3 ms·

So we had a few marketing ideas for our start-up which I sent to one of my PR contacts who had given a speech at our uni ad club. He replied stating he and his

by zaidf 20y ago

So we had a few marketing ideas for our start-up which I sent to one of my PR contacts who had given a speech at our uni ad club. He replied stating he and his firm loved what we were doing and offered some valuable insights. Additionally, he said he'd be interested in working with us to execute our planned campaign and in general get more attention for us. From the contents of his reply, if things work out we can get them to do PR for us for equity in our start-up...which opens a Pandora's Box of questions such as how much equity, how exactly the terms would be worded etc. Would love to hear from folks who've been involved in similar kind of deals in past. We're scheduled for a call later today. I am specifically looking for the smaller non-obvious details I should keep in mind as I discuss things with my PR contact later today.

bootload 20y ago
'... if things work out we can get them to do PR for us for equity in our start-up ...' can you tell me exactly how a pr firm is able to help you? hint: the internet is your pr engine. Concentrate on your product, release the product, get some audience and work from there. Read here [0] & listen here [1] to understand why. Build something big, then work out the money part. Maybe the question you should ask yourself realistically do these 'PR' guys make your product big? Do they know your audience? Can they improve your product, can they code? If the product is any good, spreading the word is the easy part. Just start writing, blogging and passing around the url. '... a Pandora's Box of questions such as how much equity, how exactly the terms would be worded etc ...' The biggest hurdle is you may sell yourself way short. Sounds like your being sweet-talked into something that requires you to deliver the goods, "they" do something with minimal risk. I'd be sceptical of offers that don't contribute to the bottom line of your startup. Reference [0] pg, 'The Hardest Lessons for Startups to Learn' http://www.paulgraham.com/investors.html http://www.paulgraham.com/investors.html [1] pg, 'YCombinator talk, The Hardest Lessons for Startups to Learn, mp3 25Mb' http://wiki.ycombinator.com/presentations/apr06/Paul_Graham.mp3 http://wiki.ycombinator.com/presentations/apr06/Paul_Graham.mp3
- zaidf 20y ago
  My fault, I should have provided more info about my start-up: 1. we already launched our site mid-Jan 2. we are getting good traffic and natural growth 3. we want to accelerate the speed of growth We're close to launching a major release following which I would consider the core of our site done. Back to PR - this is about a very specific(and fun) marketing idea we are planning.The ONLY goal of it is to get our name out and new user sign-ups - if anything money might be a side product. Also, this is a pretty reputable(albeit small) PR firm with clients including Google and BestBuy.
  - bootload 20y ago
    '... We're close to launching a major release ...' Are you listening to your own customers and gradually improving the site? So you want to increase the numbers of users? Ok. I'm cautious here because if this is really just an investment play, it is in their interest because they think they might miss out. '... this is about a very specific(and fun) marketing idea we are planning. The ONLY goal of it is to get our name out and new user sign-ups ...' What is plan b, c? What is the budget? and what are the objectives? Do you have a target of sign-ups? (these are questions to ask yourself)? I've seen these kinds of deals before (in my case ~ branding for customers but not equity ... Large banking corporate branding exercise on a e-commerce to increase users via rewards points). Done to increase the visibility of a site with questionable results. You have got to ask yourself ... "Is this a HIGH VALUE TRANSACTION?" [0] Do you waste your time with these guys? Is it a distraction? Or could you really do something off your own bat? '... this is a pretty reputable(albeit small) PR firm with clients including ...' So this is an angel investor or equity investor? Is this deal a sweetener for a VC intro? Are you still looking for other investors? Don't stop looking because it may prevent you getting a better deal. Don't get too excited as any deals made can play out over time. Sorry to be cynical. Set some realistic goals, add a dollar value. If it makes sense, play hard ball. These guys will, especially if they sniff a bit of desperation. Are you short of cash or ideas? PS: Care to add the url? maybe an announcement here will give you the acceleration you require. Reference [0] Joshua Schacter, 'YC 2006APR06, MP3 28Mb' http://wiki.ycombinator.com/presentations/apr06/Joshua_Schacter.mp3 http://wiki.ycombinator.com/presentations/apr06/Joshua_Schacter.mp3
ntoshev 20y ago
One way is to approach it as two deals in one: 1) getting VC money in exchange for equity 2) paying for PR There is a lot of advice on the first item on the Internet. The second item is somewhat covered in the following pg's essay: http://www.paulgraham.com/submarine.html http://www.paulgraham.com/submarine.html pg seems to believe offline coverage is somewhat obsolete for online startups. This may or may not apply to you. Another way to think about it is to consider how important is the pr service for your expected outcome. See http://paulbuchheit.blogspot.com/2007/03/equity-math-for-startups.html http://paulbuchheit.blogspot.com/2007/03/equity-math-for-startups.html

by zaidf 20y ago

bootload 20y ago

'... if things work out we can get them to do PR for us for equity in our start-up ...' can you tell me exactly how a pr firm is able to help you? hint: the internet is your pr engine. Concentrate on your product, release the product, get some audience and work from there. Read here [0] & listen here [1] to understand why. Build something big, then work out the money part. Maybe the question you should ask yourself realistically do these 'PR' guys make your product big? Do they know your audience? Can they improve your product, can they code? If the product is any good, spreading the word is the easy part. Just start writing, blogging and passing around the url. '... a Pandora's Box of questions such as how much equity, how exactly the terms would be worded etc ...' The biggest hurdle is you may sell yourself way short. Sounds like your being sweet-talked into something that requires you to deliver the goods, "they" do something with minimal risk. I'd be sceptical of offers that don't contribute to the bottom line of your startup. Reference [0] pg, 'The Hardest Lessons for Startups to Learn' http://www.paulgraham.com/investors.html http://www.paulgraham.com/investors.html [1] pg, 'YCombinator talk, The Hardest Lessons for Startups to Learn, mp3 25Mb' http://wiki.ycombinator.com/presentations/apr06/Paul_Graham.mp3 http://wiki.ycombinator.com/presentations/apr06/Paul_Graham.mp3

zaidf 20y ago
My fault, I should have provided more info about my start-up: 1. we already launched our site mid-Jan 2. we are getting good traffic and natural growth 3. we want to accelerate the speed of growth We're close to launching a major release following which I would consider the core of our site done. Back to PR - this is about a very specific(and fun) marketing idea we are planning.The ONLY goal of it is to get our name out and new user sign-ups - if anything money might be a side product. Also, this is a pretty reputable(albeit small) PR firm with clients including Google and BestBuy.
- bootload 20y ago
  '... We're close to launching a major release ...' Are you listening to your own customers and gradually improving the site? So you want to increase the numbers of users? Ok. I'm cautious here because if this is really just an investment play, it is in their interest because they think they might miss out. '... this is about a very specific(and fun) marketing idea we are planning. The ONLY goal of it is to get our name out and new user sign-ups ...' What is plan b, c? What is the budget? and what are the objectives? Do you have a target of sign-ups? (these are questions to ask yourself)? I've seen these kinds of deals before (in my case ~ branding for customers but not equity ... Large banking corporate branding exercise on a e-commerce to increase users via rewards points). Done to increase the visibility of a site with questionable results. You have got to ask yourself ... "Is this a HIGH VALUE TRANSACTION?" [0] Do you waste your time with these guys? Is it a distraction? Or could you really do something off your own bat? '... this is a pretty reputable(albeit small) PR firm with clients including ...' So this is an angel investor or equity investor? Is this deal a sweetener for a VC intro? Are you still looking for other investors? Don't stop looking because it may prevent you getting a better deal. Don't get too excited as any deals made can play out over time. Sorry to be cynical. Set some realistic goals, add a dollar value. If it makes sense, play hard ball. These guys will, especially if they sniff a bit of desperation. Are you short of cash or ideas? PS: Care to add the url? maybe an announcement here will give you the acceleration you require. Reference [0] Joshua Schacter, 'YC 2006APR06, MP3 28Mb' http://wiki.ycombinator.com/presentations/apr06/Joshua_Schacter.mp3 http://wiki.ycombinator.com/presentations/apr06/Joshua_Schacter.mp3

ntoshev 20y ago

One way is to approach it as two deals in one: 1) getting VC money in exchange for equity 2) paying for PR There is a lot of advice on the first item on the Internet. The second item is somewhat covered in the following pg's essay: http://www.paulgraham.com/submarine.html http://www.paulgraham.com/submarine.html pg seems to believe offline coverage is somewhat obsolete for online startups. This may or may not apply to you. Another way to think about it is to consider how important is the pr service for your expected outcome. See http://paulbuchheit.blogspot.com/2007/03/equity-math-for-startups.html http://paulbuchheit.blogspot.com/2007/03/equity-math-for-startups.html