eamonn.carey@mhpc.com @eamonncarey

How to promote your business and find partners, clients and investors

@eamonncarey

My first love

Before we start…

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What everyone wants

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What people get…

It’s not all bad though…

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Things to think about

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Make notes…

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Read

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Talk!!

Listen

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Lose your shame…

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Finding and engaging with stakeholders

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Why is this important?

The  personal  touch  ma=ers.  Regardless  of  how  big  or  small  your  company  is.

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A simple process

How to listen

• Listen  • find  the  right  journalists  -­‐  the  ones  that  are  wriIng  about  your  industry,  sector,  funding  stage,  locaIon  and  more  -­‐  and  keep  an  eye  out  for  ones  that  present  opportuniIes  to  engage  based  on  something  they’ve  wri=en  

• find  the  right  B2B  clients  -­‐  who’s  speaking  at  conferences,  who’s  using  startup  tools,  who’s  being  quoted  in  case  studies  in  industry  publicaIons,  who’s  the  right  person  to  talk  to  within  an  organisaIon,  who’s  open  to  receiving  pitches    

• find  the  right  investors  by  researching  who’s  invesIng  in  your  sector  and  at  your  funding  level,  who’s  interested  in  the  countries  you  operate  in,  who  runs  office  hours,  who  speaks  at  conferences,  who’s  well  regarded  etc  etc…

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Finding people - journalists

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Finding people - influencers

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Finding people - investors

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Finding people - sales leads

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What to learn

• Learn  • what  are  your  target  journalists  wriIng  about?  What’s  their  Twi=er/Instagram  handle?  Have  they  talked  about  how  they  prefer  to  be  contacted?  What  Ime  zone  are  they  in  (you’d  be  surprised  how  important  this  is)?  Have  they  wri=en  anything  relevant  to  you  or  your  business  recently?    

• who’s  who  within  your  target  client  company?  Who  runs  the  department  you  want  to  talk  to?  Who  seem  to  be  the  key  decision  makers?  Who  are  the  people  regularly  quoted  in  trade  media  or  who  regularly  speaks  at  conferences?  Are  they  premium  members  on  LinkedIn?  Do  they  use  Twi=er?    

• which  investors  engage  on  social  media?  Who  offers  office  hours  or  makes  themselves  available?  Who’s  talking  to  people  in  your  part  of  the  world?  Who  are  you  connected  to  through  friends  on  LinkedIn?  Who  follows  your  friends  on  Twi=er  etc  etc…

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When you engage - be personal.

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Engaging with people - quick tips

• Fla=er  people’s  egos  -­‐  reply  to  tweets,  retweets,  like  and  more  -­‐  it’s  a  quick  and  easy  way  to  get  on  people’s  radar  

• Be  personal  when  you’re  sending  your  first  email  • Hi  x,  loved  your  arIcle  on  adblocking  last  week.  We’re  working  on  something  similar  at  company  Y.  Would  love  to  get  your  input  on  it’  

• Hi  Y,  thanks  for  upvoIng  company  Y  on  Product  Hunt,  Would  love  to  share  more  info  if  you  have  five  minutes…’  

• Hi  Z,  Really  enjoyed  the  campaign  you  ran  with  Kiip.  I’d  love  to  show  Y  -­‐  I  think  your  audience  would  love  it…’  

• DO  NOT  USE  MAIL  MERGE  AND  TEMPLATED  MAILS

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Keep it simple. Really simple.

• I  always  aim  for  less  than  150  words  in  a  pitch  mail    • If  it’s  a  totally  cold  mail  -­‐  I  aim  for  100  words  or  less  • Include  links  -­‐  don’t  use  a=achments  • Link  to  your  media  kit,  videos  about  the  product,  case  studies  and  other  relevant  stuff  

• Have  a  clear  ask  or  next  step  -­‐  set  up  a  call,  follow  up  email,  meet  in  person  etc  etc…  

• Don’t  put  mulIple  asks  into  early  emails

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Have a clear ask

• We’re  launching  on  the  12th  of  December,  I’d  love  to  give  you  the  exclusive  

• I’d  love  to  buy  you  a  coffe.  I’m  going  to  be  in  Dubai  on  the  5th  of  January,  maybe  you’d  have  15  minutes  to  meet  in  person  then?    

• Do  you  have  five  or  ten  minutes  to  chat  on  the  phone  later  this  week  -­‐  I’ll  be  quick  and  hopefully  give  you  some  insight  into  exactly  what  we’re  doing.    

• Can  you  introduce  me  to  the  relevant  person  in  your  organisaIon  who  deals  with  x

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Don’t be annoying…

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Spellcheck

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Be short, personal and to the point

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Pitching to journalists

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http://mbites.com/2015/07/01/the-press-release-is-dead/

https://www.blonde20.com/howtopitchme/

Engaging with clients/partners

• Everything  we’ve  just  discussed  sIll  applies  • Be  professional,  but  have  a  personal  touch  • Perfect  your  pitch  so  that  you  can  ask  for  five  minutes  on  the  phone  and  get  something  useful  out  of  it  

• Clients  and  partners  will  always  want  something  out  of  the  relaIonship,  so  think  about  how  you  can:    • Make  them  look  be=er  • Make  them  more  money  • Make  their  life  or  job  easier  • Give  them  more  free  Ime  by  automaIng  something  • Make  their  staff  happier  • Make  their  customers  happier  • Make  their  bosses  happier  • Get  them  an  end  of  year  bonus

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Scratch itches

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Think about your unfair advantage

Remove friction

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How to remove friction

• Make  it  easy  for  people  to  say  like  you/say  yes  to  you  • Short  emails  • Short  meeIngs  • Quick  calls  • Link  to  useful  informaIon  

• Make  it  easy  for  people  to  say  yes  to  you  • Short  meeIngs  • Quick  calls

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Ask this question…

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Engaging with investors

• DO  NOT  USE  MAIL  MERGE  AND  TEMPLATED  MAILS  • Don’t  talk  about  your  valuaIon  straight  away  -­‐  talk  about  the  company  and  what  you’re  raising  first  

• As  with  all  emails  -­‐  keep  it  short  and  to  the  point  -­‐  Ime  is  a  pre=y  precious  commodity  and  the  best  investors  will  see  dozens  of  pitches  per  day,  and  maybe  hundreds  on  a  bad  day  

• When  conversaIons  get  serious,  ask  about  son  circling  -­‐  geong  that  first  commitment  is  key  

• If  they  pass,  don’t  be  afraid  to  ask  for  intros  to  others  in  their  network  (only  do  this  if  you’ve  built  a  li=le  bit  of  rapport)  

• Don’t  be  a  dick  -­‐  the  investor  community  is  a  small  one  and  they  gossip…

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Be a person and not a pitch

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Flattery -> funding

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Identify and remove blockages

Soft circle

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You have soft-circled capital when investors have expressed a conditional interest in investing in your company, pending a certain number of conditions be met - typically reaching a target amount or finding a lead investor who will set the terms/price for the round - Jeff Clavier, SoftTech VC

Final thoughts…

• Make  it  easy  for  me  to  understand  who  you  are,  what  you’re  doing  and  what  you  want  me  to  do  for  you  

• With  journalists  and  media  -­‐  think  tacIcally  about  where  you  need  to  be  -­‐  trade  press,  tech  blogs  or  mainstream  media  -­‐  and  target  accordingly  -­‐  it’s  not  a  one  size  fits  all  approach  

• With  business  partners  and  sales  -­‐  be  personal,  parIcularly  in  the  early  stages.  Figure  out  how  you  can  make  their  life  easier/be=er/more  profitable  and  they  will  love  you.    

• With  investors  -­‐  don’t  assume  that  everyone  who  has  money  will  spend  it  -­‐  you  want  smart  money  that  (at  least  parIally)  understands  your  product  and  the  market  you’re  in.  Remember,  investors  are  for  life….

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AMA

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@eamonncarey