PR Done Right For Startups - A How-to Guide

There’s not one common mantra to successful brand marketing and growth strategies. It works differently with established brands and startups, some strategies never work while some stand out. Public Relations is one such powerful marketing strategy that works in most instances, provided it’s done right.

So, what are some good PR goals?

It’s important to define & track the right goals that your PR strategy should achieve so that one can optimize and plan activities aligned to these goals. A few good PR goals to consider are:

1. Increasing brand awareness among your target audience

Increasing the number of people (Ideal Customer Profile - ICP) who have heard about your brand and are familiar with your offerings. When you add the ICP constraint as a goal, it helps narrow down the type of publications you should be speaking with.

2. Becoming a desirable investee company

This is done by building awareness among the VC community about your startup, team, its key milestones, differentiators, etc. Articles can be written around user/client traction, partnerships, findings from your research/product’s usage, etc.

3. Building relationships with key journalists

Your PR agency can help set up introductory calls with select journalists who will understand and follow your journey along. These calls may not result in immediate stories, but if your story is compelling enough, these journalists will cover your startup at an appropriate time.

4. Becoming a Thought Leader in your space

This is usually a long-term goal and one that early-stage startups struggle with. A good recommendation would be to have a 2-year timeline at the very least and be patient and consistent with your efforts.

It’s easy for founders to get frustrated and start questioning whether PR is working for them. The best way to know if your PR process is working is to monitor these PR metrics which are also leading indicators:

· Press releases and Authored articles: This should be the base level goal - handling press releases effectively, getting authored articles published (for thought leadership), speaker/award opportunities etc. You can specify a reasonable number of press releases, authored articles, etc. that the PR agency will be responsible for. Be sure not to dilute your brand by going after quantity and not quality. It’s ok to say no to PR opportunities that don’t add much value to your brand.

· Choose the right publications and industry mentions: As a startup, getting into Tier 1 publications will be difficult. So, focus on getting into startup media publications by crafting a compelling story around your brand. Getting organically quoted by a journalist covering your industry is a huge win for the brand. Track the percentage of times your brand got mentioned in a relevant industry story and benchmark this against key competitors.

· Relevant TV news coverage and podcasts - It’s a difficult goal, but with constant efforts, your brand/spokesperson will start getting invited to panels or your funding news will get covered in Tier 1 TV news channels. Getting featured on podcasts is the new/digital PR that brands need to consider.

Now, how do you know if PR is working?

There will be anecdotal evidence that will indicate whether PR activities are working for you (friends messaging that their society’s WhatsApp group was discussing your startup, someone you get introduced to says they have heard about your startup, etc.) But obviously, you need better ways of knowing if the efforts you are putting in are working for your startup. Here are a few indicators:

1. Surveys

Commission independent brand awareness surveys that will speak to your ICP and check if they are aware of your brand. This is not recommended in the first 24 months of your startup’s PR and Brand Marketing journey - it’s too early and you’ll only be wasting your marketing budget in these surveys.

2. Inbound requests to participate in relevant Industry Panels, podcasts, etc.

This is a good proxy metric to track as it indicates that more people in your target audience have heard about you and want to hear from you.

3. Track Sales and Marketing Metrics

· Volume of Branded SEO traffic you get on your website: Track the increase in Branded SEO traffic (absolute not percentage increase)

· B2B - Average time to close a sales lead: This should start going down if your branding is working and companies will get straight into the comparison and solutions discussion phase.

· B2C -Time taken to convert from free to paid user: Be sure to check for other reasons such as promotions, partnerships, etc.

Be focused, persistent and creative in your approach to PR. You will eventually get a high ROI from your PR investments. Hope this article helps you plan your PR strategy better.

The Author is Sameer Mehta, Head of Marketing and Growth, WealthDesk 

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Sameer Mehta

Guest Author Head of Marketing & Growth, WealthDesk

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