a16z: PR as BD, How to Break Through the 'Noise' in the Crypto Industry?

marsbitPublished on 2026-01-20Last updated on 2026-01-20

Abstract

In the article "a16z: PR as BD – How to Break Through the Noise in Crypto," the author argues that "communications" is a broad term encompassing strategies for engaging various stakeholders, including employees, media, and investors. It involves owned content, social media, community building, speaking opportunities, and media relations (PR). No single tactic is superior; the optimal strategy depends on answering three core questions: What are your business goals? Who is your target audience? What is the best way to reach them? A consistent core narrative is paramount. The piece particularly defends the enduring value of media relations (PR), which, despite its controversial reputation in tech, remains a crucial tool. Media coverage provides third-party validation, expands reach to new audiences (potential employees, clients, influencers), and drives traffic back to owned channels. It is compared to business development (BD), where building genuine relationships with journalists is key. To break through the noise, founders are advised to: 1) Be their own best spokesperson, 2) Build relationships with media like doing BD, 3) View media as neither friend nor foe but as entities seeking good stories, and 4) Contextualize their story within larger industry or global narratives. The article concludes that the best defense against potential negative press is a good offense: proactively building communication channels and media relationships before a crisis strikes.

Compiled by: Ken, ChainCatcher

"Communication" is a general term referring to the strategies companies use to communicate with different groups—employees, media, investors, etc.

Communication encompasses various methods: creating owned content on official websites and social media channels (i.e., "direct-to-audience" communication); writing thought leadership articles; coordinating internal employee communication; collaborating with influencers (key opinion leaders); and curating organic or paid event and speaking opportunities. Of course, communication also includes dealing with the media (i.e., public relations or publicity).

No single communication strategy or tactic is absolutely superior to others. So, how do you find the right approach for you?

In this article, I will explain how to frame your communication strategy and what levers you can use to implement it. I will then argue that, although traditional media relations have a poor reputation in some tech circles, they remain a crucial tool for startups to convey their message externally.

How to Think About Your Communication Strategy

My mental model for communication strategy is built on answering three questions:

What are your business goals?
To achieve those goals, which audiences do you need to reach?
What is the best strategy to reach those audiences?

Overarching all of this is your message and narrative—what problem are you and your team solving? What will the world look like when it's solved? Who will benefit in this new world?

Regardless of who you are talking to or through which medium, your core narrative and message should remain consistent. However, you need to emphasize different aspects depending on the audience. For example, investors focus on details and future growth prospects, while the media is more concerned with headlines and how you got to where you are today.

What Actions Can You Take?

Although different projects have varying business goals and audiences, the available strategies or tactics are largely similar. These strategies include:

Owned Content: For example, creating your own blog, producing videos, or publishing white papers on your official website.
Social Media (Brand & Personal): Although you don't own the social platforms, they are one of the best ways to reach your audience. For startups, this includes a combination of brand accounts (company official accounts) and personal accounts (founders' and employees' accounts).
Community Building: Whether through Discord, Signal, Telegram, or WhatsApp, online community management allows you to establish direct contact with developers, partners, or other key audiences in the ecosystem.
Speaking Opportunities and Conferences: Including giving speeches or making appearances at important offline community events and conferences.
Media/Press: The last strategy includes both proactive and reactive engagement with the media—whether proactively pitching stories, providing expert commentary, submitting articles, or responding to media inquiries. This includes both vertical crypto media (like Coindesk, The Block, etc.) and traditional mainstream media (like The Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, etc.).

The Role of Media for Founders

The last strategy mentioned above—media relations (i.e., PR)—is the most controversial in the eyes of many tech founders. This is not without reason: although some journalists and media outlets have indeed become more hostile towards the tech industry, this is still one of the topics I get asked about most often when consulting for startups.

Many founders ask how to get funding coverage on TechCrunch, or how to land a glossy profile in Fortune magazine. They are also curious about how to get on TBPN, or record an hour-long podcast with the Bankless guys.

Why? Because regardless of your personal perception of the media, media coverage combines third-party endorsement with the potential for audience expansion, allowing you to reach entirely new groups: potential employees, potential clients, or potential influencers within the industry. Reaching different audiences also helps feed the growth of your own channels. Most startups cannot afford to miss out on the cost of expanding their influence and exposure.

When the founding team of Kalshi recently appeared on "CBS Sunday Morning," they reached an audience completely different from the "always-on" users of the tech Twitter圈. Kalshi CEO Tarek Mansour shared a story about the mother of a team member, vividly illustrating the power of reaching different circles through traditional media:

This is why media relations remain an extremely important part of the communication toolkit. Media can drive traffic back to your owned channels, help build your (and your company's) image, and accelerate everything from recruitment to sales. In the long run, media can also enhance the effectiveness of your "direct-to-audience" strategy.

Don't be afraid of media relations. Learn to use it to cut through the noise and get to the truth.

Contacting the Media: Breaking Through the Noise

Yes, we are in an era of information and content overload. This is especially true for the journalists you want to contact.

Take a look at the inbox of any journalist, podcaster, or content creator, and you will be shocked: it is filled with hundreds or thousands of emails from PR people promoting their respective clients or projects. In fact, data shows that the ratio of media PR practitioners to journalists is as high as 6 to 1. Due to the flood of information, it is almost impossible for journalists to filter out what is real substance from what is spam.

Why? Because many PR people lack professional training, or lack the confidence to push back against bad ideas proposed by clients. As a result, they mass-produce poor pitches, exacerbating the frustration of journalists, producers, and podcast hosts.

Add to that the projects that claim to offer brilliant solutions to important problems, but end up failing or being empty promises. All in all, poor pitches and over-promising共同 create an environment where "standing out" is more difficult than ever.

However,相对于 the sea of垃圾 information, quality news sources are still scarce. This means that those who can effectively tell stories and build good relationships with existing media professionals will have a clear competitive advantage.

Engaging with Media: Where to Start

Founders who want to break through the noise and engage effectively with the media should keep the following four points in mind:

Founders are the best spokespeople. The company's narrative or story cannot be outsourced. Although hiring PR personnel, agencies, or freelancers can help you open doors, it must be the founders themselves who refine and vividly tell their own story.
Relationships are key. Treat media relations like business development (BD). Whether it's争取 speaking opportunities or simply replying on X, building personal relationships with journalists, podcast hosts, and opinion leaders is crucial. Often, the birth of a报道, the recording of a podcast, or the acquisition of a speaking opportunity stems from connections. Why? Because journalists and opinion leaders trust the founders and PR people with whom they have built relationships, because past experience has proven that these people can provide reliable interview opportunities, answers, or other valuable resources.

2a. So, how do you build relationships with key media? Methods vary, but the core lies in proactively providing resources. First focus on how to add value to their reporting, rather than just boasting about your project. You can also use speaking and conference occasions to meet media people—just as you would do business development.

The media are neither friends nor enemies. Some media do have biases, but ultimately, journalists are just looking for good stories. Remember, journalists are not your friends here to help you. The art lies in learning how to interact constructively and knowing when to shut up (sometimes, staying silent is absolutely the wise choice).
Your story must fit into a broader context. The best founders can洞察 how their company, project, product, and team fit into the grand narrative of the industry and even the whole world. Helping journalists understand you, and how you fit into that larger story, trend, or movement, is key to breaking through. For example, think about the annual "Year in Review"—from Spotify to Google Search, to a16z and Coinbase's State of Crypto reports. Each案例 captures a specific moment in time—reviewing the past year and adding unique insights/perspectives that only it can provide, while making it practical and shareable through charts and visualizations. Founders can also ride the wave by hooking into hot topics (like the growth of stablecoins, the fusion of AI x Crypto, or policy debates around DeFi).

The core is: Connect your story to what is happening in the world.

The Best Defense is a Good Offense

"But," you might ask, "what if I never want to deal with the media?"

That's a noble wish. But unfortunately, as a startup grows, it is impossible to remain completely游离于 the public eye.

When facing tricky negative coverage or a crisis—whether fair or not—the best way to avoid being被动挨打 is to预先 establish contact with the media and cultivate initial rapport. Just like anything in life, having a relationship can make difficult conversations easier.

Crisis PR is a professional skill worthy of a separate discussion. But in short, the best defense is to have a good offense: having established sound communication channels, built relationships with key journalists and opinion leaders, and deeply understood your core audience *before* a crisis hits.

The media has become frightening to some and a convenient scapegoat for others. But with adequate preparation and the right mindset, media can be a powerful unlocking tool in the hands of a founder.

Let's toast to building in the open—may you master the tools to do it well.