pr for startups with pressdoc

PR for Startups

Thursday, February 14, 13

•Getting coverage for a product that is not ready

“We are in pre-alpha, but we want everybody to sing up!”

5 PR #fails for Startups

Thursday, February 14, 13

•Spamming media contacts

“I’ve sent my press release to all my 1000 media contacts in BCC”

5 PR #fails for Startups

Thursday, February 14, 13

•Rely on content to get word-of-mouth for your startup

“I blogged about it, now they will write.”

5 PR #fails for Startups

Thursday, February 14, 13

•Push a story that is not news, and then harass them to

cover it “We have a Kickstarter project, can you write about it?”

“We 'exist', hurray! Can you write a post?”

5 PR #fails for Startups

Thursday, February 14, 13

•Not invest time in constant PR

“Bloggers and journalist can find out what my news is about, on their own.”

5 PR #fails for Startups

Thursday, February 14, 13

5 PR #wins for Startups

Thursday, February 14, 13

•Form relationships with key journalists. PR = Personal Relations- Give heads up about news- Get to know them before you need them- Do your homework- Be a source- Aim for a publish ratio of >51%

5 PR #wins for Startups

Thursday, February 14, 13

•Media likes to talk to founders, especially when it comes to startups.- How about a PR firm?

5 PR #wins for Startups

Thursday, February 14, 13

•Use embargoes and exclusivity for bigger hand picked media- Be honest (who else got the embargo)

5 PR #wins for Startups

Thursday, February 14, 13

•Invest time and attention in PR constantly.

5 PR #wins for Startups

Thursday, February 14, 13

•Build a great product that people love and care about!- Media likes to write about companies people like (people click on)

5 PR #wins for Startups

Thursday, February 14, 13

•Key message (2 - 3 paragraphs)

•Basic info about your company (boiler plate)

•Fact sheets, howto’s, more in depth info

•FAQ

•Media list

What do you need?

Thursday, February 14, 13

•Title and subtitle

•Body content

•Quotes

•Contact details

•Basic info about your company (boiler plate)

•Relevant media (pictures etc.)

What to include?

Thursday, February 14, 13

Do extended research on the journalists and bloggers covering your industry. Target your news to the outlets you've carefully handpicked for a good reason.

Jamillah Knowles, UK Editor at The Next Web

“Making sure your pitch is something that is suitable for an outlet is important. There’s no point pitching a car engine part to a fashion

writer.”

How to effectively pitch journalists

Thursday, February 14, 13

Be sure what you wish to announce is news (ask yourself what you would want to read about other startups).

Jamillah Knowles, UK Editor at The Next Web

“News lines like mergers and acquisitions, funding news and product releases are good

solid fare.”

How to effectively pitch journalists

Thursday, February 14, 13

Be straight to the point and short! Try to fit everything in a couple of paragraphs. Your startup idea is really good, but it won’t save the world.

Jamillah Knowles, UK Editor at The Next Web

“The first point is to be very clear. Explain what the news is and what you do.”

How to effectively pitch journalists

Thursday, February 14, 13

Always point out why the news is interesting for the readers.

Jamillah Knowles, UK Editor at The Next Web

“Writing to female journalists and pushing a product ‘because you’re a girl’ is not great for

obvious reasons.”

How to effectively pitch journalists

Thursday, February 14, 13

Journalists like exclusivity, consider giving them the news under embargo some time before the release to the general public.

Jamillah Knowles, UK Editor at The Next Web

“The ones I give attention to are the ones that are a nice early heads-up with an embargo we can work with and of course interesting news.”

How to effectively pitch journalists

Thursday, February 14, 13

What does a PressDoc look like?

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Why create a PressDoc?

•Template makes it easy to create professional online press releases•Include all relevant media (hi-res images, video, sound, audio)•Press releases are optimized for social sharing•Have all news in one central place•Use PressList to easily pitch journalists

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Custom headerHi-res attachments

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Embargo feature

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Startups category

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OpenPressRoomThursday, February 14, 13

PressList

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Thank you!

Thursday, February 14, 13