Startups and PR, done well.
There’s no way around it: for startups, paying $ upfront for a PR agency can be a gamble. As someone who’s helped generate 100+ articles in top-tier publications over the last 10 years running growth teams in startups, here’s my checklist…
3 ways to know if a PR agency is right for your startup:
1) Newsworthy events
Is your company entering a newsworthy event? Founders can be myopic about what is actually newsworthy. For them, a new product launch is significant. For top-tier news publications, probably not.
What’s newsworthy:
Major fundraising event
Company launch (if deep tech or company is truly game-changing)
Follow-on company launch from a well-known founder
Multiple former C-level execs from household name companies joining
What’s likely not:
Additional product launches past company launch
Partnership announcements (unless partner is a household name and you are taking on a major line of business)
Individual execs joining
2) Big names
This one requires honest introspection: is anyone in the immediate circle of your startup (founders, early investors, advisors, early clients) a household-recognizable name? (“Household” is relative to your area, like Silicon Valley). If so, this can elevate a story to the threshold of newsworthiness, if it’s otherwise borderline. “Here’s why X,Y,Z big names have invested in/are lining up to be part of this ABC startup” is the ticket here.
3) Trade pubs matter
If you’re in an industry where trade publications can move the needle, and a PR firm can generate a reliable source of industry news, it can still be worth the investment to generate a few pieces per month.
The reality is that journalists use quick heuristics to gauge newsworthiness. They’re people too, with their own biases. Pitches to top-tier journalists that don’t meet 1 and 2 above, even from a well-connected and talented PR agency, will often fall on deaf ears.
If you aren’t “checking the box” on any of the 3 above, it’s best to invest into AI-driven growth marketing strategies that can move the needle at a lower cost. In our next post, we dive into what those are…