The venture capital landscape today is more competitive than ever. Compared to just five years ago, we now have more funds competing for deals and LPs, not to mention all the specialist funds, solo GPs, and new investment strategies that have sprouted in the wake of the pandemic boom.
Standing out has never been more important. LPs understandably want to invest in funds with a strong position in the market, and top founders want VCs with good reputations on their cap table.
In my time building and running investor and public relations programs for VC firms across Europe, I’ve seen first-hand how the VC game has become driven by brand and reputation. Today, branding and PR isn’t just about visibility — it shapes perception, builds trust, and ultimately influences who gets funded and who gets to invest in the best companies.
Reputation shapes who takes your call, who wants you in their round, and which LPs commit to your fund.
Success doesn’t speak for itself
The success of a VC firm is shown by its track record, portfolio and team, and that profile is built brick by brick with expertise, access, trust and credibility.
For LPs, investing isn’t just about numbers. Beyond financial returns, they look for funds that project credibility, expertise, and a unique investment strategy. VCs who can articulate a clear vision and demonstrate thought leadership will stand out in today’s crowded market.
Meanwhile, top founders don’t just assess financial terms — they choose investors based on their reputation, network and perceived value. When competition for deals is high, branding and reputation can be a decisive factor.
A strong media presence and strategic PR positioning can create familiarity — for example, a feature in TechCrunch or Forbes will do more to help an investor or founder remember your firm’s name and thesis than any LinkedIn post.
Being present, putting yourself on the map, and clearly understanding what you stand for as an investor will help a VC stay top of mind.
The groundwork
So how does a VC firm get there? It starts with taking a step back and defining your goals:
What are your firm’s goals? Your PR goals will derive from them. These goalposts should be as precise as possible, and ideally be defined by KPIs.
Next, take a close look at your positioning:
- What makes you unique? What are your USPs?
- What are your key messages?
- What’s your thought leadership angle — what are the topics you care about that you can speak about better than anyone else?
- Narrative(s) and stories that you can share — storytelling is key to bring your positioning to life.
- A tone of voice that reflects all the above.
Building on that, develop a roadmap. Your playbook should reflect and build on:
- Your goals;
- Your pipeline of news and milestones;
- Thought leadership and story angles;
- Personal branding strategies for your GPs and spokespeople;
- Definition of your key communications and PR formats.
When you have clarity about these points, you will be able to do the groundwork for your PR playbook and plan.
And then it’s about making it happen. Here are some practical first steps to consider:
Map out the media landscape
Curate a list of media targets that includes mainstream outlets, specialized and niche publications, as well as influential newsletters and blogs. Develop a clear understanding of what the individual journalists are interested in and what their story formats are.
Above all, it’s key to build relationships with the media – it’ll take time and effort, but it will be worth it.
Leverage your data and proprietary insights
Take a close look at the insights and data that you can provide to anchor compelling news and story angles. Visualize data to help journalists quickly grasp what you’re trying to communicate — if it’s good, they’ll even amplify your reach by sharing it themselves!
Leverage your own comms channels
It’s now more important than ever to use your own channels and social media, especially as the earned media landscape grows more competitive, and media outlets deal with smaller teams.
Your communications platforms and formats give you the space to share your stories and content as you see fit. However, the challenge to stand out remains: only newsworthy stories, unique insights and relevant content will make your voice heard.
Communicate alongside your portfolio companies
A venture investor can only share so much news before they sound repetitive – most of your interesting stories will come from your portfolio. Share your companies’ progress, curate case studies, highlight what your companies do differently, and set up interviews featuring founder and investor POVs.
Create high-quality visuals and assets
If content is king, his queen is the packaging. With the constant glut of content and messaging, the way stories are communicated is as relevant as the content itself. Help outlets and your social media team make your content stand out with infographics, cool videos, interactive graphs and illuminating charts.
Presence, profile and consistency are key
Reputation is not built overnight. It is the result of consistent visibility and engagement with the ecosystem. Being seen in the right media and at industry events will create a halo effect of being perceived as a key player in the space. Create momentum around the opportunities that arise, stay agile, position yourself around news and trends, communicate with your colleagues to maximize PR opportunities.
Branding and PR can’t replace investment performance, but what they can do is amplify your reputation as an investor. In a competitive landscape, a strong brand will define who gets the first call when a game-changing startup is fundraising, and set the stage for successful conversations with LPs.