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Venture capital is good for a company that technology can accelerate. There are great small businesses but they’re not necessarily companies that will scale at the speed and get to the size that VCs want. - Susan Lyne Finding the right investors. Think of it like building a sales pipeline. First you have to fill the top of your funnel, and that means scouring the market for investors who would be a great fit. Here are some factors to consider: Stage / Size. Investors usually have a clear preference on startup stage. Many are excited to get in early as part of a pre-seed, seed or A-round. Others are more suited for A/B round and maybe C - this is usually the sweet spot for classic VC. And then for growth rounds - C, D, etc - you’re getting into private equity territory. Investors will usually be pretty clear about their preferred stage on their websites. Model. Sometimes there’s a preference for B2C, B2B, marketplace, subscription, D2C, SaaS, etc. Vertical. The first thing to look for here are investors who have a strong focus in your space. Many funds are focused exclusively on certain verticals like climate or fintech. That doesn’t mean other VCs aren’t interested in this - just make sure you go for the low-hanging fruit first. Special interests. Many funds have launched with the mission to bet on founders that have been historically underserved by VC. So, make sure you know whether a fund requires, for example, a female founder or a founder of color. Conflicts. If a VC just made an investment in a competitor of yours, they’re not going to invest in you (and you should want to stay away from that anyway). And it’s not just about finding VCs who will want to invest in you. You need to be thinking about what you want, too: You’re marrying these people for 10 years of your life. -Mark Ghermezian Where to look for investors. Here's where to start! Twitter. Ok (at least for the time being…) it’s still the water-cooler of the startup world. You’ll find out what VCs are interested in - what they’re talking about and what they’re doing. Crunchbase / AngelList Comparable startups’ investors Google searches! Just be sure to include searches for family offices, angels, public funds (like Empire State Development) or even private equity. Charlie reminded the audience to understand what the investor is interested in now. They’ll tell you this by what they are writing in blogs, on twitter or via other preferred comms. What they’ve invested in in the past is looking backwards. It’s still valuable to know - but it’s incomplete. Effective Outreach. Run this list like a sales pipeline. First step to success is to fill the top of the funnel with quality input: investors who are a fit on stage, vertical, model and any special interests. Everything else is a waste of time and might even reflect poorly on you. Follow them! Find them on LInkedin and Twitter as early as possible. It’s good for your own due diligence and it’s a way to show you’re serious. Cold outreach is *absolutely* ok! Susan said that BBG has invested in a couple companies who contacted them via hello@. It certainly beats a low quality intro from someone who doesn’t know you well or can’t recommend you with enthusiasm. Charlie doubled down on cold outreach and said he doesn’t care about a personal intro unless it comes from another investor. The email content: Tell a good story about how you’re solving an important problem. Pack a punch. Be a good storyteller. You don’t have to write a novel, but investors get that 2-3 sentences won’t work either. The Meeting. You have to be a good storyteller to raise capital. You own the stage for 30 minutes. Think hard about what you want to get across. - Susan Lyne, BBG Ventures The Deck.Sure, you have to have a deck, but the deck is not the meeting. And it’s possible you won’t need to use it at all. Susan warned that founders “often start talking to the deck and you stop talking to the investor." She added "Better to be able to tell your story. Use a few slides if they really illustrate something.” Get the vision across. Susan said “Create the big 10 year vision and then show where you’re gonna start.” She said there’s no problem in starting with a sliver of that. But don’t start with the sliver and wait till the last moment to say that this is part of a bigger vision. Charlie added that mapping out path to getting bigger - and that’s not the same as a two-product business. Take charge! Be strategic! Charlie had some great tips for the meeting. Just jump in. You know what points you need to get across. He said some people come in and defer to him on how the meeting should go "they ask if they should use their deck or what…” He said it’s going to a restaurant and someone hands you spaghetti in your hands. Get them bought in. After you give some basic info, ask “Does this seem like the kind of thing you’re gonna do?” or “Are you open to being convinced of x, y and z things.” Get them to verbalize this. Think like a politician at a press conference ... Answer the VC’s questions but make sure you get your talking points out there. Be able to always pivot back to the points you know you need to get across. Founders need to know everything about their problem and market and speak intelligently about their competition. What investors are looking for. There are 1 of 2 reasons you’re getting the meeting. You’re a superstar or your problem is an awesome one. It’s often both. -Mark Ghermezian Founder-market fit.Does the founder have lived experience, work experience or other special expertise in this area? Recruiting potential.When Mark considers startups, he asks “Is this a founder who can attract incredible talent - like seasoned executives. And is this a founder growth execs will want to invest in in 5 years.” Personal & professional compatibility. Susan said investors are taking the founders' temperature and asking themselves “do you want to spend time with them for 10 years. There needs to be a connection.” Compelling problem or space.The VCs need to be excited about the space that you’re in and the size of the problem you’re solving. Projections? Projections are a way to show you know what's going to drive your business and and that you have the discipline to look at those numbers on a regular basis. Susan said “The projections are never going to be where you come out. But the discipline of understanding the market you’re going after, what it’s going to cost you to reach them and what kind of conversion you think you can get … that’s critically important.” A few process notes. Due diligence. Assume at least 6-week cycle to closing beginning with the day you meet with a VC. They will do due diligence and it will take longer if you space or model is new-ish to their portfolio. Susan added that part of BBG’s diligence process is recreating the financial model for the business. Getting to yes. Mark says getting 1 investor to say yes is often the turning point. Once one VC gives their stamp of approval, it’s easier to get others to follow. Term sheet. One of your investors has to lead - that is, to write the term sheet. This is the VC that sets the valuation. Often VCs have a stated preference on whether they’ll lead or follow in raises. How much to raise. Take the money. If it's a reasonable valuation that won't crush you, don't leave it on the table. The stock market could tank tomorrow and everyone will get cold feet. -Charlie O’Donnell The panelists advised against go out to the market telling investors your valuation - that the market will tell you that. But it’s not complicated to estimate where you will land. Know what you need. The panelists agreed that you need to target at lest an 18mo runway but 24mo is smarter in this market. You can approximate what you’ll get back from the market by asking founders around you and looking at comps in the market. There is only a certain amount of equity that you’re going to be willing to give away at any moment. Hint: assume 20% for any seed+ found. Remember you can change your mind on what you raise as you get feedback on how the market is valuing you. Don’t focus on valuation - get the capital in hand and start building and growing. The founders who are focused on valuation are thinking about the wrong thing at the wrong time. -Mark Ghermezian Truth time: Is venture capital the right choice for you? Ask yoursellf 'Is this company that I’m building something that is going to align with the way venture capital thinks about investment?' You’ll be pushed to grow much faster than you might have thought about doing organically. - Susan Lyne Venture capital comes with awesome advantages. You raise large quantities of money at one time and it often comes with smart investors who can advise you well on growth. You also get some clout from closing a round - so VC investment comes with a press and marketing bump. The downside of VC investment? There’s the price of the equity or the potential control an outside party gains on the Board - but most entrepreneurs understand those well. What many founders don’t fully understand are the implications of a “high risk / high reward” investment strategy. VCs are looking for massive returns from a wildly uncertain portfolio of early-stage companies. Do the math here - and put yourself in their shoes as they survey their portfolio. Most startups fail. With or without VC funding, the nature of startups is that they mostly won’t work The one that works needs to cover the rest that failed. This is a little reductive - but you should imagine that the success threshold for your VC is getting to unicorn territory within 5-7 years. The rest of the portfolio founders are wonderful people, but their startups have little/no financial value to the investors anymore. If you’re not there or showing signs of getting there eventually, you’re probably going “sideways” or you’re a 0. A “0” to a VC is often not a “0” to a founder. And therein lies the rub. You might not have a rocketship, but you have something that can change your, your families’ and your employees’ lives. So 1) You might have to pass on exit opportunities that would put millions of dollars in your pocket but are still far too small for your investors to approve. And 2) once you’re on the VC path, even if you have a solid, profitable business … you will forever have a stack of equity on your back that you must clear before you see a dime. It’s not impossible - but practically speaking you should assume you will never be able to negotiate out of this equity. Founders must raise more money. There are two big reasons you’ll need to keep tapping back into the VC and eventually the private equity market. The first is that you need to be growing at a pace that necessitates more fuel; even if you’re profitable, your coffers should be deployed for growth. The second is that your investors need your value papered. Your VC and their LPs will not be making any money until a startup sells or IPOs (5+ years, at least), but they need to be able to show your growing value on their balance sheet - and your valuation in the next round is the way to do this.

Many thanks to Rachel Carr // Executive Director at DKC, Molly Graizzaro // Director of Brand & Communications at Truehold and Taryn Langer // Founder of Moxie Communications Group. PR is a a tool to power not just marketing but all of your business goals like recruiting, employee engagement, brand partners and investors relations. All early-stage founders should be thinking about PR and be thoughtful about the right time to invest time and/or money in generating PR. Before we dive into the notes, I want to share what Molly said is the biggest problem she sees founders fall victim to: FEAR of getting out there in the press. "Founders should be excited to share their story. But many founders are scared of PR." They’re scared they’ll get a negative story, that some secret sauce will be revealed. They’re scared they won’t answer questions well. They’re scared their product isn’t ready. I hope the insights below will help the hesitant among you move past any fear you have. Running a thoughtful PR process, working on storytelling, cultivating authentic relationships with journalists and working with PR pros you trust are all ways to mitigate risk and help you feel more confident. Quick tip --> Sign up for Help A Reporter if you haven't already Finding the right reporters for your story Make a List. Spend time researching the people who are writing about topics relevant to your brand and story. Here are a few ideas: Look up who is writing about your competitors. Note who is writing articles about topics relevant to your story, space and audience. Ask for an intro from a mutual connection.Hire a freelancer or agency if you’re having trouble identifying journalists who might be interested. It could be that you need assistance crafting your story. Due diligence journalists who seem like a fit. Read what they're writing! Taryn added “You can predict some of their narratives and what conversations they’re having just based on what they’re tweeting. Same with Linkedin. They’re sharing their work and their colleagues’ work. And it helps that LI is a smaller universe." Introduce yourself: Before you reach out by email, engage with them on twitter. When you do email them, extra points if you don’t have anything to pitch but can just make a genuine statement about why you’d love to stay connected. “I see you’re covering the space, I wanted to introduce myself.” Form a relationship. Be consistent in your outreach; be persistent but also honest and genuine. Go see them on a panel - and ping them in advance letting them know you’ll be there and would love to say hi. Connections with journalists should be about the relationship - not getting an article written. Pitch. You have to pitch an idea that that writer is writing about - and make it clear how your story fits into their story. If you're reaching out cold, you have to make sure your subject line is pithy and direct and will get their eye. And that your pitch is short and to the point. Be a resource. As Taryn said “It’s a relationship so it can’t be one way.” If they cover your industry, show them that you can be of value to them. Do you have a diff perspective on something they’re covering? Are there data they’re not seeing that you know? Not every reporter is a domain expert - they often switch beats. Note their career moves. The best time to get to know them is when they start at a new outlet - when they’re most eager to get the lay of the land. Think about how you can deliver insights to them without just giving a monologue. Should You Write a Press Release? Rachel feels a press release is usually good to have out there because it’s good for SEO - but that that's the extent of the value. It’s better to invest in paid content - so you can actually a) write a story (vs. just a templatized announcement), have it run on a website that’s aligned with your brand and message and then amplify that story on all your social channels. Thought Leadership Thought leadership is a fabulous way to generate PR. Many founders want to be a thought leader in their space. This is a great way to become a go-to source on a subject - you’re providing knowledge and interesting new angles to a reporter. But … per Molly “I don’t think every founder has to be a thought leader or have a blog. If there’s no desire to talk about it - and they’re just a good leader and a good CEO - that’s ok. I do think it's important to find the spokesperson or find the thought leader.” Structuring a campaign The campaign framework is at the center of most PR strategy. It’s a way of distilling something massive (company brand, comms, strategy and goals) into actionable portions to achieve maximal outcomes. Still, it’s a very common term - so we dove into the details so that you can use the campaign structure at your startup. Audience. In any PR, marketing or comms, always be able to articulate exactly who your target audience is and why you’re addressing them.. Gender, age, geography, sector, interests, etc Timeline. Specifying a timeline for a campaign is critical. You want to be able to state what you are trying to do as a business between now and X time from now. Rachel recommends a quarter (3 months) Defining the Campaign. Rachel works with clients to “answer what are we trying to do as a business during this timeline? From there you, can probably identify 3-4 campaign tentpoles that support the message and story of the campaign. Here are some possible tentpoles. Product innovation & roadmap: what are we doing to be launching that will support that story Data Milestones: what measurable milestones will we hit, like X number of sales, Y amount of traffic or some quantifiable customer engagement. Investments in R&D or other new initiatives. Fundraising. Hiring and company growth. Goals & Measurement. Molly sets 3 goals for every campaign and documents them in a file she shares with the entire company. These goals aren’t the only things that matter - but the process of writing them is a discipline that helps her ensure the team is focused on the right things, evaluate how things went post-campaign and learn lessons for the future. tone of the awareness - we want positive awareness about what specifically amount of coverage - 5 articles about this specific campaign organic traffic - measure to the best of her ability Storytelling. When you’ve picked your tentpoles, storytelling takes over. Molly says storytelling is about attaching your company to a larger trend that’s happening in the world. “You want to be part of the larger story. So you have to be consistent and frequent about plugging into that story - like a partnership or a data milestone or thought leadership. You don’t have to have news to be a thought leader. Come up with reasons that you as a founder are relevant and can contribute to what’s going on in the world.” Run a brainstorm about how your story relates to what’s culturally salient. One easy exercise is crossing the story with PR moments like holidays or other cultural moments like a marathon or a solstice Taryn likes to go section by section and think about what story would be relevant for every single section of the paper or site..What’s the travel story? The economy, health story … Amplification is about integration. PR is not just about talking to journalists or traditional media. All campaigns require an integrated approach. That means telling the story across publications, social, podcasts, influencers, paid advertising, experiential channels - and even internally. When to Announce a Launch For a product or startup launch, go for press as soon as you can. Your product needs to be ready - but not perfect. Don’t launch it if you’re getting negative feedback or you feel it isn’t marketing ready. But err on the side of risk :) It might make sense to go to press with an MVP or even an idea. But you need to be able to show the media that you’re thinking through all the right pieces - like data protection or content moderation or monetization. Little Stories Matter PR is not just about launches. Rachel put it well “A lot of companies don’t understand all the morsels they have in their business. A webinar might seem small, for example, but there are all sorts of little ways it could be an asset for PR.” Be proactive about finding these stories! One way to do this is to run a brainstorm. Taryn said that the Moxie team runs this kind of brainstorm process with all of its clients. They use leading questions to get the conversation going - like … What did you see this week that pissed you off? What got you excited? Think about your market ecosystem - are any of the other players doing something that bothers you or gets you excited? What’s keeping you up at night? Do you have any hires on the horizon? Are you attending or hosting any upcoming events? Have customers said anything interesting this week about your product? Have you launched any new tools internally - any interesting new findings? What’s important on your priority list for the week? You’re trying to surface the new angles, hot takes and little stories that might seem meaningless to you but would be invaluable to reporters. Experiential PR (AKA stunts) Stunts (or gorilla marketing) have been dormant for several years due to the pandemic, which is one of many reasons it could be a hugely effective investment in the near term. But experiential pr can be a flop, too - and a waste of resrouces. You need to keep the following in mind as you consider pulling the trigger: Hire a professional for this - either a freelancer or agency. Budget liberally. It can be expensive. Both the expense of hiring someone and the cost of the resources they’ll need to execute the stunt. Be smart. Make sure the stunt is aligned with your story and the goals of the business. Plan ahead. You want to be confident that you’ll get a media bounce from it. (Another reason it’s smart to bring on a pro) Working with PR professionals DIY PR can totally work. Per Molly: “you can do it! You need to lean into being your own story engine. When you simply can’t anymore, it’s time to bring on someone.” When should you invest in working with PR pros? ... When it makes sense to invest the time. It’s a full-time job being the person the agency works with at the company. If you or your team don’t have the bandwidth to be that kind of resource to the PR pro, it’s probably not worth it yet. ... When you have stories to tell. Rachel said, for early stages, it’s best to have either a freelancer or a person who can wear multiple hats internally. When the business starts moving, then you’ll have stories to tell because you’ll have customers, data and moments and expertise to build on. ... When you’re just a bad storyteller. Taryn said it’s worth it to bring on professional help with you know you’re not a great storyteller, which, as a reminder, is not the same as being a great salesperson. You want an always-on storyteller with access to you, your company, your stories and your data. Budget. Very hard to be specific here - but here are the numbers that came out. Molly said, starting out, you should budget about $300/hour and that usually nets out to at least $2500/mo. That’s the low end. Monthly agency rates can easily go to and well about $15,000/mo. Given the nature of the work and relationships required to do PR, all of the panelists advised it takes 2-3 months for PR professionals to ramp up with your business and overall at least 6 months to do meaningful work together. Timing. If you’re looking for project-based PR help, Taryn recommends engaging with a professional PR team about 3 months ahead of the big moment you’re working towards - such as a business launch, product launch or retail expansion. If you’re trying to establish a longterm relationship with an agency or freelancer, do keep in mind that it will take them about 2 months to get up to speed on your business. Where to Look. Facebook and linkedin groups for freelancers. Search “PR consultant” on LI. The Mixing Board. The PublicRelations Society of America - their events are a great place to meet consultants and you don’t have to be a member to go. Rachel added that people coming out college can be great for freelancers or internal hires - she said college PR programs are excellent. Measurement (How do I know it’s working?!?) This is a question that plagues the relationship between founders and PR professionals at some point. A healthy way to begin this conversation with a freelancer or agency is to come to an agreement about a period of time. Taryn said “6 months is a good stretch for that. You’re generating coverage, you have a close feedback loop. You can evaluate if the tactics you’re using will work to get the bigger coverage.” It often takes months to see the impact of your work. 6 months is enough time to do a mutual assessment of how well it worked, how effectively the message got across, how much traffic it drove and what the sales outcomes were. One of the biggest mistakes founders make is reducing the impact of PR work to the a single stat - like a conversion rate. Molly emphasized that smart founders understand that PR is about many things - the sum of which is rarely a punchy number. PR is about sales and … perception, market differentiation, brand-building, cultural narrative, internal communications, relationships with partners and investors, SEO. For example, the initial piece of press for a small stage company is what most people see when they google you for a long time. Those things are just as important as the conversion rate. That's a wrap!