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Entrepreneurs
Communication Strategy for
Communication Strategy for
#COMM4ENTREPRENEURS
Cathy Hackl, IE School of Communication@CathyHackl
www.linkedin.com/in/cathyhackl#Comm4Entrepreneurs
Let’s Breakthe Ice
© Soloviova Liudmyla
About me...Hi, I’m Cathy ...
Online media platform that provides education and support to Spanish-speaking female entrepreneurs in the technology sector.
Your turn...
A survey of 300 startup CEOs found that startups that engage in PR activities are 30 percent more successful in getting early funding than those that don’t. Words are more important than ever.
If you were in an elevator with Dave McClure what would you say?
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It’s clear that the communications needs and priorities of startups are unique...
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Startupsare unique
Today there are more than 80 startups that are valued at $1 billion or more and that number is expected to increase. With 100 million startups opening up each year and 472 million entrepreneurs worldwide, competition to become the next big thing is brutal.*
*Entrepreneur Magazine and Fortune
So how do startups build a corporate identity and a communications plan that builds their brand?
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They need a communications plan that is aligned to their business plan for all public-facing communications. Stop being reactive… be proactive. Are your communications helping your startup meet its short- and long-term goals?
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Communications Success
can help drive sales, acquire market share and even attract investor interest.
A study from Hanken School of Economics in Helsinki titled Building Coherent Corporate Identity in Startups found that:
- Entrepreneurs find brand building important, but don’t consider all corporate identity constructs equally important, with corporate culture and corporate communication being the most important constructs for them.
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- Don’t seem to understand that all they do, say and write is building corporate brand, which would give them more power to influence and control the brand building process. They are building their brand and culture without realizing it - not being strategic.
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- Entrepreneurs need to learn a better understanding of how to build strong corporate brand through a coherent corporate identity. This can help startups be more successful and fail less due to failed branding attempts. A clear brand strategy is a beneficial investment for startups.
- It’s key for companies with a fast paced life cycle to have rapid and effective communication as it is logical to have everybody at the organization conscious of where it is headed and why.
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Who is who in the startup world...
InternalStakeholdersAudiences/
&External
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Internal
• Employees • Co-founders• Board of directors
Stakeholders
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New tools, old rules sobre viejito chino
Employees = Brand Ambassadors
Co-founders We all knowthis story.
Board of Directors
External
Angel InvestorIndividual that provides a small amount of money to an early startup and receives a portion of the profits when the startup is profitable or is acquired by a larger company.
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Venture CapitalistA VC is an institutional investor who offers money to early-stage, high-potential, growth startups. They then own equity (stock) in the companies they invest in and help them raise more money and manage the business.
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Investors• Family & friends• Crowdfunding
Clients & Prospective Clients
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Media Traditional
Social
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New tools, old rules
While technology has changed,the basic building blocks of
communications and PR are still the same.
How to Speak Startup Accelerator/Incubator: Space where startups are “incubated” through mentorship, space and sometimes cash.
Bootstrapping: Using own funds or from friends and family.
Deck: aka Pitch deck.
Exit strategy: How will you sell your company and make investors lots of money.
Freemium: Basic product/app for free then upsell features.
Gamify: Adding gaming layer to web or product that encourages people to use it and gain rewards. We love games!
*Source: Forbes
How to Speak Startup Growth Hacking: Marketing technique that focuses on quickly finding scalable growth through non-traditional and inexpensive tactics.
Iterate: Really just means to try something, do it wrong, tweak and try again.
Lean Startup: Core mission of the lean startup is to prove the business concept as quickly and cheaply as possible.
Monetize: How will you make money with this service/app/product?
MVP: Minimum viable product, bare-bones version of product required to achieve proof of concept.
How to Speak Startup Pivot: Change directions as a company.
Ramen profitable: Profitable enough to cover costs and basic living for folks working in the startup.
Saas: Software as a Service.
Seed Round: Very early investment.
Sweat equity: Shares of company given for work well done. Recruitment incentive.
Valuation: What the company is being valued at. This changes.
Unicorn: The $1 billion startup.
Startups need to be
sav·vy noun : practical understanding or knowledge of something
SAVVY communicators
startups can do to stand-out in their crowded spaces
• Listen• Strategize and plan• Focus on quality vs. quantity • Effectively reach audiences• Tell their story clearly• Convince/Evangelize• Use communications to build brand’s business value
7 THINGS
Listen© Kalim
Strategize & Plan
© Yury Zap
Quality
Requires Strategy
EffectivelyREACH
Audiences
Tell your story clearly
*People forget facts and figures, but remember stories and feelings.
Convince
Evangelize© Rawpixel
Use communications to build their
business value ’s
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5. Media.Articles in influential publications and mentions in prominent blogs or on TV shows can drive product sales. If your new software program got rave reviews in a major computer magazine, by all means, include it here. Generating favorable publicity is one of the more valuable things you can do for your business.
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Communicate
One of the key elements for any startup is how it communicates and markets itself while not taking the eye off the main tasks at hand of running the business.
– Dave McClure
“If I was down to my last dollar, I would spend it on public relations.”
– Bill Gates
Imagine the frustration of the investor who knows he or she has invested in a great company, but due to lack of communication, the world may never know. No great company was ever conceived and grown in a vacuum. Every successful company recognizes the vital need and the tremendous opportunity they afford themselves when they communicate well.
– Cheryl Conner
Great communications can be the difference between the rapid acquisition of customers and fast growth, or the slow death of your idea as it is pecked to death by more agile competition.
– Liam Fay-Fright
Every great leader and every great company communicates well.. - Allan Hall
Real life
StudiesCase
FishBrain is a social network that allows sport fishers to share their fishing experiences with friends via web and mobile applications.
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Founded: 2010Staff: 12Location: Stockholm, SwedenLatest funding: $2.6 million in 2 rounds from 7 investors
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Hangout with FishBrain
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© Michael Kvakin
Appthority enables companies to leverage mobility and empower a smarter, safer, mobile workforce. The Appthority solution automates the scanning and analysis of mobile apps installed by employees on both personal and company devices.
© DigiClack
Founded: 2011Staff: 11-50Location: Silicon ValleyLatest funding: $6.3 million in 1 round from 2 investors
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ResearchingAction PlanningCommunicatingEvaluating
Let’s try this● Separate in groups of 4 or 3 people● I will assign a startup to each group● Look at how each startup is
communicating● Present to the class ● Pass the class and make the world a
better place.
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To do... ● What does this startup do? ● How are they communicating with
their audiences?● Which audiences should they focus
on at this stage in their growth?● What challenges do they face?● Recommendations on how they can
better their communications strategy.
Ready, Set, Go
