A Guide to Pre-IPO Creative Assets
At least 24 months before you prepare to take your company public, communicating strategically with investors and the media is critical. Studies show investors make initial judgments about companies within the first 60 seconds of viewing marketing materials. With an IPO, you only have one chance to make a first impression. This is your opportunity to establish credibility and build excitement.
Building Credibility Through Thought Leadership
It's a stastistical necessity to stablish credibility and position your company as an industry leader prior to filing for IPO.
Focus on developing and distributing thought leadership assets. These materials demonstrate your expertise, educate target audiences, and build trust in your brand.
Publishing long-form content on industry trends, issues, and solutions establishes your company as a trusted expert. For example, a white paper titled "The State of Cybersecurity in 2020" could discuss the rise in data breaches, new regulations, and recommendations for improving security posture.
Hosting webinars, webcasts, and podcasts enables your leadership team to directly engage with audiences, share their vision, and strengthen their influence. Live or pre-recorded, these digital events showcase your company’s knowledge and skills.
Data visualization is an impactful way to communicate statistics and insights. For instance, an infographic on “The Rising Cost of Data Breaches” could highlight financial losses from breaches over time and effective strategies for mitigating risk.
Developing and distributing compelling thought leadership content is essential to building credibility, educating the market, and maximizing the potential of your pre-IPO communication efforts.
By publishing in-depth and engaging digital assets, you can strengthen your brand, connect with key audiences, and ultimately optimize your company’s valuation.
Generating Buzz With Creative Campaigns
To generate interest from investors pre-IPO, focus on creative campaigns that establish your company as an industry leader.
Video Series
Producing a video series discussing your vision and product in depth builds familiarity and likability. According to studies, video is consumed at high rates across devices and generations. Videos also have a high perceived value, with 81% of businesses using video as a marketing tool.
Media Outreach
Securing feature profiles and news coverage in respected publications targeting your investors establishes credibility. Place leadership as sources in relevant industry stories to increase visibility. Media outreach has been shown to drive a 4x higher click-through rate than standard ads.
Social Media Campaigns
Curating content across social channels boosts brand visibility and positions your company as an innovator. With 3.8 billion social media users worldwide, social campaigns offer global reach. Companies with active social media profiles have been found to achieve a 20% increase in sales on average.
Implementing creative campaigns in the months leading up to filing an S-1 form is statistically proven to generate interest from investors. An optimized pre-IPO communication strategy, focused on video, media outreach, and social media, builds familiarity, credibility, and excitement around your company’s vision.
Claim Your Digital Space
Your pre-IPO website is your company’s digital face to the world and a critical tool for building credibility with investors. Studies show that 82% of investors research companies online before funding them. A polished, profesional website with optimized content can directly impact your valuation.
Content
Focus your content on your vision, products, team, traction, and market opportunity. Provide details on:
Optimization
Optimize your content for search engines and investors alike. Ensure all content is:
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Credibility
Build credibility through customer testimonials, media coverage, and strategic partners. Display:
Your pre-IPO website is your digital introduction to investors. By focusing on optimized, credible content, you can shape their first impression and build the foundation for a successful public offering. Focusing on these key strategies and maintaining an active, professional web presence will maximize your opportunities for funding.
Creative Asset Rundown for Pre-IPO Communications
Website + Landing Page
Your company website is the hub for all pre-IPO communications. Ensure your site is mobile-optimized, with an intuitive layout, crisp messaging, and visuals on every page. Include leadership bios, a newsroom, and mission/vision statements.
One-Pagers
One-page profiles on your company, products, and leadership team provide overviews for interested parties. Include photos, accomplishments, growth metrics and funding rounds. Distribute via your site, email, and in-person meetings.
Videos
Short videos bring your brand to life. Consider a “Day in the Life” following key employees, product explainers, customer testimonials, and leadership profiles. Host on your website and share across social platforms.
Infographics
Infographics display complex data and relationships in an engaging, visual manner. Create infographics on your market opportunity, product roadmap, competitive landscape, and financials. Infographics are highly shareable and a creative way to share details on your S-1 filing.
Case Studies
In-depth case studies demonstrate your product's value. Interview happy customers and share their stories, results, and key metrics. Case studies build credibility through social proof and are a compelling way to show your solution in action.
Investor Pitch Deck
A carefully crafted pitch deck tailored to potential investors articulates your vision, product, team, traction, and market opportunity. This leaves a strong first impression and gives investors confidence in your company’s viability and growth potential.
Content Partnerships
Collaborate with influencers, media brands, and industry experts on co-created content like webinars, ebooks, infographics or video series. Their audiences get value, you gain exposure, and it forges strategic alliances.
Newsroom
Launch a dedicated Newsroom on your site to host all company announcements, executive hires, funding news, product releases, event recaps, and media mentions. A Newsroom shows momentum and transparency ahead of your public offering.
Developing a robust set of creative and visual assets will position your company as an appealing investment opportunity. Consistently sharing these assets across channels helps control your story, highlight key strengths, and build familiarity and trust with stakeholders during your pre-IPO communications.
By developing a robust set of creative materials tailored to each stage of the IPO journey, you can build credibility and trust with stakeholders, increase brand awareness, and ultimately achieve a successful launch. The time and resources invested in content creation, media relations, and thought leadership will yield both short-term gains and long-term rewards.
As you move closer to the IPO finish line, your optimized communication strategy will have primed the market, positioned your company as an attractive investment, and readied investors to become the first owners of your publicly traded stock.