Sometimes, I’ll get a word stuck in my head and will end up thinking about it so long, it starts to lose its meaning. (The phenomenon is known as semantic satiation.)
Since launching this podcast, that word is “storytelling.” It’s a core skill for founders: before they can hire, sell or raise money, they need to create a clear and simple narrative that explains the problem they’re solving and why their team has an unfair advantage when it comes to monetizing the solution.
But where does public relations fit into storytelling? When is the right time to bring in PR professionals, and how much can they accomplish if you don’t have paying customers yet or a strong brand identity?
“At the end of the day, if people have a great story, then it doesn't matter what they're really providing,” said Chikodi Chima, founder of Moonshot, a San Francisco-based PR agency. “If people see themselves in the story the founder and the company is telling, then they will get on board.”
He said PR is more than just making a big splash — it's about creating an ongoing narrative that captures interest over time, like a quality TV show. For startups, this means consistently engaging with your audience and media to build and sustain your brand's message.
“It's season after season of content, so you need to have this kind of episodic structure,” he said. “You need to think about, how do I get people's attention and how do I keep them involved in my story?”
This isn’t meant to sound unkind, but founders: your product launch is not newsworthy.
To earn press coverage, startups have to keep refining their brand narrative, build relationships, and stay relevant in the public eye. And because many CEOs are so deeply embedded in their ventures that they don’t know how to tell their story to outsiders, “I sell people to themselves,” Chikodi says.
“They don't see the bigger picture because they're so all-in. And so when I listen to someone... I hear someone's story, I hear what they're passionate about. I reflect it back to them and say, okay, that's what we're going to go out into the world with.”
Runtime: 37:34
EPISODE BREAKDOWN
(2:09) How Chikodi transitioned from tech journalism into launching a PR agency.
(5:48) “How do I get people's attention, and how do I keep them involved in my story?”
(8:33) “If people see themselves in the story that the founder and the company is telling, they will get on board.”
(10:28) Moonshot's new client onboarding process.
(13:05) “I think of myself as a triple threat because I understand marketing, content events and PR.”
(16:52) “There's a lot of ways to get ROI out of events.”
(17:14) “A question that I get from founders a lot is, ‘how much time is this going to take from me?’”
(22:23) How Chikodi connects with new clients and sets expectations.
(25:54) “You really have to have something special, you have to be committed, you have to be resilient and you have to be adaptable.”
(29:15) “There is this sociopathic kind of tendency in certain founders, and you don't instantly recognize it.”
(33:10) “If you ask me, “when should we start doing PR,” I would say ‘yesterday.’”
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Thanks for listening!
– Walter.
