By Jordan Baker, Founder of Fair Public Relations and former UK national journalist
Yes, a startup can get legitimate media coverage before it has a major funding round or an established customer base.
But it still needs something worthwhile to contribute.
A journalist does not owe a startup coverage simply because somebody built an app.
The fact that a founder is excited is not evidence of reader interest.
Early-stage businesses normally need to find value somewhere else:
a credible founder
an unusual problem
strong professional experience
a meaningful prototype
original evidence
a legitimate early milestone
a useful insight
a story that matters beyond the people who created the business
Sometimes the correct PR strategy for an extremely early startup is not publicity at all.
It is to wait.
What does a journalist need from an early startup?
Five things help.
Relevance
Why should the publication's audience care?
Clarity
What does the business actually do today?
Evidence
Which claims can be verified?
Credibility
Why is this founder qualified to discuss the problem?
Timing
Why does the story matter now?
A startup with no customers can still have those things.
A startup with 10,000 users can still lack them.
Why is “we launched a startup” usually weak?
Because millions of companies are started.
Consider this pitch:
“Two entrepreneurs launch revolutionary AI app set to transform productivity.”
What is revolutionary?
Who has used it?
What does it do?
What problem does it solve?
Why now?
How is it different?
What can actually be demonstrated?
Now consider:
“Former logistics managers build tool to flag duplicate freight invoices after repeatedly seeing businesses pay the same charge twice.”
The company may still be pre-customer.
But now there is:
first-hand experience
a concrete problem
a reason the founders built it
something a business journalist can understand
Can the founder be the story?
Sometimes.
The title “founder” is not enough.
An early startup founder may be interesting because they:
spent 15 years in the industry
personally experienced an unusual problem
left a distinctive career
have verifiable specialist knowledge
created something in response to a genuine gap
can explain a developing issue particularly well
A first-time founder with three months of experience should not be presented as a lifelong industry expert simply because they have launched a company.
We have rejected similar positioning before.
If the experience does not support the claim, the media will often spot that quickly.
Expert commentary can be stronger than startup publicity
This is one of the best routes for some pre-traction companies.
Imagine a founder previously spent 12 years working in cybersecurity.
Their new business is only six weeks old.
The startup itself may not yet deserve a large profile.
But the founder may be completely credible discussing:
security failures
business preparedness
AI fraud
data risk
other subjects within their actual experience
Their professional expertise exists independently of the startup's customer count.
That can create a legitimate commentary strategy.
Use market insight, but don't manufacture statistics
Early founders often see interesting things.
Suppose 40 beta users repeatedly mention the same problem.
That can inspire a story.
But do not suddenly claim:
“80% of British businesses struggle with X.”
if the source is 40 self-selected beta users.
Say what the data is.
If it is:
40 participants
one survey
one geographic market
one particular customer type
then explain that.
Good PR makes evidence clearer.
It does not inflate it.
What counts as a meaningful early milestone?
Potentially:
a real pilot
independent testing
a material partnership
a working product
a significant technical development
an appropriate certification
a credible research result
verified market availability
another development with consequences outside the company
What usually does not count:
a new logo
a minor UI update
an internal hire with no wider relevance
reaching 100 Instagram followers
adding a feature that every competitor already has
simply filing the company paperwork
Internal significance is not the same as public newsworthiness.
Can a beta product be pitched?
Yes, sometimes.
But be accurate.
If the product is a beta, call it a beta.
Do not write:
“Now available to businesses everywhere”
if only 20 invited testers can access it.
Useful beta stories may involve:
what is being tested
why the problem matters
what the founders have learned
how people can legitimately participate
an independently interesting technical development
A beta label is not embarrassing.
Misrepresenting maturity is.
What about a physical product prototype?
A prototype may have media value if there is genuine evidence around it.
For example, a hypothetical cycling accessory may have undergone credible independent testing.
That could be interesting.
But if:
the product cannot be bought
the design will materially change
claims are unverified
samples do not exist
manufacturing is uncertain
the publicity may be premature.
Local and trade media can matter
An early startup sometimes chases national press because national logos feel more impressive.
But relevance matters.
A local story might work because:
the founders are building a new business locally
the company is creating jobs
the product solves a local problem
there is a genuine regional connection
A specialist trade publication may care because the underlying problem is important to its industry.
That may be considerably more commercially relevant than a generic national mention.
Make the product easy to explain
Before pitching, you should be able to answer:
What does it do?
Who is it for?
What problem does it solve?
What can it do today?
What is still being developed?
What evidence exists?
Where is it available?
How much does it cost?
What are the limitations?
If you need 15 minutes of jargon to explain the first question, the PR process is likely to expose that problem.
Weak startup pitch
Revolutionary AI startup launches next-generation platform set to transform how SMEs work.
Stronger hypothetical pitch
Former finance operations manager has built a beta tool that identifies duplicate supplier invoices after repeatedly seeing small companies pay the same invoice twice. The product is currently being tested with 20 invited businesses and the founder is available to discuss why invoice duplication persists even as finance teams automate.
This does not pretend the startup has thousands of customers.
It gives the journalist a real subject.
What about secrecy and NDAs?
Founders are understandably protective of new ideas.
But journalists are not automatically bound by an NDA because you email them.
If something cannot safely be disclosed, do not send it until the terms are understood.
Likewise, an embargo should be explicitly agreed.
Writing:
EMBARGOED
at the top of an unsolicited email does not magically create a contract.
If the exact technology is highly sensitive, decide what can be discussed publicly before outreach begins.
Startup PR readiness checklist
Before approaching journalists, confirm:
the business exists and basic information is accurate
the website explains the current product honestly
the founder biography is verifiable
important claims have evidence
future roadmap features are not described as live
imagery exists
the spokesperson is available
confidential information has been identified
a useful story exists beyond “we launched”
the company can respond if a journalist becomes interested
Four-week preparation plan
Week 1: clarify the story
Define:
the problem
the founder's credibility
the current product
real evidence
what is genuinely new
Week 2: build supporting material
Prepare:
bio
images
product explanation
founder background
evidence sources
appropriate talking points
Week 3: identify the media route
Choose:
expert commentary
product story
local story
trade story
data
founder story
genuine announcement
Week 4: prepare for outreach
Research journalists.
Draft concise pitches.
Check availability.
Decide how quickly the team can respond.
This is preparation.
It is not a guarantee of coverage in four weeks.
What should an early PR budget prioritise?
Not expensive distribution for the sake of appearing busy.
Prioritise:
story assessment
good basic assets
credible evidence
a clear website
journalist research
targeted outreach
If the budget is tiny and the story is weak, keep the money.
Build the business.
Fair's current Startup PR positioning explicitly recognises that businesses still validating the idea or operating with very limited budget may be better served concentrating on product and customers first.
Should an early startup hire an agency?
Possibly.
Good fit:
strong founder expertise
credible product
clear market problem
enough budget for an ongoing campaign
capacity to participate.
Poor fit:
no validated product
no real story
almost no budget
no spokesperson
an expectation that PR will manufacture investor interest
Fair does not sell investor introductions or guaranteed fundraising exposure.
Build a story around the problem rather than the startup
An early-stage founder may be too close to the product to explain why anyone outside the business should care.
One way to test an idea is to remove the company name from the proposed headline.
Is there still an interesting problem, useful insight or meaningful development?
If the answer is no, the pitch may depend entirely on promotion.
Imagine a founder developing software for independent retailers.
'New retail software company launches' says little.
A more useful conversation could be about how smaller shops identify repeated stock discrepancies, what the founder learned while working in retail operations and which common explanations fail in practice.
If the software is still in development, the source must say so. The journalist may use the founder's experience as context without choosing to feature the new product.
That outcome would be different from securing a standalone startup profile, and the distinction should be clear in any PR plan.
It can still be relevant, particularly where the founder's knowledge is a genuine strength and the early business has yet to build a public commercial track record.
Do not confuse a prototype demonstration with independent proof
A demonstration can help explain a product, but it is not necessarily evidence of its performance in ordinary conditions.
A prototype may work within a controlled setting while still lacking reliability, real-world testing, availability or an established support process.
Journalists may reasonably ask whether the claim has been independently evaluated and whether the experience reflects what customers will receive.
A founder should therefore prepare a concise evidence file separating what is built, what is being tested and what remains an intention. Include test methods and limitations where they exist.
If the business reports early user feedback, explain who participated, how they were recruited and whether the feedback was independently collected. An honest limited result is better than a sweeping statistic drawn from a handful of enthusiastic testers.
This matters for both reputation and expectations. Publicity may bring prospective customers to the website.
If the page promises a product that does not exist yet or uses inflated performance language, interest generated by PR could become disappointment rather than genuine engagement.
What if your best story is still six months away?
Waiting does not need to mean doing nothing.
A founder can prepare a media biography, assemble reliable source material, identify relevant journalist beats and monitor developments in the sector.
They can improve the product explanation, resolve questions about testing and consider which future milestone would actually justify an announcement. This foundational work has value without requiring immediate outreach.
For example, a planned pilot may later produce demonstrable results, while an upcoming independent test could provide much stronger evidence than the current prototype description. It would be sensible to record what must be true before each story is pitchable, then revisit the opportunity when those conditions are met.
The business avoids spending its early budget trying to force coverage around an unfinished proposition.
A deadline can still help: choose a date to review evidence and readiness, rather than promising a publication by that date.
That gives the founder a practical next step without treating journalism as a controllable marketing placement.
Think about the first media response before sending the first pitch
A small team may assume that the difficult part is getting a journalist's attention. In practice, it also needs the ability to respond when that attention arrives.
A reporter may ask for proof of a claim, a product demonstration, a founder interview, a current photograph or a clearer account of whether the business is taking orders. Those questions may have short deadlines.
Assign responsibility for responding, agreeing what can be shared publicly and checking factual claims. If the founders are working on an unreleased product, decide in advance which details are confidential and which explanations are safe.
Avoid promising an interview or demonstration before confirming the relevant person and technology are available.
A credible initial pitch becomes less useful if the team cannot substantiate it when the reporter replies.
This is a particularly good reason to keep the original pitch restrained.
A realistic statement about a product's current stage is easier to support than ambitious claims about imminent market transformation.
Three early-stage businesses, three credible media routes
Consider a founder developing software for independent retailers. The business has no paying customers, but the founder spent years in retail operations and understands common inventory problems.
Pitching “our app will transform the industry” is weak without results.
A more defensible route might be explaining a real operational challenge based on documented professional experience.
The product can be identified transparently, but the commentary should still be useful if the journalist never names the software.
Now consider a consumer brand with a working prototype of a refillable household product. It has no sales figures and has not completed independent performance testing.
The founder can demonstrate the design, describe its materials and explain why it was developed, provided those statements are accurate.
The brand cannot yet claim superior performance, lower lifetime costs or a particular environmental impact without appropriate evidence.
A specialist design reporter might consider the development interesting, but the more sensible next step may be completing testing before requesting reviews.
A third startup is preparing to open a neighbourhood service. It has a confirmed venue, date and founders with relevant experience.
Here the best first audience may be regional business media or local news rather than a national technology title.
A reporter needs a real development and an explanation of why readers in that area should care. Local coverage might be more useful commercially than a prestigious national mention that reaches almost none of the service's customers.
These are hypothetical examples, not Fair PR client outcomes. Their common lesson is to build the story around something the team can substantiate today rather than asking journalists to believe predictions about the company's future.
Prepare for the journalist's second question
Founders often invest time making the first pitch exciting and forget to prepare for the follow-up.
If you say a process is expensive, what is the comparison based on?
If you quote market size, does the figure come from a credible original source, and does it refer to the right location and period?
If you cite a prototype test, who conducted it and under what conditions?
If asked for a customer testimonial when there are no customers, can you say so plainly rather than manufacture an endorsement?
Make a short evidence sheet. For each significant claim, record who can verify it, the original data or document and its limitations. An early-stage business may have only a handful of robust facts, and that is preferable to a detailed but unsubstantiated growth narrative.
The founder should also decide what can be discussed publicly.
Fundraising conversations, customer negotiations, unreleased features, personal data and partner arrangements may be sensitive.
A journalist is not automatically bound by a startup's internal confidentiality expectations. Decide who can speak, what information is cleared for release and how quickly the team can answer questions before outreach begins.
Recognise the moment when waiting is right
Having an experienced founder with valuable insight is not the same as having a ready-made company announcement.
If the startup has neither credible expert commentary nor a substantiated development, publicity may be premature.
That time can be spent talking to users, testing assumptions, improving the evidence and learning what journalists covering the sector actually need.
Waiting should have a clear trigger, not become indefinite avoidance.
That trigger might be a completed prototype test, a confirmed public launch, a genuinely useful research finding or an expert spokesperson ready to explain a topical issue in depth.
When the trigger is met, the business can approach relevant journalists with something more substantial than an appeal to believe in its potential.
Frequently asked questions
Can a startup get press coverage without raising investment?
Yes. Funding announcements are only one route. A startup may have a credible founder, original data, a useful product development, an independently interesting problem, expert commentary or another legitimate milestone. The story still needs to matter to the publication's audience. A startup should never invent traction simply because a funding announcement feels more impressive.
Will journalists cover an app that is still in beta?
Potentially. A beta can be relevant if the product solves an interesting problem, the founders have credible insight, there is meaningful testing or the development itself matters to the audience. Be transparent about what is and is not live. Journalists may be much less forgiving if a company presents a limited prototype as a fully established commercial service.
Should a startup announce every milestone?
No. Internal milestones and media stories are different things. The first hire, a minor product update, a new logo or a small internal target may be important to the team without being important to the public. Ask what changed for the reader, customer, industry or market. Save journalist attention for developments that genuinely deserve it.
Should an early-stage founder hire a PR agency yet?
Only if there is enough substance and budget to justify it. A credible founder with strong professional expertise may be ready for expert commentary before the company has much traction. A startup with a real product and several campaign routes may be suitable for broader Standard PR. A company still struggling to explain what it sells may get much better value by improving the product, proposition and website first.
Have an early-stage business with a genuinely interesting story?
Fair Public Relations can assess whether your founder expertise, product and current evidence provide a realistic PR opportunity.
Explore Startup PR, PR for Founders, or contact us.
Enthusiasm is welcome.
Substance is essential.
About the author
Jordan Baker is the founder of Fair Public Relations and a former UK national journalist.
View Jordan Baker’s media expert profile
