a16z: Public relations is business development, how to break through the "noise" in the crypto industry?

Compiled by: Ken, ChainCatcher

"Communication" is a general term that refers to the strategies companies use to communicate with different groups—employees, media, investors, etc.

Communication encompasses various means: creating original content on official websites and social media channels (i.e., "speaking directly to the outside world"); writing thought leadership articles; coordinating internal communication among employees; collaborating with influencers (key opinion leaders); and planning organic or paid events and speaking opportunities. Of course, communication also includes dealing with the media (i.e., public relations or publicity).

No single communication strategy or tactic is absolutely superior to others. So, how do you find the approach that suits you?

In this article, I will outline how to build your communication strategy framework and what levers you can use to achieve it. I will then argue that, despite traditional media relations having a poor reputation in some tech circles, it remains an important tool for startups to convey information externally.

How to Think About Your Communication Strategy

My communication strategy thinking model is built on answering three questions:

What are your business goals?
Which audiences do you need to reach to achieve that goal?
What is the best strategy to reach those audiences?

Above all this is your messaging and narrative—what problem are you and your team solving? What will the world look like once the problem is solved? Who will benefit in this new world?

Regardless of who you are talking to or through what medium you are communicating, your core narrative and messaging should always be consistent. However, depending on your audience, you need to emphasize different aspects. For example, investors focus on details and future growth prospects, while the media is more concerned with news headlines and how you got to where you are today.

What Actions Can You Take?

Although the business goals and audiences of different projects vary, the strategies or tactics available are largely similar. These strategies include:

Original content: For example, creating your own blog, producing videos, or publishing white papers on your official website.
Social media (brand and personal): While you do not own social platforms, they are one of the best ways to reach audiences. For startups, this includes a combination of brand accounts (company official accounts) and personal accounts (founders and employees' accounts).
Community building: Whether through Discord, Signal, Telegram, or WhatsApp, online community management allows you to establish direct connections with developers, partners, or other key audiences in the ecosystem.
Speaking opportunities and conferences: Including speaking or appearing at important offline community events and conferences.
Media/news: The final strategy includes actively and passively engaging with the media—whether pitching story ideas to the media, providing expert commentary, submitting articles, or responding to media inquiries. The media here includes both crypto industry vertical media (such as Coindesk, The Block, etc.) and traditional mainstream media (such as The Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, etc.).

The Role of Media for Founders

The last strategy mentioned above—media relations (i.e., PR)—is the most controversial in the eyes of many tech founders. This is not without reason: while some journalists and media outlets have indeed become more hostile towards the tech industry, it remains one of the most frequently asked topics when I consult for startups.

Many founders ask how to get funding coverage in TechCrunch or how to get a glossy profile piece in Fortune magazine. They are also curious about how to get on TBPN or record a one-hour podcast with the folks at Bankless.

Why? Because regardless of your personal feelings about the media, media coverage combines third-party endorsement with the potential for audience expansion, allowing you to reach entirely new groups: potential employees, potential customers, or potential influencers within your sector. Reaching different audiences also helps feed back into your own channel growth. Most startups cannot afford the cost of missing out on expanding their influence and exposure.

When the founding team of Kalshi recently appeared on CBS Sunday Morning, they reached an audience that was entirely different from the "always online" users in the Twitter tech circle. Kalshi CEO Tarek Mansour shared a story about a team member's mother, vividly illustrating the power of reaching different circles through traditional media:

This is why media relations remain an extremely important part of the communication toolkit. The media can drive traffic back to your private channels, help build your (and the company's) image, and accelerate various stages from recruitment to sales. In the long run, the media can also enhance the effectiveness of your "speaking directly to the outside world" strategy.

Do not fear media relations. Learn to leverage it to cut through the fog and get to the truth.

Contacting the Media: Breaking Through the Noise

Indeed, we are in an era of information and content overload. This is especially true for the journalists you want to reach.

Take a look at any journalist's, podcaster's, or content creator's inbox, and you will be shocked: it is stuffed with hundreds or thousands of emails from PR people, all pitching their clients or projects. In fact, data shows that the ratio of media PR practitioners to journalists is as high as 6 to 1. Due to the information overload, it is nearly impossible for journalists to sift through what is genuine and what is junk.

Why? Because many PR professionals lack professional training or the confidence to push back against bad ideas proposed by clients. As a result, they churn out poor proposals, exacerbating the frustration of journalists, producers, and podcasters.

Adding to this are project proposals that claim to offer brilliant solutions to important issues but end up failing or are simply empty promises. In summary, poor proposals and overpromising create an environment where "standing out" is more difficult than ever.

However, compared to the vast amount of junk information, quality news resources remain scarce. This means that those who can effectively tell stories and build good relationships with existing media professionals will have a clear competitive advantage.

Engaging with the Media: Where to Start

If founders want to break through the noise and effectively engage with the media, they should keep the following four points in mind:

Founders are the best spokespersons. The company's narrative or story cannot be outsourced. While hiring PR professionals, agencies, or freelancers can help you open doors, it must be the founders who personally refine and vividly tell their own stories.
Relationships are key. Treat media relations like business development (BD). Whether seeking speaking opportunities or simply replying on X, building personal relationships with journalists, podcasters, and opinion leaders is crucial. Many times, the birth of a report, the recording of a podcast, or the acquisition of a speaking opportunity stems from connections. Why? Because journalists and opinion leaders trust founders and PR professionals who have built relationships with them, as past experiences have shown that these individuals can provide reliable interview opportunities, answers, or other valuable resources.

2a. So, how do you build relationships with key media? Methods vary, but the core is to proactively provide resources. First, focus on how to add value to their reporting rather than just boasting about your project. You can also use speaking and conference opportunities to meet media people—just like you would in business development.

The media is neither a friend nor an enemy. Some media indeed have biases, but ultimately, journalists are just looking for good stories. Remember, journalists are not here to help your friends. The art lies in learning how to engage constructively and knowing when to keep quiet (sometimes, silence is definitely wise).
Your story must fit into a larger context. The best founders can see how their company, project, product, and team fit into the grand narrative of the industry and the world. Helping journalists understand you and how you fit into that larger story, trend, or movement is key to breaking through. For example, think about the annual "year-end reviews"—from Spotify to Google searches, to a16z and Coinbase's cryptocurrency industry status reports. Each case captures a specific moment in time—reflecting on the past year and adding unique perspectives/insights that only they can provide, while making it practical and shareable through charts and visuals. Founders can also leverage trending topics (such as the growth of stablecoins, the fusion of AI and Crypto, or policy debates around DeFi) to gain traction.

The core is: connect your story to what is happening in the world.

The Best Defense is an Effective Offense

"But," you may ask, "what if I never want to deal with the media?"

That is a lovely wish. But unfortunately, as startups grow, it is impossible to completely stay out of the public eye.

When faced with tricky negative coverage or crises—fair or not—the best way to avoid being on the defensive is to proactively build relationships with the media and cultivate initial rapport. Like anything in life, having connections can make difficult conversations easier.

Crisis PR is a specialized skill that deserves a separate discussion. But in short, the best defense is having a good offense: having established robust communication channels, built relationships with key journalists and opinion leaders, and deeply understood your core audience before a crisis hits.

The media can be intimidating for some and a convenient scapegoat for others. But with proper preparation and the right mindset, the media can become a powerful unlocking tool in the hands of founders.

Let us toast to open construction—may you master the tools to do this well.