PR for start-ups in a downturn
January 15th, 2009 by Wendy McAuliffe
Prior to Christmas I attended the second TechCrunch Talk - a discussion session for 150 start-ups, investors, and key players on the theme of: “CrunchTime:Â Opportunities and threats in the slowdown”.
PR came in for a bit of a battering during the panel discussion entitled “Will the startup service providers (lawyers, PRs, hosters) thrive or suffer? Will their startup clients appreciate their services…or not?”, with the general concensus among start-ups seeming to be ‘Do It Yourselves’!
So here is my advice for start-ups on how to approach PR in a downturn, and how to get the most out of your PR partner…
- Be realistic about what you can do yourself - as Andrew Scott, CEO of Rummble.com pointed out, wearing a branded T-shirt costs little, is something that you can do yourself, and will get you recognised. It’s a great starting point, but branded clothing is not for everyone and will ultimately have limited audience reach. Be honest about the tactical things that you might be able to pick up yourself in order to cut costs, but leave the strategy development and campaign management to the experts. Far better you focus your time and energies on what you’re good at - ultimately being an entrepreneur!
- Select an agency that will help you engage with your social media audiences, as well as traditional media - if you’re an online start-up you’ll understand that the consumer now holds the upper hand, and consumers in numbers now carry a lot of online influence. It’s crucial that your PR partner is able to deliver for you an integrated communications and engagement strategy that will ensure multiple touchpoints for your brand.
- Make sure you’re not going to be a small fish in a big pond - select a PR partner who will give you the love and care that you need, regardless of how much you are paying. Although your investment will roughly equal the amount of team resource you will receive, make sure you’re not going to get lost among far bigger brand clients.
- Build a relationship with your PR supplier - it goes without saying that PR is a people industry. If you make proper time for your PR partner and allow them to get to know you, you will reap the rewards. It’s a simple equation - the more you put into PR, the more you will get out of it. If you’ve gelled and built a good relationship, you’re likely to get more consultancy for free, and goodwill when you need to delay your payment etc!
- Make use of your PR’s network of contact and clients - PRs like myself have formerly worked as journalists and have a big book of contacts. Similarly, we have useful client contacts and connections into our client’s clients, and so on. Don’t be afraid to talk to us about our other clients to see if we can make useful introductions.
- Offer to pay upfront - if you’re after a discount, be honest about what you can afford, and offer to pay three months in advance. This will remove any nervousness in your supplier about your ability to pay, and they’ll be inclined to match your goodwill gesture with extra value for money.
- Ask for weekly activity updates, and propose regular meetings - there should be no need to manage a good PR partner, but in a downturn you want your money to work harder for you. Weekly updates will ensure that you’re both on-top of your actions, and additionally provide the PR with all the collateral and information that they need from you so that they’re not held back.
- Measure results - in a downturn, results become more important than ever. Ask your PR to benchmark your position at the start of the campaign, and repeat this reguarly in order to track the success of your PR investment.
Tags: credit crunch, PR, recession, startup, Techcrunch
