Every startup needs to know how to spread its story and its founder's message, sharing its aspirations and ambitions.
At the beginning of their entrepreneurial journey, many startups focus on products, sales and team building…
Few businesses ask early on: “What do I want the public to think of my company?”; “How do I attract talent?”; “What is the secret that makes users worldwide eagerly anticipate every new Apple product before its launch?”…
According to Amy Kunrojpanya, Uber's Director of Policy and Communications for Asia Pacific, the answer to all the questions above lies in a company's ability to build its reputation.
For more than a decade, Amy has consistently proved herself an experienced communications expert with a strategic vision that has enhanced the reputations of global brands such as Google, Coca-Cola, Syngenta and Austrade. Joining Uber in March 2016, Amy took responsibility for strengthening its reputation through public policy, government relations, communications and community outreach across Asia.
The following philosophies and advice on building a reputation are also the core values she consistently pursues in building brands and managing communications crises for the global brands she has worked with and continues to serve.
Building a reputation is not a race with a clear finish line
Reputation is what makes consumers choose you over your competitors and tell others to choose you too. It is the core value of what you do, who you are, and what you stand for; a solid foundation for growing a business and understanding where it stands and how it functions.
By investing time in building and protecting its reputation, a startup helps itself attract investment, establish a solid foundation and build its marketing profile faster.
Reputation is built through long-term accumulation. It is not like a race in which you start running, reach the finish, and tell yourself: “Now I have a reputation. I'll stop and focus on something else.”
Building a reputation is an ongoing process. You must continually invest in establishing and strengthening it. Everything you do and every choice you make will relate to your reputation.
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According to Amy Kunrojpanya, an Uber communications and policy expert, building a good reputation helps startups minimize risks from future communications crises, attract investment, and recruit talent. Photo: UberEXCHANGE |
A good reputation helps attract investment and talent while reducing risk
In the early startup stage, those who do not invest in their reputation are very likely to fail at fundraising. Reputation can sometimes be the deciding factor that persuades investors and venture capital funds to invest.
Recruitment is another clear example of the benefits reputation brings. Reputation not only helps attract those people but also helps keep them at the company.
People sometimes dare to take a risk and stake their futures on startups not only because of the opportunities they offer but also because of their reputation. That reputation gives them the feeling that they could be part of something very large and meaningful.
When your business faces a crisis, you need people who support and trust you to say: “I know that person, I know the founder, and I do not believe it is true. If they really did something wrong, it surely was not intentional, and I am still willing to stand by them.”
Therefore, without credibility or a reputation, startups and businesses are easier to attack and eliminate. We live in a world where credibility and reputation are sometimes the only things that can protect us in such situations.
Although Similar, Reputation Is Still Not a Brand
People often confuse brand with reputation. These two terms differ, and although they can complement one another, they are still not the same.
While a brand is the story of your company’s products, reputation also includes the team that created those products and services, its motivations, purpose and aspirations.
Reputation is not merely the money a company can earn; it is also the company's credit (or, in other words, its credibility). A brand can grow, but it can also be destroyed quickly if the company lacks a solid reputation.
To build a strong reputation, startups cannot stop at product development. They must help customers understand what their product means and who they are.
Set goals for reputation-building
First, whether you are a business owner, creator or investor, set goals for your business. For example, if you launch today, what do you want people to think of your startup in 3 months? How do you want to be known in a year?
You must set goals, or you will not be able to measure progress in building your credibility. This is what every business does to stay focused, both now and in the future.
The founder's story is the key to a reputation
Every startup should focus on its founder, who is a source of inspiration to the public. CEOs' stories, their life experiences, and what motivates them to invent new technologies or find solutions to difficult problems... help people understand what the startup is and what it stands for.
Every startup needs to build its own voice, especially with the community and the people who matter to it, from investors, consumers, partners, and journalists to social media...
Therefore, to focus on developing the company, gaining experience, and finding motivation, every startup must know how to spread its stories: about its founders, aspirations, dreams, and ambitions.
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Chương trình liên quan tại YUP Education: X-Startup – khóa học khởi nghiệp «Khởi Chánh Nghiệp» · The Journey – lộ trình phát triển doanh nhân
