Startup Marketing 2025 Checklist: How to Create Compelling Messaging

We sat down with Deann Sonoda, VP of marketing and communications, at Blumberg Capital, to get her advice for startup founders. Deann partners with Blumberg Capital portfolio companies to help them tell their unique stories and use strategic communications to create business value. 

“Can you help with our funding announcement and get an article in TechCrunch?” A common question from founders. 

“Maybe,” is my usual response, followed by “let’s talk about the goals, audience and messaging first.”

It can be detrimental to engage press or prospects before startups know how to articulate who they are and what they do. That’s where messaging comes in. To kick off 2025, here are a handful of tips for startups as they prepare to talk about their companies:

1.  Elevate your startup’s messaging beyond the product

Product positioning will be an ongoing work in progress and is just one piece of a startup’s messaging platform. Startups should create a foundational messaging platform that covers:

• Macro environment affecting your customers – So what? Why now?
• Company messaging – What problem are you solving? What is the value to customers?
• Technology differentiation – How is your solution better, faster, easier from legacy or other options?
• Founder’s Story – Who is building this company? Why are they credible?

One of my first to dos when working with Blumberg Capital portfolio companies is to develop foundational messaging. It can be a tedious process, but usually streamlines everything else from website development, sales collateral to press outreach – and most importantly, ensure consistency across channels. If your team isn’t describing your company and product the same way, don’t expect prospects, investors or potential team members to understand who you are or what you do. 

2.  Lead with data

Data communicates a message – quickly. Whether it’s on a website homepage, sales collateral or in a fundraising deck, data opens the door to conversation, sparks questions and adds credibility to statements. A few data points to prioritize:

• Size of the market opportunity – $ amount, as well as #s to illustrate how industries, businesses and individuals are affected
• Impact of the problem (cost and time) on customers
• Value (or potential value) to customers
• Technology and data differentiation – # of sources, speed, patents 

3.  Don’t write a company announcement like its sales collateral

Company announcements, whether an official press release or a blog post, should not read like sales collateral – BUT should still be consistent with your sales messaging. Quick tip: Use your announcement headline and lead paragraph to address the broader industry problem being addressed, versus using the space to plug the product. This messaging will more likely resonate with priority industry audiences (tech partners, investors, potential team members), in addition to prospective customers.

4.  Less is usually more

Remember tip #2 on using data to tell your story? The more text on a slide or page gives the reader more to read, increasing the chances that they are glazing over the most important information. Stick to the most important messages, ideally led by data or illustrated in a visual, and leave the extra text for a discussion. 

5.  Don’t waste slide headlines

Slide headlines should convey the main point of the slide in a few words. Instead of using up the space to repeat what they already know like “Our Team” or insert a generic statement like: “The Best Team to Fuel Growth,” summarize what you want readers to take away from the slide. If it’s a team slide, make it clear why this is a winning team. Know your competitors and their leadership – what makes your team more credible? Include these key words in the headline. 

More on telling your startup’s story here in our Startup Growth Toolkit.