Kirsty Jarvis is the founder of Luminous PR and a specialist in helping tech startup founders develop communication strategies.
Effective communication lies at the heart of every successful startup. Because of this, it’s vital that both the founder’s personal and business goals are aligned as they seek to inspire their teams and engage investors, customers and stakeholders.
However, the reality is that being an entrepreneur is often a juggling act, with uncertainty and rapid change often constants. Yes, a founder’s ability to communicate effectively can make the difference between growth and stagnation—or, to put it simply, success and failure—but equally, finding the time for planning and delivery of the needed strategic communication can be just as tough.
Mastering Communication
In other words, it’s not just about delivering the messages; it’s about shaping and sharing the narratives that can and should directly impact the success of a brand.
Founders must be able to articulate their vision clearly to a diverse range of audiences. From rallying their team behind a common goal to persuading investors of their company’s value and building customer trust and loyalty, all of these require a mastery of multiple communication styles. Increasingly, founders must ensure that their personal brand reinforces the credibility and values of the business they are building.
But not all founders are experts in communicating. While they usually excel at innovation, many struggle to communicate effectively, which can lead to misalignment, lost opportunities and weakened relationships. This results in founders ignoring the power of their own profile and focusing on building the business, letting their public presence fade as their company scales.
Mastering communication, both in terms of business strategy and personal brand, is essential for founders who want to lead with confidence and ensure success.
The Need For Deliberate And Strategic Alignment
With an established brand like Nike, few people care about the founder anymore. But for brands where recognition is low, founders tend to be the face of the company. During this phase, they play a dual role: the visionary behind the business and the public representative. Whether during an interview, networking or through social media, when a founder speaks publicly, they aren’t just representing themselves; they are shaping how the world sees their business as well.
However, I see many founders overlook how these opportunities benefit the business beyond raising their personal brand. The “voice of the founder” must be carefully crafted to align with the company’s mission, values and strategic objectives. This requires a very deliberate approach to communication, whereby the founder uses their newfound, strategic voice to complement the overall business activities. Done well, the founder’s voice can be incredibly powerful.
The Seven Benefits Of Strong Founder Communications
Early-stage startups frequently face credibility challenges when courting enterprise clients, and the founder can be the difference between getting in the room and not. Investors are often more likely to back a founder who can articulate a compelling vision, even if the product is still evolving. Similarly, potential recruits and partners are drawn to founders who demonstrate authenticity, passion and leadership in their communications.
Here are seven ways a business can benefit from a solid founder communication strategy:
1. Establishing Trust And Credibility
People connect more deeply with a personal story or authentic voice than with a faceless brand. While a brand can convey professionalism, the founder’s authenticity bridges the gap by providing reassurance that the startup’s leadership is not only competent but serious, too, resulting in trust and credibility being built in a way that a brand alone can’t typically express.
2. Humanizing Your Brand
A company itself is an abstract concept, especially as a startup. One of the most powerful things a business can do is humanize it through its founding team, making it feel more approachable, relatable and real.
3. Inspiring Confidence
In crowded markets, a unique and strategically aligned founder can set a brand apart by showcasing what makes their company different from others. Differentiation and being vocal about business successes can be vital when trying to catch the eye of investors, for example, as they will be looking for strong leadership and confidence from those in control of the direction of a business.
4. Enhancing Brand Storytelling
A well-crafted founder communications strategy enables personal experience, values and insights into the brand narrative, bringing stats, facts and figures in a way that makes the story both compelling and memorable.
5. Driving Media And PR Opportunities
Journalists and PR professionals often seek out strong founder stories, and a well-developed founder voice can increase your chances of being featured in media and gaining exposure.
6. Amplifying Leadership
By sharing informed perspectives and insights, founders can enhance their visibility and credibility and start to establish themselves as a thought leader in the industry. This, in turn, can open up opportunities for speaking engagements, partnerships and further influence.
7. Attracting Top Talent And Building A Powerful Community
For emerging businesses with limited brand recognition, potential recruits often view the founder as the embodiment of the brand, so a strong and consistent communications strategy acts as a powerful lever for attracting good people. The same goes for drawing like-minded people around the brand, which helps foster a loyal and engaged community.
A Catalyst For Business Growth
It’s also important to note that, in a time when consumers and employees alike are increasingly skeptical of corporate messaging, distinct and robust communications from the founder can ensure an authenticity that can cut through the noise and build real trust with people. It offers a glimpse into the values and motivations driving the business.
The key is that founder communications isn’t just about personal branding; it’s about strategic alignment. When a founder’s communications are intentional, authentic and in sync with the company’s mission, they can become a force multiplier for business growth. So, the real question isn’t whether you should harness the power of founder communications, it’s how soon you can start.
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