A large part of what we do at True Ventures is guide early-stage startup founders along their journeys. One question we get all the time: How should I tell my story, and what will entice reporters to write about us? Here, I share insights from my years as a journalist to help founders discover and share their stories while adding value to the media landscape.
A TikTok Influencer Marketing Case Study: Universal Music Song PromotionAlessandro Bogliari
Universal Music hired our agency The Influencer Marketing Factory in order to promote a new song called “Money Dance” by the trap Danish artist K-Phax (Universal Music).
Social Media Marketing - Basics and How To for NGOs. A presentation made to NGOs at a workshop conducted by the NASSCOM Foundation. Slides made in collaboration with Sreeraman Thiagarajan.
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Between never-ending ‘to-do’ lists and new communications channels popping up everyday, it can be hard to find the time to stop and look at the bigger picture. Take a few hours out of the trenches and into a conversation about your goals, audiences, and actions to support your nonprofit’s mission. In a workshop at the Foundation Center in DC, Big Duck’s Vice President, Farra Trompeter, outlined what’s in a communications strategy and a guide for how to create and implement one for your organization.
Even though influencer marketing is widely acknowledged to be the most effective yet highly affordable form of advertising, the actual return on investment is still a looming question for marketers who haven't yet worked with influencers. In this white paper, you will learn about research data and case study examples that prove the ROI of influencer marketing.
Best Practices in Social Media for NGO's [Report]Social Samosa
As an NGO, your social media activities should aim at creating awareness, generating interest, encouraging sharing, and enlisting support and participationfor your initiatives.
Social media is all the rage but what about when things go wrong? A triggering event that creates a significant disruption to an organization, puts its reputation at risk. In this presentation we'll walk you through some tried and true methodologies on how to approach crisis in your social media.
A TikTok Influencer Marketing Case Study: Universal Music Song PromotionAlessandro Bogliari
Universal Music hired our agency The Influencer Marketing Factory in order to promote a new song called “Money Dance” by the trap Danish artist K-Phax (Universal Music).
Social Media Marketing - Basics and How To for NGOs. A presentation made to NGOs at a workshop conducted by the NASSCOM Foundation. Slides made in collaboration with Sreeraman Thiagarajan.
Developing a Communications Strategy for Your NonprofitBig Duck
Between never-ending ‘to-do’ lists and new communications channels popping up everyday, it can be hard to find the time to stop and look at the bigger picture. Take a few hours out of the trenches and into a conversation about your goals, audiences, and actions to support your nonprofit’s mission. In a workshop at the Foundation Center in DC, Big Duck’s Vice President, Farra Trompeter, outlined what’s in a communications strategy and a guide for how to create and implement one for your organization.
Even though influencer marketing is widely acknowledged to be the most effective yet highly affordable form of advertising, the actual return on investment is still a looming question for marketers who haven't yet worked with influencers. In this white paper, you will learn about research data and case study examples that prove the ROI of influencer marketing.
Best Practices in Social Media for NGO's [Report]Social Samosa
As an NGO, your social media activities should aim at creating awareness, generating interest, encouraging sharing, and enlisting support and participationfor your initiatives.
Social media is all the rage but what about when things go wrong? A triggering event that creates a significant disruption to an organization, puts its reputation at risk. In this presentation we'll walk you through some tried and true methodologies on how to approach crisis in your social media.
CEO's see themselves as the stewards of reputation of the oganization - they want to turn it over to their successor in a better shape than they received it.
In this slideshow, we highlight research on CEOs and reputation management, pr, crisis communication, employer branding and much more.
39 Ways To Increase Your Referrals And Grow Your Chapterrepossible
Today, Kay Heatherly, Kevin Casey and Gil Zeimer -- our chapter's three BNI Ambassadors -- presented this PowerPoint on the 39 ways you can increase your referrals and grow your chapter.
This list is a compilation of tips that I've gotten from other presentations by both Kevin and Kay. And this list is by no means complete. So if you have a suggestion for something we missed, please comment on it below and we'll update the PPT.
The 10 most important ways you can improve your referrals:
1) Show up to BNI every week
2) Givers Gain -- give referrals to get referrals
3) Listen to everyone's infomercial because members should be specific in the referrals they're requesting
4) Have a Website with your name on it -- be the master of your own domain
5) Visit other chapters whenever possible, especially on Visitor's Days
6) Sub at other chapters to line up reciprocal subs for yourself
7) Have more one-on-one dance cards
8) Step up to leadership
9) Take your MSP Training ASAP
10) And be active in your power group.
Job performance not a predictor of engagement (Leadership IQ whitepaper)Benjamin Crucq
The employees bringing you the least value are often more engaged than the folks who reliably deliver good and great performance. There are ample reasons why this puts organizations at risk. And one of them is the fact that high performers, who thrive on being highly engaged, don’t tend to stick around very long if they aren’t engaged.
Y Combinator Startup Class #10 : Company Culture and Building a TeamFabien Grenet
Slide utilisé dans le cours n°10 de la Y Combinator Startup Class de Standford (http://startupclass.samaltman.com/) donné par Alfred Lin
Publiée sur slideshare pour pouvoir être intégrée à l'article http://startupeers.co/y-combinator-startup-class-10-company-culture-and-building-team-part-1
Digital Strategy 101 is an overview of the current state of digital strategy and an exploration of core concepts, deliverables, and thought-leaders relevant to young practitioners.
This presentation was done as a quick research project based on my interest and curiosity about service design. I would like to integrate this with my personal brand.
This presentation contains the definition of corporate communication, why it is required in NGO's, the relevance of social media, various objectives of NGO's and the advantages of using corporate communication in NGO's.
How to Design and Implement Superior Business ModelsBMI Lab
What is business model innovation.
Why it matters for established companies.
The obstacles to BMI within established companies.
A methodology to successfully design new BM.
Implementation and testing.
This stripped down version of my media training does not inlcude the company/issue specific slides addressin the particular needs of those being trained but hopefully those needing a good tutorial
CEO's see themselves as the stewards of reputation of the oganization - they want to turn it over to their successor in a better shape than they received it.
In this slideshow, we highlight research on CEOs and reputation management, pr, crisis communication, employer branding and much more.
39 Ways To Increase Your Referrals And Grow Your Chapterrepossible
Today, Kay Heatherly, Kevin Casey and Gil Zeimer -- our chapter's three BNI Ambassadors -- presented this PowerPoint on the 39 ways you can increase your referrals and grow your chapter.
This list is a compilation of tips that I've gotten from other presentations by both Kevin and Kay. And this list is by no means complete. So if you have a suggestion for something we missed, please comment on it below and we'll update the PPT.
The 10 most important ways you can improve your referrals:
1) Show up to BNI every week
2) Givers Gain -- give referrals to get referrals
3) Listen to everyone's infomercial because members should be specific in the referrals they're requesting
4) Have a Website with your name on it -- be the master of your own domain
5) Visit other chapters whenever possible, especially on Visitor's Days
6) Sub at other chapters to line up reciprocal subs for yourself
7) Have more one-on-one dance cards
8) Step up to leadership
9) Take your MSP Training ASAP
10) And be active in your power group.
Job performance not a predictor of engagement (Leadership IQ whitepaper)Benjamin Crucq
The employees bringing you the least value are often more engaged than the folks who reliably deliver good and great performance. There are ample reasons why this puts organizations at risk. And one of them is the fact that high performers, who thrive on being highly engaged, don’t tend to stick around very long if they aren’t engaged.
Y Combinator Startup Class #10 : Company Culture and Building a TeamFabien Grenet
Slide utilisé dans le cours n°10 de la Y Combinator Startup Class de Standford (http://startupclass.samaltman.com/) donné par Alfred Lin
Publiée sur slideshare pour pouvoir être intégrée à l'article http://startupeers.co/y-combinator-startup-class-10-company-culture-and-building-team-part-1
Digital Strategy 101 is an overview of the current state of digital strategy and an exploration of core concepts, deliverables, and thought-leaders relevant to young practitioners.
This presentation was done as a quick research project based on my interest and curiosity about service design. I would like to integrate this with my personal brand.
This presentation contains the definition of corporate communication, why it is required in NGO's, the relevance of social media, various objectives of NGO's and the advantages of using corporate communication in NGO's.
How to Design and Implement Superior Business ModelsBMI Lab
What is business model innovation.
Why it matters for established companies.
The obstacles to BMI within established companies.
A methodology to successfully design new BM.
Implementation and testing.
This stripped down version of my media training does not inlcude the company/issue specific slides addressin the particular needs of those being trained but hopefully those needing a good tutorial
Help them to sell more: What PR can do for your growth targetsSebastian Rumberg
This was a talk that we were giving for the lovely folks at The Family in Berlin for a diverse tech audience. You'll find a ton of PR lessons for founders and small startups in there and at the end a list of books that I recommend to anyone who wants to improve their PR game.
Building Marketing, Public Relations and Social Media Strategies for Your Bus...KCD Public Relations Inc
When developing a marketing plan for your business, it’s critical to include strategies for marketing, public relations and social media. We'll tell why each component is necessary and how to effectively implement them into your marketing plan.
Walt Boyes presents a totally revised and updated version of PR101, his very popular Marketing Communications Master Class.
This webinar is for both newbies to marketing communications (product managers, sales managers and engineers who have been "promoted" into marketing) and those who have been doing marcomm in the automation industry for a while.
This webinar is specific to the automation industry and discusses:
- Marketing "bang for the buck"
- Integrated marketing
- Public relations in the automation industry
- How to place a press release
- Product releases and news releases
- Relationship building with editors, influencers, and thought leaders
- Social Media: Inbound and outbound marketing -- a cascade control loop
- Metrics and measuring results
Walt has more than 25 years of experience in sales, sales management, marketing, and product development in the automation industry, including Executive Committee experience and board of directors service in both for-profit and not-for-profit companies.
Walt is currently serving as Editor-in-Chief of CONTROL magazine, http://www.controlglobal.com. In addition, he is a principal in Spitzer and Boyes LLC,
http://www.spitzerandboyes.com, a technology consulting firm devoted to assisting companies to better market their products in manufacturing and automation. Walt also acts as a freelance acquisitions editor for Momentum Press, a division of iGroup, on Instrumentation and Automation texts. Walt has published professionally in the technology and science fiction fields, and is a member of SFWA, the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America.
Seven ways pr professionals can craft successful pitches to journalistsRachael Hesling
Public relations has only grown more complicated in the Internet era. PR representatives are expected to do everything from running a client’s Twitter account to creating viral videos. However, despite all these advances, one bedeviling issue remains: helping clients get coverage in the media. Whether you’re trying to get a tech blog to cover a startup's new gadget or looking to have a nonprofit's founder profiled in a glossy print magazine, attempting to reach the public through the press can be difficult. Luckily, you can employ a few of the following strategies to successfully pitch stories to journalists.
Developing a Content Marketing Strategy for Your BusinessChristian Buckley
Six steps to developing a winning content marketing strategy and jump-starting your overall marketing plans. Presentation given at the 2013 Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference (#WPC13) in Houston, Texas by Christian Buckley (@buckleyplanet), evangelist for Axceler (www.axceler.com).
Life is a PITCH - Brand Communications and Public Relations 101Creative For More
If you are an entrepreneur, SME owner, or just looking to home your media skills, this webinar will help you understand the fundamentals of brand communications & public relations. You will learn the fundamentals of brand communications, how to build a purpose-driven narrative alongside a media strategy, and how to get media coverage for your business. We will also cover what it means to run a PR campaign and what angles are most likely newsworthy.
Similar to How to Tell Your Story: A Simple Framework for Startups (20)
Most small businesses struggle to see marketing results. In this session, we will eliminate any confusion about what to do next, solving your marketing problems so your business can thrive. You’ll learn how to create a foundational marketing OS (operating system) based on neuroscience and backed by real-world results. You’ll be taught how to develop deep customer connections, and how to have your CRM dynamically segment and sell at any stage in the customer’s journey. By the end of the session, you’ll remove confusion and chaos and replace it with clarity and confidence for long-term marketing success.
Key Takeaways:
• Uncover the power of a foundational marketing system that dynamically communicates with prospects and customers on autopilot.
• Harness neuroscience and Tribal Alignment to transform your communication strategies, turning potential clients into fans and those fans into loyal customers.
• Discover the art of automated segmentation, pinpointing your most lucrative customers and identifying the optimal moments for successful conversions.
• Streamline your business with a content production plan that eliminates guesswork, wasted time, and money.
SEO as the Backbone of Digital MarketingFelipe Bazon
In this talk Felipe Bazon will share how him and his team at Hedgehog Digital share our journey of making C-Levels alike, specially CMOS realize that SEO is the backbone of digital marketing by showing how SEO can contribute to brand awareness, reputation and authority and above all how to use SEO to create more robust global marketing strategies.
It's another new era of digital and marketers are faced with making big bets on their digital strategy. If you are looking at modernizing your tech stack to support your digital evolution, there are a few can't miss (often overlooked) areas that should be part of every conversation. We'll cover setting your vision, avoiding siloes, adding a democratized approach to data strategy, localization, creating critical governance requirements and more. Attendees will walk away with actions they can take into initiatives they are running today and consider for the future.
AI-Powered Personalization: Principles, Use Cases, and Its Impact on CROVWO
In today’s era of AI, personalization is more than just a trend—it’s a fundamental strategy that unlocks numerous opportunities.
When done effectively, personalization builds trust, loyalty, and satisfaction among your users—key factors for business success. However, relying solely on AI capabilities isn’t enough. You need to anchor your approach in solid principles, understand your users’ context, and master the art of persuasion.
Join us as Sarjak Patel and Naitry Saggu from 3rd Eye Consulting unveil a transformative framework. This approach seamlessly integrates your unique context, consumer insights, and conversion goals, paving the way for unparalleled success in personalization.
Short video marketing has sweeped the nation and is the fastest way to build an online brand on social media in 2024. In this session you will learn:- What is short video marketing- Which platforms work best for your business- Content strategies that are on brand for your business- How to sell organically without paying for ads.
Come learn how YOU can Animate and Illuminate the World with Generative AI's Explosive Power. Come sit in the driver's seat and learn to harness this great technology.
The session includes a brief history of the evolution of search before diving into the roles technology, content, and links play in developing a powerful SEO strategy in a world of Generative AI and social search. Discover how to optimize for TikTok searches, Google's Gemini, and Search Generative Experience while developing a powerful arsenal of tools and templates to help maximize the effectiveness of your SEO initiatives.
Key Takeaways:
Understand how search engines work
Be able to find out where your users search
Know what is required for each discipline of SEO
Feel confident creating an SEO Plan
Confidently measure SEO performance
10 Video Ideas Any Business Can Make RIGHT NOW!
You'll never draw a blank again on what kind of video to make for your business. Go beyond the basic categories and truly reimagine a brand new advanced way to brainstorm video content creation. During this masterclass you'll be challenged to think creatively and outside of the box and view your videos through lenses you may have never thought of previously. It's guaranteed that you'll leave with more than 10 video ideas, but I like to under-promise and over-deliver. Don't miss this session.
Key Takeaways:
How to use the Video Matrix
How to use additional "Lenses"
Where to source original video ideas
In this presentation, Danny Leibrandt explains the impact of AI on SEO and what Google has been doing about it. Learn how to take your SEO game to the next level and win over Google with his new strategy anyone can use. Get actionable steps to rank your name, your business, and your clients on Google - the right way.
Key Takeaways:
1. Real content is king
2. Find ways to show EEAT
3. Repurpose across all platforms
Financial curveballs sent many American families reeling in 2023. Household budgets were squeezed by rising interest rates, surging prices on everyday goods, and a stagnating housing market. Consumers were feeling strapped. That sentiment, however, appears to be waning. The question is, to what extent?
To take the pulse of consumers’ feelings about their financial well-being ahead of a highly anticipated election, ThinkNow conducted a nationally representative quantitative survey. The survey highlights consumers’ hopes and anxieties as we move into 2024. Let's unpack the key findings to gain insights about where we stand.
5 big bets to drive growth in 2024 without one additional marketing dollar AND how to adapt to the biggest shifting eCommerce trend- AI.
1) Romance Your Customers - Retention
2) ‘Alternative’ Lead Gen - Advocacy
3) The Beautiful Basics - Conversion Rate Optimization
4) Land that Bottom Line - Profitability
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Most small businesses struggle to see marketing results. In this session, we will eliminate any confusion about what to do next, solving your marketing problems so your business can thrive. You’ll learn how to create a foundational marketing OS (operating system) based on neuroscience and backed by real-world results. You’ll be taught how to develop deep customer connections, and how to have your CRM dynamically segment and sell at any stage in the customer’s journey. By the end of the session, you’ll remove confusion and chaos and replace it with clarity and confidence for long-term marketing success.
Key Takeaways:
• Uncover the power of a foundational marketing system that dynamically communicates with prospects and customers on autopilot.
• Harness neuroscience and Tribal Alignment to transform your communication strategies, turning potential clients into fans and those fans into loyal customers.
• Discover the art of automated segmentation, pinpointing your most lucrative customers and identifying the optimal moments for successful conversions.
• Streamline your business with a content production plan that eliminates guesswork, wasted time, and money.
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Digital Money Maker Club – von Gunnar Kessler digital.focsh890
Title One is a comprehensive examination of the impact of digital technologies on
modern society. In a world where technology continues to advance rapidly, this article delves into the nuances and complexities of the digital age, exploring Its implications across various sectors and aspects of life.
3. How should I tell my company’s
story?
And what will entice reporters to
write about us?
We get questions
like this from startup
founders all the time…
4. Instead, what founders should be asking is…
What is my story?
Why is my startup’s story important?
And how does it fit into the greater context
of the world?
5. This leads to:
•• Scrambling to get attention at the last minute of a
news event
•• Treating PR as an afterthought
•• Defining storytelling success by short-term wins
•• Focusing on “quick hits” instead of a continuous
narrative
A common mistake
startup founders make
when pursuing PR
and storytelling:
An event-driven
approach to
media relations
6. Instead, startup founders should be thinking about…
•• Defining their message
•• Creating a long-term plan that amplifies that message continually
•• Understanding the trends unfolding in their market and shaping the
demand for their products
•• Providing meaningful context as to why their mission matters
•• Establishing themselves as subject matter experts
•• Building long-term relationships with reporters
7. Founders
must shift their thinking from tactics and
short-term content wins to long-term
strategy and impactful narratives that
develop continually over time.
8. Meaningful Storytelling
Example
“Six Ingredients to Watch Out for If You Have
Sensitive Skin”
-Self Magazine
Why is it meaningful?
The story supports Madison Reed’s long-term,
aspirational narrative and mission “To make luxurious,
at‑home hair color with ingredients you can feel
good about.”
AMY ERRETT OF MADISON REED
9. Now, let’s look at how to set the stage for
meaningful storytelling.
Before you pursue PR and relationships with the media, ask yourself
the following questions…
10. A common answer to this question is “everyone.”
Yet it’s impossible for a PR agency or team to be
successful when targeting all audiences.
Instead, identify your key audience (and be very specific).
Also, know that your audience could change as your
product evolves over time.
Who is my
audience?
1
11. All leaders should be well versed in telling your story
internally and externally.
Because if you can’t tell your story well to your team, you
can’t tell it well to the rest of the world.
Do members of
my leadership
team “get”
why our story
matters and
know how to
tell it well?
2
12. Some indicators that you’re not ready for PR include
the following:
•• Your startup is struggling to define its mission
or message.
•• You may change your startup name in the near future.
•• Your product is not yet ready for the public (bugs,
extremely limited offerings).
•• Your company is still in “stealth mode.”
•• Youdonotwanttodrivetraffictoyourwebsite.
•• You or other senior leaders are not comfortable
talking with the media and require further
media training.
Am I ready for
PR now?
3
13. It’s better to wait
until you’re ready than to tout your company
prematurely, as the latter can lead to lost
opportunities.
14. Consider your desired results before pursuing PR.
•• Are you looking to grow brand awareness so you
can appeal to potential hires?
•• Is your goal to drive qualified leads or gather
demo requests?
•• Do you want to establish yourself as a subject matter
expert within your industry?
What’s the ideal
end goal?
4
16. When you decide you are ready to invest in
PR and brand storytelling, here are a few
things to keep in mind…
17. Short-term wins vs.
a long-term narrative
By default and sometimes in a rushed manner, startup founders think of
storytelling in terms of short-term, sensational content wins.
This could take shape as a brief mention in TechCrunch that doesn’t explain the
greater context of why your startup matters or a how-to blog post that goes viral, but
doesn’t actually help you reach tangible goals.
While these short-term wins may drive traffic and create brand awareness, they may
not support your long-term narrative.
18. How to think about your long-term narrative
•• Consider the human needs your product satisfies.
•• Explain why what you’re creating matters.
•• Focus on what will resonate with key audience segments.
•• Clearly articulate your company’s mission.
•• Repeat key messages to the media and in the content you produce.
19. Understanding the effectsof long-tail PR
•• Stories that continue to capture attention long after they publish
contribute to “long-tail PR.”
•• While attention can spike on the date of publication, value continues
to grow over time as a piece of online media is found and referred to
again and again.
20. It’s not about reaching everybody through
The New York Times now. Instead, it’s about seven
million blogs and learning to communicate with
those fragmented audiences or communities.
Traditional PR is oriented around mass media.
The new era is about niche media. That is PR 2.0.
It’s also “Long Tail PR.”
In the trade journal Daily Dog,
True portfolio founder and former
editor of Wired Chris Anderson
shared his perspective on long-tail
PR in terms of extending one’s
message across niche communities:
21. A storytelling timeline for startups
Here’s an example of how PR-documented milestones and contextual narratives intertwine over time.
ACQUISITION
IPO
EXIT
ORIGIN
STORY
Customer Win
Case Study
Partnership
Announcement
News Release on
Company Momentum
Product
Announcement
Executive
Hire
Founder
Profile
Thought Leadership
Content
Thought Leadership
Content
Amplification of
Company Mission
Founder Established
as Industry Expert
SERIES A SERIES B SERIES C SERIES DSEED
PR Milestones
Contextual Narrative
22. Think of your startup’s storytelling strategy
in two parts:
1 PR- and content-driven documentation of company milestones.
2 Stories that point to your long-term narrative, entice meaningful
dialogue and emotion, and establish you as a subject matter expert
in your industry.
These two parts are not mutually exclusive. Rather, they are
interwoven and contribute to big-picture storytelling.
23. Announcing a seed financing round may be the perfect
time to partake in a feature interview where you describe
why you started your company, the passion behind the
project, and an explanation of the need your product
satisfies.
This will help you hit two birds with one stone:
funding announcement + founder profile.
For instance…
24. What does “building your long-term narrative”
look like in action?
Let’s explore it through an example…
25. Meet Fractyl
The Scoop
•• Type 2 diabetes is a massive problem that affects
tens of millions of Americans.
•• We all know someone who is suffering from this
illness, but rarely do they reveal how much it impairs
their everyday lives.
•• Fractyl has a strong human interest story, medical
technology story, and story of innovation that people
affected by metabolic diseases will be eager to read.
A medical technology company working to
cure type 2 diabetes through a minimally
invasive procedure.
26. Once you know the nuts and bolts of your narrative, you must then
practice telling it to various audiences.
•• To understand the language of various types of news outlets,
read those publications and get familiar with the types of content
they feature.
•• Great PR practitioners will prep you on what interests individual
reporters, what they’ve written in the past, and how your story can
best appeal to them.
27. Let’s practice telling Fractyl’s narrative to various audiences:
STORY TYPE NARRATIVE OUTLETS*
Human Interest Fractyl could change the lives of the millions of Americans affected by type 2
diabetes. This includes Jane Doe, a single mom who struggled with diabetes and
the scary prospect of insulin therapy. Since undergoing Fractyl’s procedure, she
now has new hope.
The New York Times
Health Care Editor at
The Washington Post
Medical
Technology
This is how the procedure works: we rejuvenate the portion of the small intestine
that is altered by modern diets, which helps to reverse insulin resistance.
Medical Journals
Popular Science
Innovation We’ve been thinking about type 2 diabetes all wrong. To date, western medicine
has focused on issues with the pancreas when treating type 2 diabetes. We think
this disease is actually rooted in the gut, and here’s why…
TED Talk
Fast Company
Inc. Magazine
General Fractyl is a medical technology company on track to reverse insulin resistance
and resulting metabolic diseases including type 2 diabetes. Here’s why the
co-founders are uniquely positioned to succeed and what this innovation could
mean for health care.
Wired
Techcrunch
The Verge
Wall Street Journal
* Many of the publications listed above are considered top tier and are difficult to land. If you are very early stage, start with a
healthy mix of niche publications and online media first, i.e., set realistic goals for each stage of your business.
29. •• You only have a few seconds to make an impression.
Using a proxy is a shortcut and attaches the baggage
of the other company to your brand.
•• Entrepreneurs should be great at describing their
product with their own words, in few words. What’s
your 10-second pitch?
Don’t use a proxy to
describe your company.
“The UBER of X”
30. •• Start building relationships with niche reporters
and influential bloggers early on.
•• Connect with fellow industry experts to talk shop.
•• Meet with contacts regularly to discuss
industry-relevant events.
•• Don’t wait until you have hard news to contact
a reporter.
Don’t wait until you need
something to reach out.
The Godfather
approach to
relationship
building
31. Invest time in
relationships
and you will see the fruits of your labor.
Reporters are more likely to ask for your
opinion once trust is built.
33. •• Hyper-focused commentary on timely trends within
your industry
•• An article predicting the future of your industry
•• Selective interactions on social media where joining
dialogue helps to establish you as an industry leader
Thought
leadership is:
34. •• Medium posts about topics that don’t have anything
to do with your industry
•• A blog post covering your latest product
announcement
•• What’s already been said and done
Thought
leadership
is not:
35. Controlling your
message and
establishing trust
Both PR and brand-owned content help
you tell your story, but with different levels
of control. Find your balance of both for a
comprehensive storytelling strategy.
36. •• You can drive the conversation in an interview with a
journalist, but they ultimately hold the key to how your
story will be represented.
•• A great PR person will secure these opportunities
and help guide the message as best as they can by
working closely with the reporter before and after the
interview.
•• However, there is zero visibility into the final story
prior to publishing.
PR
Low level of control
over message
High level of
authority and
audience trust
37. •• This includes your company’s press releases, blog posts,
LinkedIn posts, Medium posts, and other public-facing
communications.
•• Since you’re producing the content, you can control your
message fully.
•• But authority and trust must be built over time.
Brand-owned
content
High level of control
over message
Lower level of
authority and
audience trust
(at first)
38. Key takeaways
•• Storytelling is a long-term strategy.
•• PR is a tactic for delivering upon that strategy.
DON’T DO
Don’t reach out to reporters only when you need their help. Do look to your PR practitioner for opportunities that will
allow you to build those relationships over time.
Don’t tell your story the same way to every audience. Do consider your audience every time you pitch an idea or
produce brand-owned content.
Don’t take an interview with a reporter if you’re not yet familiar
with their publication.
Do familiarize yourself with the publications that align with
your industry and related industries.
Don’t expect your PR team and in-house storytellers to
automatically understand the long-term goals of your
company.
Do brief your team on the goals you are trying to achieve
through PR and storytelling to set them up for success.
39. Additional Resources
“How to Write a Good Blog Post” by Om Malik
“My Top 25 Daily Tech Reporters” by Om Malik
Wired’s Chris Anderson: “Start Practicing “Long-Tail PR””
40. About
Om Malik
Journalist Om Malik founded technology blog Gigaom in 2001. With seed funding
from True Ventures, he turned the one-man blog into a media company and
research firm. Not long thereafter, Om became a venture partner at True Ventures.
In 2014, he graduated to partner at True where he continues to invest in promising
networking and internet infrastructure technologies.
Om regularly writes for The New Yorker and provides commentary on tech trends
to broadcast channels including Bloomberg West, NPR, and BBC television and
radio. Om started writing about tech in the early 1990s at Quick Nikkei News
before joining the founding team at Forbes.com. After a short stint at HQ Asia
Pacific as an investment manager, he then returned to the media world as a
senior writer for Red Herring and later at Business 2.0. He published his first book,
Broadbandits: Inside the $750 Billion Telecom Heist, in 2003.