Kat defines content as material a company creates on its own channels and PR as pitching independent publications. She advises founders to practice explaining their startup clearly so others can repeat its story. Before investing much in marketing, founders should make something people want and talk with users; press is not a dependable long-term acquisition channel.
PR + Content for Growth
Speakers
Kat Mañalac, a partner at Y Combinator, and Craig Cannon, who creates YC content, explain how early-stage founders can use content and press to reach customers.
Craig recommends starting content marketing once customers are not churning, then making content for the customers a company actually wants. He says to choose a goal, such as engagement or conversions, and track how people find and use the content. Zapier’s early Hacker News content brought visitors who did not fully overlap with its customer base.
Craig describes The Onion’s headline process: writers submit 10 to 15 ideas each week, editors remove names, and the group selects a small share. He advises giving content time, using people with subject expertise, editing carefully, and being willing to discard work. Find the platforms customers use, focus on what works there, and promote the material consistently.
Kat says press can bring early users, investor or employee attention, and SEO benefits, but founders should usually wait until there is a product or clear news hook. She recommends preparing one-sentence and three-to-five-sentence pitches, plus concise answers to likely reporter questions. Founders should identify relevant publications, offer an exclusive to a realistic first choice, seek a warm introduction, and allow at least two weeks.
Kat advises founders to be truthful, follow up politely once or twice, and let reporters write their own headlines without requesting a preview. If coverage runs, promote it through company channels and make sharing easy for friends and supporters. If no publication takes the story, publish it on the company’s own channels and assess whether the effort met its goal.
Takeaways
- Talk to users and confirm they want the product before committing heavily to marketing.
- Create content for your actual customers, with a clear engagement or conversion goal.
- Spend time developing and editing ideas, then promote content where customers already spend time.
- Pitch reporters with a timely, clear story and allow at least two weeks for outreach and publication.
- After a press campaign, measure whether it brought the users or other outcomes you wanted.
Mentioned in this talk
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What was claimed 13
- role atKat Manalac is partner at
Y Combinator“I’m a partner at Y Combinator.”
0:00inHow to Find a CofounderYouTube Verified2 sources· Talk
- builtY Combinator built
Hacker News“Hacker News was built”
YouTube Verified2 sources· Talk, Web· archived
- metricpublic relations: Press is not a scalable long-term user acquisition strategy
“press is not a scalable user acquisition strategy.”
YouTube Unverified1 source· Talk
- works atCraig Cannon works atY Combinator
“now I work at YC.”
YouTube Unverified1 source· Talk
- previously atCraig Cannon previously at The Onion
“Before working at YC, I worked at a place called The Onion.”
YouTube Unverified1 source· Talk
- featurecontent marketing: Should focus on customer engagement or conversions
“Focus on engagement or conversions.”
YouTube Unverified1 source· Talk
- feature
Mixpanel: Tracks visitor sources, actions, clicks, and time on site“You're just tracking where people are coming in, what they're doing, what they're clicking on, how long they're on your site”
YouTube Unverified1 source· Talk
- featurePixel: Captures site visitors logged into Facebook for later remarketing
“It captures who's hitting your site and who's logged into Facebook, so you can later remarket to them.”
YouTube Unverified1 source· Talk
- featureThe Onion: Removes writers’ names from submitted headlines and selects favorites as a group
“The editor removes everyone's name, and then they just pick their favorites as a group.”
YouTube Unverified1 source· Talk
- featureThe Box Company: Builds smart, eco-friendly boxes for food delivery
“The second is another Startup School company, the Box Company. They’re building smart, eco-friendly boxes for food delivery.”
YouTube Unverified1 source· Talk
- featureOrby: Builds flying robots that help businesses monitor inventory and conduct surveillance
“Orby, which I mentioned before, builds flying robots that help businesses monitor inventory and conduct surveillance.”
YouTube Unverified1 source· Talk
- featureThe Box Company: Boxes are stackable and easy to assemble, and help prevent soggy, sloppy food
“The boxes are stackable, easy to assemble, and solve the soggy, sloppy food problem.”
YouTube Unverified1 source· Talk
- metricpublic relations: Allow at least two weeks for the pitching process; two weeks is the absolute minimum
“give it at least two weeks for the whole process”
YouTube Unverified1 source· Talk
