HARPSWOOD EVENT
HOW PR CAN SUPPORT YOUR BUSINESS GROWTH FROM SERIES A AND BEYOND AT FORA FOLGATE
Don’t you just love it when a panel comes together?
Our event on How PR Can Support Your Business Growth From Series A And Beyond at the very stylish, light-filled conservatory in Fora Folgate featured four speakers all coming at PR-for-growth from very different angles.
We had Anatolii Papulov, the cofounder of satellite startup New Orbit; Matthew Blain, partner in Voyager Ventures VC; Jess Jones, senior reporter for The Times’ Entrepreneurs Network; and James Clench, founder of Harpswood.
Harpswood worked with NewOrbit and its lead investor Voyager Ventures to publicise NewOrbit’s $18.5 million Series A round in June, the results of which included an exclusive article in The Times.
five insights the audience took away from our event:
1) PR can fundamentally change the perception of investors towards your business:
The audience heard how PR triggered a fundamental shift in the behaviour of investors towards NewOrbit. Before PR, the startup had to work hard to grab investors’ attention. But after the first wave of publicity for the Series A, investors were coming to Anatolii to find out how they could get in on the action.
2) You need a brilliant product – and you need hype
Bad news for the tech purists. A brilliant product alone probably isn’t going to be enough to get you noticed. You need to play the game, you (or an agency) need to generate some hype and get you seen and heard. It’s not one or the other, the two have to work in tandem.
3) The news agenda is more powerful than a number
Don’t battle against the tide of the news agenda. Harpswood used the well-trailed SpaceX IPO as a hook for the NewOrbit Series A story and went early with the pitch, rather than waiting for the IPO to happen. It was agreed that seizing the moment early reduces the risk of another space sector startup pitching a similar story and stealing NewOrbit’s thunder. While NewOrbit’s Series A was a significant value, the news agenda element of the pitch was probably the most significant part of it.
4) Positive PR boosts employee morale and attracts new hires
Featuring in national media like The Times and BBC news created a huge buzz among employees at NewOrbit. The BBC piece ran three times in the same day, giving staff the chance to let their families know it was running. The whole NewOrbit team watched it together in one room, creating a sense of shared achievement and validation. Potential employees, including engineers with serious credentials, have sought out Anatolii to see if they could work with him.
5) PR is crucial in helping Europe catch up with the US
The US has been brilliant at building businesses for global scale. But Europe needs to stop doing itself down. Our startup/VC ecosystem started later than that of the US but we are catching up. How we present ourselves externally will play a big part in closing that gap. Tell the story about the global ambition you have and the velocity you are delivering to get there. That will attract investors and key employees.
If you want to speak with us about your fundraising plans, please get in touch: hello@harpswood.com