Successfully Pitching Startups in a Mega-Capital World

(This is part three of a series — you can read part one and part two here.)

If you’re working in startups, you’ve probably noticed that it’s getting harder to secure press (wonder why? Read my take here). One way to set yourself up for greatness is to refine your overall company pitch, your messaging, and your press relationships, long before you ever have a specific story to pitch (read more about that here.) It’s hard in a small business to think past the fire that’s in front of you, but having a solid foundation of messaging in advance will streamline the process for any single pitching moment.

But congrats, you made it — it’s now *actually* time to pitch! Here’s the advice I give to any early stage company trying to make noise in a time of mega-rounds, herds of unicorns and a generally news-fatigued world:

#1: Identify your goals

I see so many press documents where the “goal” of a pitch is to secure coverage in “XYZ outlet”. That’s a means, not an end. Just as the goal of a car is not to drive on a road, but to actually get somewhere — similarly, the true press goal should be a business-supporting outcome.

So consider what success looks like for this press initiative: is it new customer inbounds? Awareness among downstream investors? Getting in the conversation around a certain topic? Clarity on this goal, with both internal teams and any external agencies or freelancers, will make all the difference in terms of whom you pitch and how.

For example, if a top goal is recruiting engineers, you might focus more on telling the story about the technical aspects of your product and why they are innovative and effective, and you might target city-specific or tech-specific outlets. On the flip side, if you’re a consumer brand looking to build awareness amongst your core shoppers, funding news is probably irrelevant to the story.

#2: Clarify your angle

This all-important step means articulating why your story matters to the audience you’ve identified. Often first draft pitches simply state the information they want a reporter to write, e.g.: “startup A launches today with $5M in funding” or “we’ve launched a new partnership”. This is meaningful to a company stakeholder, for sure, but it ain’t news.

Instead, reinforce why this news appeals to a reporter’s audience (or even the audience on your blog!) What will happen if your company succeeds? What will funding allow you to do, for whom? Why does your company need to exist? What’s new and exciting for a customer with this product launch, and how will their life change? Why is this news relevant now?

The best rule of thumb is: would you honestly care about it if it didn’t involve your company or competitors? Often the answer is “probably not.” So take a fresh look at your pitch and work to make it interesting to a wider audience. (Here are some simple examples.)

#3: Target the right reporters

This seems … obvious? Yet reporters consistently receive pitches that are clearly mass mailings or that have nothing to do with what they write. The time spent finding the best reporters for your stage and space will pay back royally in the time you’re not pitching people who will never, ever cover you.

Pro-tip: be wary of a 50-person media list — it’s a rare startup for whom that wide of a pitch is appropriate.

Instead, review reporters’ social media or websites to ensure that they write about what you’re pitching. Don’t pitch a growth reporter on your seed round, don’t pitch an enterprise reporter on your consumer tech, and so on. If one outlet like a TechCrunch or a USA Today has multiple potential targets, start with the one most likely to write about you — don’t simultaneously pitch multiple reporters at one outlet. And don’t overlook smaller outlets and trade pubs; niche publications, newsletters and podcasts can complement most outreach strategies.

And although it’s always nice to have a connection to the reporter (so ask your investors and founder peers if they have a relationship with the reporter you’re targeting), cold emails work all the time.

#4: Condense and customize the pitch

In an email pitch, less. Is. More. Make it easy for reporters to assess and (hopefully) respond to you. So what does that look like?

First, condense.

Ditch gimmicky subject lines and overly-conversational intros in favor of (politely) getting right to the point. Use your subject line to share “the hook” such as “Gen Z social investing app is launching next week” or “Former Snap exec announcing a new social co & fundraise — are you interested?”

Then the body is 2–3 short — short! — paragraphs giving the reporter enough information to decide whether they might cover the story (e.g. the news, the angle, the embargo date, the founder’s background, etc.) Your pitch is not the place for the entire history of the company, just for the most interesting facts.

Reminder: if you’re requesting an embargo (meaning the reporter agrees not to publish anything before a certain date and time), don’t share all the news in the first pitch. This can be a tricky needle to thread but consider sharing that it’s a series A round but not the actual dollar amount, or that there are high-profile investors but not who they are. If you share the press release without asking for the embargo first, it’s not an embargo and reporters are free to write whatever they want, whenever they want.

Then, customize!

Make it clear that you know the reporter covers your space and type of story. This can be done by referencing past stories, or simply in how you talk about your company (e.g., mentioning fintech in the first line of a pitch to a fintech newsletter is a good idea.) I say — no mass mailings or merge fields! If we expect someone to read and respond to your pitch, I think we can take the time to write a dedicated email to that person, right? A short, tailored email is more likely to get a response, even if it’s a pass, and a quick “no” is better than no response.

Of course, you can do everything right and still not get the coverage you’d hoped, because there are factors outside of your control such as breaking news events, a given reporter’s schedule, and so on. It’s why earned media isn’t advertising! But targeting the right people, with the right message, can make a huge difference.

And finally, a lightning round of a few last tips:

• Pitch 2–3 weeks in advance of your ideal announcement day. Yes, that’s a longer advance window than years past, but if the goal is a well-researched, well-written story, both you and the reporter will benefit from a little breathing room. Plus, if your first target passes, you have time to move on.

• Invest in a quality, high-color visual that will stand out against a white background. Try to avoid team photos, logos or plain software screenshots. You’ve probably spent a year building the product — spend a few days creating an engaging image! Even adding a border or a background can make your news much more engaging. (I love this GIF from our portfolio company Clair.)
• And maybe most importantly — create an amplification plan for any press you receive: prep your website for inbounds, develop easily shared language and links for your investors and friendlies, and leverage all owned outlets like blogs, LinkedIn, social media, newsletters, etc. (for the company and for the founders/executives.) Don’t be afraid to re-share the same news in the days and weeks to follow to ensure your audience sees the news. In a world of news fatigue, you’re absolutely losing out if you don’t leverage every possible owned channel.

Let me know in the comments what I’ve missed, or reach out on Twitter with your tips for ensuring startup success in today’s press world.

Do you prefer a deck? Why, it just so happens I have the full deck here.