The Dos and Don’ts of Working with the Media if You’re a Startup

At Next Coast, we believe that working with local press can be a great way to increase awareness about your startup. It can help with fundraising, hiring, customer acquisition and overall company and product awareness. For technology reporters covering busy markets like Austin, there’s an overwhelming amount of information for them to sort through, so it’s crucial to know how to approach the press. In our experience helping our portfolio with press relationships, there are some highly practical tips of building relationships with the media. So we went straight to the source and spoke to three of Austin’s top technology reporters to compile a list of the dos and don’ts of working with the media. If you’re a growing startup, here’s what you need to know.

Press Releases:

Pitching Stories:

Your Website:

Building Relationships with the Media:

SXSW:

Topics and Trends of Interest:

About the Reporters:

Mike Cronin covers technology, startups and finance in Central Texas for the Austin Business Journal. His more than two decades in journalism has included working with Bill Moyers and at Minnesota Public Radio, The Arizona Republic and Texas Watchdog. He can be reached at mcronin@bizjournals.com.

Lori Hawkins writes about business for the Austin American-Statesman and 512tech.com. She focuses on entrepreneurs, high-tech startups and the venture capital industry. She can be reached at lhawkins@statesman.com.

Brent Wistrom is the founding writer of Austin Inno, which provides in-depth coverage of the Austin tech and startup ecosystem through its website and its daily newsletter, The Beat. Austin Inno, which launched in 2015, is part of a network of American Inno publications in nine metro areas across the country. Brent works closely with Atlanta Inno, one of the newest Inno markets. He can be reached at bwistrom@americaninno.com.