turned down a second series of a show to live off savings and set up www.findaTVexpert.com. She's never once looked back.

When we saw what Claire was doing, we knew we wanted to profile her. Great idea. Great business. And this is how it all began:

"I started in the kitchen of my flat in September 07 ... even bought a pair of fingerless gloves to wear during the winter months so I didn't have to spend a fortune on heating bills...!"

This is the story of how life has been since the chilly start-up days of September '07:

What is the entry criteria to become a TV expert?

You have to have the skills, training/experience and qualifications to prove that you're an expert in your field of business - and a desire to be on TV.

How are you promoting the site to attract experts?

Through press releases which result in media coverage, word of mouth (experts refer me to their expert friends, TV/literary agents refer me to their clients, TV production companies refer me to experts they screentest, etc); twitter (signed up in mid Jan 09 and have already had business as a result) and networking (ecademy, The Athena Network, meeting TV agents, etc). I also track down & contact experts I read about in the press who sound interesting and send them details about findaTVexpert and am looking at ways at working more closely with Universities, Associations, etc.

What is the one TV placement of which you are most proud?

I suppose John Rennie, the personal finance and property journalist who registered in June/July last year, got spotted by a commissioning editor at the BBC in one of my weekly updates to the industry and was signed up a few months later to co-present a new property series for BBC1 which starts in May. But I'm also delighted for so many other experts who are fulfilling their media ambitions as a result of being found on findaTVexpert. For example: Craig Henderson - Classical Historian who has now done 3 features for the BBCs Inside Out and has been put forward for a series; Dr Abigael San - Doctor of Clinical Psychology who was on This Morning last Friday taking calls about self harming and who was on a Sky Real Lives programme earlier this year which explored the psychological reasons behind overeating; Patricia Davidson - the Online Shopping Expert (author of The Shopaholics Top 1000 website) who got 5 TV & Radio interviews the week after she registered last November and has now been snapped up by a TV agent; Laurie Wickwire - a Diamond Grader who was signed up to be the inhouse diamond expert for QVC, etc, etc. The list is long and varied - and it's hugely satisfying. I've never had a job where I feel so good about what I'm doing. It's just great to be able to use my expertise to help others achieve their dreams.

What are your plans for the business in 2009?

To continue to grow the business - more experts to inspire the media and more registered members of media to increase the chances of the experts. I'm also focussing on PR and partnerships. For example, I'd like to put together a media training package which includes some camera work (mock interviews, walking & talking to camera, etc), some basic styling & make-up tips (when the bright lights are on you need makeup!) and a short showreel. I'd also like to organize networking events for the registered experts with guest speakers from the TV world - ie a commissioning editor, a development producer and an expert who can talk about their experience. And at some point I want to launch in the US. I'm aiming for September but it might have to be next year.

What do you most enjoy about running the business from home?

Not having to commute to work each day on crowded tube trains. Not having to panic about how I'm going to get into work to finish that crucial bit of business when it's snowing and all of London Transport has come to a halt. Not having to take a day's holiday to wait in for the gas or delivery man! It's funny. I always wondered whether I'd be 'disciplined' enough to work from home. And the reality is I work even harder when I'm at home because there are no distractions. I'm at my desk by 9am (often earlier) and I keep going all day. Because the simple truth is, if I don't do it, no-one else will. And there's a LOT to do, which is great.

Claire Richmond talks to Emma Jones

• http://www.findatvexpert.com/