It’s already January! Have you figured out how to create a 2023 PR plan for your B2B tech startup? If you’re like many early stage startups, it’s never a given.
With the holidays in the rearview mirror, it’s still not too late to figure out how to get more results from your PR investment in the coming year. Ready to try?
To help you, Swyft put together some tried and tested tips on how to create a 2023 PR plan for your B2B tech startup.
Review your past PR activities
How to create a 2023 PR plan for your B2B tech startup begins with understanding what happened in the past year.
Admittedly, this is easier said than done. Many early stage startups often lack a robust communications strategy that’s supported by a sophisticated accounting system capable of tracking expenses based on department and/or function. Still, those startup marketers who participated in any past PR initiatives should still be able to compile a list of activities to make it easier to review and use when building out a 2023 PR plan for a tech startup.
Study the product roadmap
The product roadmap should make up a good portion of your PR plan in any given year. Short of funding events, product-related announcements are the closest thing to hard news you can count on. Plus, product news will almost always interest the trade news publications covering your industry. That’s bread-and-butter PR at its most effective.
The key here will be to align your communications around expected launch dates with a keen eye on major product launches, updates and extensions. Early-stage startups typically do not have a wide portfolio of products that involve new product launches and upgrades. But what you do have should definitely be supported by PR activities. That’s best accomplished by meeting with your product marketing team as you seek to flesh out a robust 2023 PR plan for your B2B tech startup.
Plan for events
Every year, your marketing and leadership team will gear up for a variety of events. Are there plans afoot to invest in a booth at your industry’s largest trade show of the year? Will you host an on-site or off-site event at the trade show? How about any significant product announcements? Be ready to develop a comprehensive PR strategy for the major events. Not sure how to do that? Check out our prior article on how to plan for a trade show PR and media campaign for some actionable tips.
Talk to key stakeholders
Stakeholders (e.g., CEO, CMO, CTO, etc.) may have additional insights on how PR strategy can support the organization’s upcoming year’s objectives. Maybe they have plans to attend influential events in a speaker capacity you can leverage into a media mention. Or perhaps they can ‘read you in’ on their top-secret plan for a new round of funding in Q2. Your startup founders and execs have ultimate sway over the budget, and direction, of the company. The more you know from them the easier it is to figure out how to create a 2023 PR plan for your B2B tech startup.
Check in with HR
Don’t forget to query your HR liaison about the timing of hiring plans of key executives for the coming year. You’ll want at least a one-month head start on any new hires in order to spin up a mini campaign announcing the hire to local business news outlets as well as to any relevant industry media.
Ask your PR agency
Not all tech startups have gotten to the point where they have a PR agency on annual retainer. Whether you have used a freelancer or a full-blown agency in the past year matters not. You can pick their brains for feedback on what you might need from them to support your ambitious 2023 communications plan.
Build out a PR calendar
Learning about how to create a PR plan for your B2B tech startup isn’t complete without a supporting PR calendar. It will help those who need to review and approve your plan to quickly grasp how you’re going to fulfill the communications role at the startup. It will also help you visualize the activities you have planned and spot any glaring gaps in your media campaign cadence. You can then use the calendar to manage your PR resources and ensure you stay ahead of the game in the upcoming year.
Review with finance
Once you have created your PR plan, you may need to review the budget side with your finance liaison to make sure it fits the overall budget executives have in mind for the startup. This may amount to no more than a brief ‘sniff’ test to make sure you’re in the ballpark and ready for executive review. Whatever the case, just make sure you have checked your budget a few times for any obvious mistakes. Last thing you want to do is present a plan with financial mistakes in a spreadsheet.
Final thoughts
The notion of how to create a 2023 PR plan for your B2B tech startup may seem daunting for beginners. For those who either lack the time or are worried about a less than perfect outcome, it may make sense to work with a PR agency that has experience developing and executing plans for startups. Feel free to contact Swyft with any questions you may have as you race to finish up your PR plan for the new year.