5 ms·

Why Most Startups Don't 'Get' Press

76 points by ca98am79 13y ago

krmmalik 13y ago
Definitely market positioning is a key factor, but I think the "me, me, me" attitude is also a large part of it. Most start-up founders looking to "raise awareness" (as one start-up founder told me) are interested in getting attention for their product rather than providing something of real value to the market. Ultimately when you have a message that has value, it will spread on its own (for the most part).
- selmnoo 13y ago
  What is the typical approach to advertising things that are very new? For example, Twitter. Back to the days when it was starting out it was not really offering a solution or a value... what do you do in this kind of situation?
  - krmmalik 13y ago
    Perhaps we differ on our definition of the term value. Twitter had to have some inherent value right from the get go otherwise it wouldn't have had the ability to capture users. Why would you sign-up to something if it didn't have some sort of value to you even if it was only entertainment through curiosity? Most Start-ups that grow well focus on creating value for a small user base. acquiring a small user base isn't hard. we're only talking 10-50 people. Even your contact list is probably bigger than that. once you've optimised your value proposition, have some social proof and can readily demonstrate your ability to create value for a larger audience, it gets easier. I saw Buffer go through this firsthand (nr enough)
bsullivan01 13y ago
Simple, so many start-ups so little ink. And certain connected VCs take over Techcrunch, Panda Daily, BI etc for their dozens of start-ups, leaving even less room for the rest.
andrewhillman 13y ago
This sounds like a response to this article http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Marketing-guru-Margit-Wennmachers-new-venture-4833221.php http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Marketing-guru-Margit-Wen... on Andreessen Horowitz marketing PR guru.
justzisguyuknow 13y ago
I left this article as soon as the page dimmed out to ask me to subscribe.
- Peer 13y ago
  Why didn't you just click on the 'x'? I did not even notice it, and thought the article was well worth the read.
- RougeFemme 13y ago
  I didn't experience that at all. If I did, it was so unobtrusive that I don't even remember navigating past that. You missed a great article.
- Cthulhu_ 13y ago
  I like how the comments to your legitimate complaint are telling you there isn't a problem. Remember popups from the 90's? This is a popup. And it's both annoying and unjustified; offer people to keep updated or fill in a survey once they've visited your site a couple of times, kthx. And don't do popups. Never do popups.
replicatorblog 13y ago
I'm a writer for Wired.com and this article is pretty spot on. I'd just add a few things from my experience: + Think "fun" not "functional" The press, and tech press especially, isn't academia. Editor's aren't trying to be encyclopedic. They're looking for things that are entertaining that will generate page views and respect from peers/advertisers. If you're in a "boring" market, focus on your bio or the amazing things your product allowed a user to do. + Optimize your company/product for press You can do a lot to improve your chances of coverage by the way you develop and position your product. - Look at how Buzzfeed and Upworthy write their headlines and practice pitching your product and its features that way. e.g. Look at a product like "Zombies, Run!" They're in a hugely crowded segment of the market, but a unique concept and catchy branding have helped them vault to the top of their part of the app store. - A friend developed a game for cats. It seems silly at first glance, but it's catnip to producers/editors/writers. Go after some crazy market segment, or serve them in some crazy way. Uber pulled a fun stunt over the summer where you could summon an ice cream truck and it got huge pickup. Even if your product is pedestrian, there's probably a way to optimize it for attention. - Have a compelling design — Visuals are huge. If you're making hardware, hire a pro photographer. If you're developing apps, have some unique UI features. Writers get a lot of pitches and having good art is a great way to grab attention. + Press coverage does NOT equal "worthiness" Don't feel bad if you're not resonating with the tech media. I've pitched stories about startups that have $100MM+ revenue run rates and millions of users that get rejected instantly. And when stories like that make it through, they often end up flopping in terms of page views. Contrast that with Foursquare who as of a year ago has ~$2MM and revenue and no shortage of ink. + Focus on your market Every startup wants the row of impressive logos on its homepage, but you'll often get better qualified leads by focusing on more niche publications in your market. They may not have the heft of the NYT or TC, but are a great way to actually drive your business.
- dannowatts 13y ago
  thanks for adding this, it's great to get some insider advice.
deleted 13y ago
[deleted]
austenallred 13y ago
When we were planning our launch I was blown away at how easy it was to get on some fairly major publications; most of them actually reached out and made contact with us. Granted, we had a very compelling story (I lived in my car, our product democratizes breaking news), but in my excitement I made a huge mistake, which I'm glad the author focused on. We got too much press too long before our product went live. We were a couple months away from launch, and all of the sudden BBC, Yahoo and San Francisco magazine are asking us if they can feature us. Do you really say "no" to BBC?" Yes. You do. While it was cool to watch signups come in at a rate of 1 per minute (to an empty landing page), now when we actually do launch it will be an uphill battle. Getting press isn't hard if you have a compelling product, but it also should be a part of your overall launch strategy. Make press happen the way you want it to, and time things right. I found reporters are by no means offended if we said, "We're not ready yet; we're heads-down focusing on product. It will be a much better story in a month when we launch, can we circle back then?" You're the founder; make it happen how you need it to.
kaa2102 13y ago
Want press? Leverage your relationships with the press and tech bloggers. Sounds fantastic; but, what if you don't have any relationships with the press?
- beat 13y ago
  Cold calling, then. Offer them a story and see if they bite.
- ohjeez 13y ago
  Get to know us, then. That doesn't mean you have to schmooze with us or, god forbid, do cold-calls. (Really, that doesn't work.) But follow us on Twitter or Google+. Comment on what we write, even (especially) when it isn't about your product category. (You can like a cat video, y'know. Or tell me about one.) Let me get to know you as a person, and then when you send me a note telling me about your imminent launch, you aren't a stranger asking for something.

76 points by ca98am79 13y ago

Definitely market positioning is a key factor, but I think the "me, me, me" attitude is also a large part of it. Most start-up founders looking to "raise awareness" (as one start-up founder told me) are interested in getting attention for their product rather than providing something of real value to the market. Ultimately when you have a message that has value, it will spread on its own (for the most part).

selmnoo 13y ago
What is the typical approach to advertising things that are very new? For example, Twitter. Back to the days when it was starting out it was not really offering a solution or a value... what do you do in this kind of situation?
- krmmalik 13y ago
  Perhaps we differ on our definition of the term value. Twitter had to have some inherent value right from the get go otherwise it wouldn't have had the ability to capture users. Why would you sign-up to something if it didn't have some sort of value to you even if it was only entertainment through curiosity? Most Start-ups that grow well focus on creating value for a small user base. acquiring a small user base isn't hard. we're only talking 10-50 people. Even your contact list is probably bigger than that. once you've optimised your value proposition, have some social proof and can readily demonstrate your ability to create value for a larger audience, it gets easier. I saw Buffer go through this firsthand (nr enough)

bsullivan01 13y ago

Simple, so many start-ups so little ink. And certain connected VCs take over Techcrunch, Panda Daily, BI etc for their dozens of start-ups, leaving even less room for the rest.

andrewhillman 13y ago

This sounds like a response to this article http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Marketing-guru-Margit-Wennmachers-new-venture-4833221.php http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Marketing-guru-Margit-Wen... on Andreessen Horowitz marketing PR guru.

justzisguyuknow 13y ago

I left this article as soon as the page dimmed out to ask me to subscribe.

Peer 13y ago
Why didn't you just click on the 'x'? I did not even notice it, and thought the article was well worth the read.
RougeFemme 13y ago
I didn't experience that at all. If I did, it was so unobtrusive that I don't even remember navigating past that. You missed a great article.
Cthulhu_ 13y ago
I like how the comments to your legitimate complaint are telling you there isn't a problem. Remember popups from the 90's? This is a popup. And it's both annoying and unjustified; offer people to keep updated or fill in a survey once they've visited your site a couple of times, kthx. And don't do popups. Never do popups.

replicatorblog 13y ago

I'm a writer for Wired.com and this article is pretty spot on. I'd just add a few things from my experience: + Think "fun" not "functional" The press, and tech press especially, isn't academia. Editor's aren't trying to be encyclopedic. They're looking for things that are entertaining that will generate page views and respect from peers/advertisers. If you're in a "boring" market, focus on your bio or the amazing things your product allowed a user to do. + Optimize your company/product for press You can do a lot to improve your chances of coverage by the way you develop and position your product. - Look at how Buzzfeed and Upworthy write their headlines and practice pitching your product and its features that way. e.g. Look at a product like "Zombies, Run!" They're in a hugely crowded segment of the market, but a unique concept and catchy branding have helped them vault to the top of their part of the app store. - A friend developed a game for cats. It seems silly at first glance, but it's catnip to producers/editors/writers. Go after some crazy market segment, or serve them in some crazy way. Uber pulled a fun stunt over the summer where you could summon an ice cream truck and it got huge pickup. Even if your product is pedestrian, there's probably a way to optimize it for attention. - Have a compelling design — Visuals are huge. If you're making hardware, hire a pro photographer. If you're developing apps, have some unique UI features. Writers get a lot of pitches and having good art is a great way to grab attention. + Press coverage does NOT equal "worthiness" Don't feel bad if you're not resonating with the tech media. I've pitched stories about startups that have $100MM+ revenue run rates and millions of users that get rejected instantly. And when stories like that make it through, they often end up flopping in terms of page views. Contrast that with Foursquare who as of a year ago has ~$2MM and revenue and no shortage of ink. + Focus on your market Every startup wants the row of impressive logos on its homepage, but you'll often get better qualified leads by focusing on more niche publications in your market. They may not have the heft of the NYT or TC, but are a great way to actually drive your business.

dannowatts 13y ago
thanks for adding this, it's great to get some insider advice.

deleted 13y ago

[deleted]

austenallred 13y ago

When we were planning our launch I was blown away at how easy it was to get on some fairly major publications; most of them actually reached out and made contact with us. Granted, we had a very compelling story (I lived in my car, our product democratizes breaking news), but in my excitement I made a huge mistake, which I'm glad the author focused on. We got too much press too long before our product went live. We were a couple months away from launch, and all of the sudden BBC, Yahoo and San Francisco magazine are asking us if they can feature us. Do you really say "no" to BBC?" Yes. You do. While it was cool to watch signups come in at a rate of 1 per minute (to an empty landing page), now when we actually do launch it will be an uphill battle. Getting press isn't hard if you have a compelling product, but it also should be a part of your overall launch strategy. Make press happen the way you want it to, and time things right. I found reporters are by no means offended if we said, "We're not ready yet; we're heads-down focusing on product. It will be a much better story in a month when we launch, can we circle back then?" You're the founder; make it happen how you need it to.

kaa2102 13y ago

Want press? Leverage your relationships with the press and tech bloggers. Sounds fantastic; but, what if you don't have any relationships with the press?

beat 13y ago
Cold calling, then. Offer them a story and see if they bite.
ohjeez 13y ago
Get to know us, then. That doesn't mean you have to schmooze with us or, god forbid, do cold-calls. (Really, that doesn't work.) But follow us on Twitter or Google+. Comment on what we write, even (especially) when it isn't about your product category. (You can like a cat video, y'know. Or tell me about one.) Let me get to know you as a person, and then when you send me a note telling me about your imminent launch, you aren't a stranger asking for something.