PR is always a good investment for any company. For startups, it’s an investment to get investment. Think of PR as an entry point for funders, the ways and means to capture attention. In any climate, good PR is a way to get noticed. Right now, it’s crucial.
Savvy PR shifts the needle on every metric in the attention game – credibility, visibility, SEO ranking, ultimately leading to the most important one for anybody seeking investment, “the bottom line.” The best work of PR is done over time. This means that it’s almost never too early to start building brand communications.
Finding Investment in Challenging Times
Even before the recent demise of the Silicon Valley Bank (SVB), the funding ecosystem had already seen a sobering from the freneticism of recent years. SVB was the tech sector’s favourite and a linchpin of the venture debt market, a key alternative source of funding. SVB had been responsible for around a tenth of all venture debt issued in the US in 2023 and was behind more than 60 percent of all deals in California.
Through February in the US, venture-backed companies raised $29.3 billion across 1,245 deals, down from 2,383 deals and nearly $56 billion during the same two-month period in the year prior. A similar decline has also been seen in Europe. SVB’s closure, along with the overall slowdowns in the venture capital markets and tech sector, means crypto startups face an even tougher task to secure funding. As a result, investors are sharpening their focus. Funding rounds are slower, valuations are lower, and the bar for traction is higher.
Great companies have been founded in all kinds of economic environments, and there are still plenty of deals around. In 2022, we at VComms helped one startup client secure a nine-figure sum, aiding the communication of their message around a pioneering internet privacy offering. But there is no doubt that attracting funding in the present climate is a far more difficult prospect than in recent years.
For startups to distinguish themselves from the competition and attract investors, an advanced PR strategy can make the difference and help buck macro trends.
The Message: Team, Vision, Offering, Expertise
So how best to leverage PR and get noticed by investors? The goal should be to tell your story, and tell it in the best way, fashioning the right image, perhaps even stimulating public conversations. Crypto PR professionals understand not just the medium but the message it should carry, all the way from your vision into the minds of funders.
More than anything else, people like to invest in people. A great idea alone can only take you so far if those midwifing it aren’t up to the task. One thing is certain: there are people out there who investors don’t want to back. And journalists are likewise interested in people because their readers are too. Forefronting this insight will help shape your PR. If your team already has a track record, that’s half the battle, but this needs to be communicated so that qualities like reliability, expertise, and all such indications of future success can be clearly demonstrated.
Investors want to hear how a prospect is offering defined solutions within a market and how the product or service is positioned in that context and relative to potential rivals. By highlighting the unique value proposition and how it addresses industry issues, the startup has a chance of attracting investors looking for innovative solutions.
In the present time, investors are becoming even more ruthless as regards financials, so startups should ensure it’s a focus of their message. Investment is much more likely to be attracted if a sound market analysis can be demonstrated – both its present and its potential – and how the company can grow and scale within it. Financials, key business indicators, and details about the business model are well-received by journalists and investors alike.
If possible, key team members can be promoted as thought leaders, discussing industry issues in media and at events. At the very least, there needs to be someone articulating the company’s vision with clarity, know-how, and passion. Going forward, PR can be used to showcase success stories, such as successful partnerships or product launches, which can demonstrate further potential for growth and success.
The Media: Becoming Talked About in the Right Places
To appear on investors’ radar, it helps to appear first in top publications and across social media. Being noticed by credible publications and industry pundits naturally confers credibility onto the project itself. Media presence is the first signal to any prospective investor, collaborator, or partner.
Credibility and trust are the bedrock upon which investments are made. For one of my recent clients, a project with the vision of becoming the most trusted place in DeFi for the deployment and management of capital, such a bedrock of trust, was doubly vital. Last year we were able to help them communicate their vision and secure $6 million in a Series A funding round to make it a reality.
This kind of effective PR also positively impacts marketing spend, as positive publicity develops a snowballing effect of ongoing visibility, brand familiarity, and, ideally, conversations about the company and its offering. Such PR becomes its own investment, paying dividends not just via the investment it attracts but often boosting company valuations too.
In a sluggish economy with a more competitive investment landscape, crypto startups need to leverage every advantage they have to secure funding. An advanced PR strategy can make all the difference, helping startups distinguish themselves from the competition and get noticed by investors.
By crafting a compelling story, highlighting their unique value proposition, showcasing their team and expertise, and appearing in top publications, startups can build trust and credibility and position themselves for success. In the end, effective PR becomes an investment in itself, paying dividends not just in investment attracted but also in ongoing visibility and brand familiarity.
Valeriya Minaeva is a Columnist at Grit Daily. Based in Geneva, she is the Founder of a native web3 Communications firm VComms.io and a main contributor to 1inch Network, the largest DeFi protocol.
