“Publicity the Silicon Valley Way:

PR Tips for Startups”

Shahirah Gardner, Launchcode PR

What is PR… really?

“Brands are built on what people are sayingabout you,

not what you're saying about yourself.

People say good things about you when (a)you have a great product and

(b) you get people to spread the word about it.”

- Guy Kawasaki

PR = third party validation

Common PR tactics:

Media releases News angles Publicity stunts Events/ Tradeshows Editorial Opportunities Speaking Engagements/ Awards Sponsorship Content Social media

What gets people talking?

The state of the startup

Before you consider PR, ask yourself:

What is your goal?

More customers? Attract investors? Impress potential business partners? 

PR for Startups?

Today’s evolving media landscape = access reporters quicker and easier than ever.

You are no longer at the mercy of big agencies, you can start building human relations with reporters yourselves.

Media Relations

5 WAYS TO KICKSTART YOUR PR CAMPAIGN

Identify target publications and reporters who cover your space.

Get to know them: Who are they? What are their interests? What do you have in common? Follow them on twitter, comment on what they write… introduce yourself in a non-promotional way. Be human.

If want reporters to invest time in you, expect to invest time in them.

#1 Make friends before you need them

#2: Understand what’s newsworthy

Exciting stories:

The startup's launch The launch of a new product, feature or

offering The release of a compelling study or

interesting data or infographic The company's response to a current event,

trend, headline Milestones, funding, high profile partnerships

#3 Craft a clear, crisp media pitch

Explain your startup in one sentence so that anyone — techie or not — can understand its purpose.

Craft a message around the news you are pitching.

Avoid jargon, make it concise.

#3b Crafting a product pitch

Here's what our product can do VS Here's what you can do with our product

Who is my audience and why do they care?=

Who is my reporter’s audience and why do they care?

Sell the benefits not the features

#3b Crafting a product pitch

iKoast is a free, lifestyle app that provides a visualmap of your favourite activities and facilities alongthe coast while delivering real time shark, rip andweather alerts.

VS

Plan your next coastal adventure with hundreds ofmapped activities from wreck dives to kitesurfing,kayaking to sailing. Help keep our beaches safe bypinning the real time location of a shark, rip, or

other hazards you spot on the coast.

#4 Develop a press kit

Create a file/ Dropbox/ press page:

Press release Screenshots Explainer Video Bios FAQs

Before going any further…

Check that:

#1: You’ve made some friends #2: You’ve got newsworthy news #3: You’ve spent time creating a solid pitch #4: You have a press kit

Then.. and ONLY then…

#5 Distribute and Pitch

Press distribution service – MediaNet, SubmitEdge, Get To Press, Get the word out from $100

Create a media list of the 5-10 reporter friends you have made

Draft a friendly, human email that includes: icebreaker, pitch and press release.

Proofread. Check your spelling. Please check your spelling! Proofread one last time. Go on, send!

Rookie Mistakes

Do not:

Spray and Pray

Not proofread, use !!!!, CAPITALS, or funky font

Make press contact info and kit difficult to find

Be annoying, self promotional, or stalk

Measuring PR Exposure – Engagement – Influence – Action

Common KPIs:

No. of coverage: hits, impressions, unique visitors

Increased organic website traffic; click thrus; view thrus (Google Analytics)

No. new leads or sign-ups No. of new social media followers No. of new referral links

Questions

e/ shahirah@launchcodepr.comm/ 0415 288 549t/ @launchcodepr

Good reads http://www.startupnation.com/

http://prinyourpajamas.com/

http://growthhackers.com/

http://www.inc.com/public-relations

http://mashable.com/marketing/

http://www.entrepreneur.com/marketing

http://www.briansolis.com/