How 5 Simple Steps can Improve your PR

We're talking about blockchain here...but the lessons can be applied to any tech company. Most industries it turns out, share the same problems when it comes to marketing. Take these lessons from the blockchain industry and apply them to your own.

The 2017 intial-coin-offering bubble has come and gone - facilitating billions of dollars of investment into hundreds of blockchain projects that have, by all accounts failed. The bitcoin and cryptocurrency hype that led to a meteoric rise in early 2018 is over.

Blockchain stories just don't have the same sensational ring to them anymore.

Add to this the ever increasing but uncertain regulatory framework - upcoming blockchain entrepreneurs and established blockchain companies are faced with a difficult means of connecting with their audience.

Unless you’ve got a fantastic hold on the following - all blockchain companies are in for a challenging battle.

Here are 5-steps that every blockchain company should be considering to tackle the future of blockchain publicity.

Understand your why, clarify your story (and cut the jargon)

Take a look at any Top 10 ICO list. We did, and well, we noticed just about everyone in the top 10 list is using the latest buzz words and industry jargon. Most actually sound eerily similar.

• The one-stop-platform.
• The only ecosystem.
• Democratizing.
• Decentralizing.
• Blockchain-enabled.
• The first.
• The only.
• The leading.

As the industry develops, and more blockchain companies enter the market - the ones who stand apart from the crowd will need to understand their core story.

Cut the jargon, and communicate to your core audience in a way that’s real, clear, and to the point. Your audience knows you're a blockchain company. Your audience knows you're aiming to decentralize or democratize or build a platform and an ecosystem. The question is: Why are you doing it? What's the end-game?

This will help clarify your message and talk to the emotion of your target audience.

Understand your core audience

Speaking of audience — who are you really trying to target? This is important. Because as the industry moves to greater and greater regulation, there are more articles, influencers and conferences in the space - your blockchain company will really need to clarify who you're targeting.

Moving from the market hype-cycle you've probably noticed that the general, lets-target-all-investors approach is gaining less and less attention.

Shape your story in a clear and direct way

You're not targeting any blockchain mining investors anymore. You're targeting males who are interested in history, who are libertarian, looking for investment opportunities, between the ages of 35-44, who live in NYC and have a high-threshold for risk tolerance.

You'll need to improve your insights and audience targeting as the industry evolves.

Continue to drive momentum through engagement

In working with, and investing in dozens of blockchain companies we've noticed that the ones who succeed in the long run - are the ones who build and support their community. No, not just for investing purposes, but also to share updates, insights, successes and problems.

The blockchain industry is growing yes - but it's still a fraction of the size of the startup world.

Great companies facilitate great communities - and engage with them often. This helps spread the word, helps gain insight, and helps you gain even more publicity.

Rinse and repeat

Think of any established brands such as Apple or Amazon. Each one is constantly sharing their stories.

Take Nike as an example. Love them or hate them they're constantly gaining publicity and speaking to the core of their message. From their Kaepernick Ad or their publicity comment on the banning of Serena Williams catsuit outfit. Their stories are engaging with their audience in a way that speaks to both their brand and their why.

In the blockchain world, you should expect to see brands tailoring their publicity as they deliver on their products. You should also expect to see a need for more niched audience targeting as regulation evolves. You will also see more competition, and more noise in the space.

The industry is evolving rapidly, and building a great brand takes on-going effort. In the hyper-competitive, fast-paced blockchain world - this is doubly so.

The blockchain companies that focus on the above will have no problems gaining publicity as the industry grows.

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