Is PR worth it for early-stage founders? We didn’t think so. Until users told us our fintech app looked like a scam. Here’s what we did to land TechCrunch, Forbes+ without a PR firm. (Note: Actual templates we used for emailing reporters, our press kit, etc. in the comments!) 🎯 Get clear on your goals → Most people think getting press & launching big via PR is the main event. It’s not. → Instead, it’s a *booster* for your actual goals — trust, SEO, conversion, hiring, fundraising. So make sure your messaging, CTAs, etc. reflect that. Press just gives it a short-term boost and public forcing function to ship. → When we launched Parallax, we knew we didn’t need *press for press’ sake.* As a financial app, we needed to build credibility, trust, and a presence people could Google. 📸 Decide: embargo or *exclusive strategy We went with an exclusive strategy: → More guaranteed with 1 high-quality feature. Writers like this more. → Then let smaller/local outlets follow Embargo strategy = more coverage, but way riskier — you may not get picked up. 📅 Find the right reporter → Actually research which reporter is a good fit for your message. Chances are higher that they’ll say yes if they already write in the same niche. → Ideally, you also build a relationship with reporters beforehand. 📅 Launch timeline Give yourself 4 weeks. 1. Write your story + build the press kit 2. Reach out to reporters 3. Prep your amplification plan 💸 No PR firm, no problem (for us) → Saved $ → Built direct relationships with reporters, now and for the future → Learned what makes a pitch land ✉️ What makes a good pitch? → Not “we exist.” But: Why now? Why you? Why this story? → The best hooks are *timely + human.* If we were doing PR today, we’d tie it to the tailwinds we’re seeing in our industry. 📦 What goes in a press kit? → Company overview → FAQs → Quotes (founder/investors/customers) → Media (logos, product shots, founder photos) → Contact info → PRO TIP: Send this kit as a link. Never attachments. Imagine reporters getting multiple pitches with attachments in their inbox - that takes up A LOT of memory. 📣 On launch day, amplify like crazy! → Prep for 10x traffic. Week before our launch, a bunch of scammers and fraudsters raided our website. (A story for another day) Thank goodness - we got to battletest our website that week & were prepared upon launch! → Share a single post to amplify. We used LinkedIn. We then ask our investors, friends and family to be prepared to share the post once it was out. → Make it stupid easy for others to help e.g. Give people copy-paste blurbs. TAKEAWAY: Press is not magic. But when used right, it’s a credibility unlock. Don’t treat it like a vanity moment — treat it like a GTM tool. View original post on LinkedIn.