Why Most Startups Don't 'Get' Press (2)
“Figure out who's covering your industry — whether it's the broader tech industry, internet of things, consumer internet, mobile, whatever,” Hammerling says. “Then there will be those few reporters who cover that specific area you're in. Make sure you read everything they write. And don't just look forward, go back in time. Get a sense of their writing style and personality, what topics interest them.” Following reporters on Twitter can also give you a better sense of their life outside of work and what they're really passionate about. All of this can be used to craft personalized communications.
Recommended Articledei AltSchool's CEO Rebuilt Google's Performance Review System to Work for Startups — Here It Is While there is no set number of reporters an entrepreneur should work with, there's value in forging meaningful relationships with a good handful in your area and broader industry, Hammerling says. When she first got her start, the tech media was less built out, and she made it a point getting to know 15 of the most influential reporters in the sector. “Now they're running their own publications, their own bureaus, their own blogs,” she says. “If you're a young entrepreneur, get to know the younger guys too — that's just as important because these are people who share your mindset. They are entrepreneurial too, and they're going to be the big guys down the road.” Don't be afraid to reach out.“The reporters covering tech want to hear your story. They're actively looking to build relationships with entrepreneurs. If you live in the same city, try to set up some time to talk. If you don't, then drop them a note a few weeks before you pass through their area and say you'd love to grab coffee. Not everyone will say yes, but a lot will,” Hammerling advises. Of course, don't do this until you have your message down, know it backwards and forwards, and can clearly explain your value proposition to the market. She also advises against talking to reporters directly too far in advance of launch. There's risk that you'll tip your hand before your company's ready. Once your product's out in the open, that's the time to focus on maintaining connections. The importance of social media is a testament to how much the media relations game has evolved. In the past, it was a common tactic to offer an outlet an exclusive to get their attention — but this isn't a good hand to play when there are hundreds of influential blogs out there. It's one thing if you have a massive story that The Wall Street Journal or The New York Times might want to print, but this is hardly the case at the early-stage level. I'm against the exclusive around a product launch — I think those days are over. That said, exclusives can be useful for damage control. The more bloggers and editors out there, the more people actively uncovering news. It's not unlikely that a reporter will get ahold of your story or a piece of it before it's ready for showtime. “In my experience, if a reporter does get your information, you can work with them and build an even better relationship,” Hammerling says. “You can say, ‘You know what, we're actually not ready for that to go live. We need another week, but we'll give you everything you need.' That's when you give them the exclusive. They uncovered it, they earned it.” In this situation, it's important to be grateful and show respect, but it's not something to put into common practice. “Giving exclusives will end up hurting your ability to build relationships in the long run,” she explains. “You're just creating bad blood with all the other journalists who didn't get the story. In the tech blog world, if someone posted something 30 seconds earlier, it's perceived as an exclusive, even if it's the exact same story. So you have to be very careful.”
Once You Have Their Attention If you've put in the time cultivating your media network, it's time to invest even more in learning how to talk to them. And if there's one person you should pay, it's a media trainer. “There are experts out there that are exquisitely good at teaching people how to speak to the media,” Hammerling says. “Talking to reporters is a whole different beast, a whole different art entirely. And you can work with a trainer without retaining an agency. You can just hire them to come in and spend half a day session finessing your message and getting you comfortable with answering questions.”
Hammerling personally recommends Joe Dolce, a communications expert Brew has been working a lot with as of late. As a former journalist and editor for big titles like Details, and as a public relations executive, he's been on both sides of interviews and knows what effective answers look like. Some founders may need this boost more than others, and it's important to recognize which type you are. “Technical founders may have a more difficult time because they aren't comfortable shortening their ideas or statements to be more catchy. They get their point across in minutes when they need to be doing it in seconds,” she says.
But what if you can't afford a professional? That doesn't mean you have to stay quiet. “You can get some of the same lessons from watching videos of successful entrepreneurs who are really really good at telling their stories.” Hammerling lists Salesforce's Marc Benioff and Oracle's Larry Ellison as her top two examples. “They're just really great at presenting, talking in front of an audience, having a sense of humor. They speak with a twinkle in their eye even when they're being really serious. Most importantly, they look like they're having fun. You don't want to be this glum robotic voice reciting key messages. If you're passionate and having fun, the media will be enthralled.” Another example, a little closer to home for the early-stage crowd, is Boxfounder and CEO Aaron Levie. “Leaders like Aaron are clever and very quick in how they connect to their audience while they're speaking. You can tell he's enjoying it, and that he really cares about what he's saying. It's rare to see someone his age be this fluid. He doesn't mince words. He says things that are forward-looking and ahead of the times, and he's very knowledgeable about the other companies in the space,” she says. After all, knowing your competition is vital to being a credible and compelling voice. “When you know your competitive space so well, better than anyone else, you can be a real resource to the media — and the media is constantly looking for good resources. Being able to speak about your company is one thing, but being able to speak about the industry at large makes you multi-dimensional and worth talking to.”
People have a tendency to think today's news is just tomorrow's trash, but not now. The internet is forever and people have long memories. Keep in mind, being an area expert is different than trash-talking your competitors, and that can be a finer line than many entrepreneurs think. Especially as areas like cloud storage or e-commerce become more crowded, reporters love asking about how companies plan to differentiate themselves or crush their opponents. This is a big red flag. “Negativity never wins,” Hammerling says. “If you're a huge company, sure you might be able to pull off being snarky or sassy, but as a startup, all you should be is respectful of your competition. If you have to, talk about it like you're all part of the same community and then bring it back to you.” If pressed and you're forced to cite a competitor, she advises going big. “Don't talk about the companies you're asked about specifically, bring up someone who's related and done it right. Like if you're in the communications space, talk about Skype or other big players. Suddenly, you're connecting your startup with the success of these giants. That's much better than talking about the various start-ups you're positioned against — that just pigeonholes you.” Remember, every time you interact with the media matters. You need to constantly check yourself to be proactive but not obnoxious, informative but not aggressive. Don't be that one founder who keeps asking if the story will run — if a reporter says it will, it probably will, Hammerling assures. And never attack someone personally based on what they've written on social media or otherwise — even if they've gotten a key detail about your company wrong. “Writers take things personally and they remember who they don't like talking to,” she says. “I remember asking a few reporters what they thought of a particular founder, and they collectively gave the same eye roll. ‘He's terrible,' they all said. People have a tendency to think today's news is just tomorrow's trash, but not now. The internet is forever and people have long memories.”
At the same time, being too good at working your relationships, and getting too chummy with the media can have consequences too. “When you think you're purely friends with a journalist, 90% of the time you'll end up really unhappy with how a story about you or your company turns out. It's one thing to be friends, and it's another thing to work on a story together. You can get blinded and forget to really focus on the specifics and your message. You might give them too much runway or tiptoe around things you shouldn't. I see it all the time, people with close relationships who are unable to manifest that into great stories because they aren't thinking with their PR hat on.” But this doesn't mean it's impossible or ill-advised to forge warm, friendly relationships with media. You just have to make sure they're clearly defined — and that the terms you use around each other are equally defined. “Some people say you can't genuinely be friends with reporters, but I think that's garbage. You just have to be clear. I always tell entrepreneurs know what off the record and what on background mean — and know when to say them. If you're talking to someone, you can't give them all this intelligence and then afterwards say, ‘Oh by the way, that was all off the record.' That's not how it works.” Another thing to realize is that with comment threads and social media, readers have become a concrete part of the media experience. “Younger CEOs take comments less seriously than older ones, and that's a good thing. The only way to handle it is to learn. You can't make it personal and go off on someone, because that'll just blow up into something bigger,” Hammerling says. She's seen her share of CEOs kept up at night reading all the comments on every blog post about their product. It's hard to dissuade them, but at the very least she encourages them to identify takeaways. “You may see someone commenting on how they love an aspect of your product. Then you know that's something that's really resonating that you can start honing your message around. Inversely, if people are responding negatively to something, then you can very dynamically change your messaging around that, make it more clear or consider changing that aspect of the product.”
The Irreplaceable Voice of the Founder The vast majority of the time, the founders are the voice and heart of the company. It's telling that founders are the ones up at night, obsessively reading comments, thinking about how they could do better next time. They care the most about the company's success — and that devotion is like energy in a bottle. “It's a particular type of energy that inspires people, makes for good stories, and can't be substituted.” Hammerling believes this so deeply that she refuses to work with clients if a founder is not willing to be actively involved in media relations. This is why, when it comes to announcements, there's an increasingly strong preference toward a founder's blog post over an impersonal press release. While you might see some PR teams or companies compiling literature for media — everything from headshots to packets of pre-vetted executive quotes and market position data — this comes off as disingenuous more than it helps.
“When a founder decides to take a backseat, and put a marketing person out there, it negatively impacts the team, the organization, and the trust reporters have in them,” she says. The press really wants that connection with the founder and their story.
