Session recorded from the “PR & Comms for Global Growth” as part of the Insignia Ventures Academy StartCXO Program. 

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​Whom you are on call with:

• Elaine Seeto, Senior Director of Marketing at APAC, Rippling
• Joel Cutinho, Senior Client Director at The P.R. Group
• Moderated by Paulo Joquiño

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Directed by Paulo Joquiño

Produced by Paulo Joquiño

The content of this podcast is for informational purposes only, should not be taken as legal, tax, or business advice or be used to evaluate any investment or security, and is not directed at any investors or potential investors in any ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Insignia Ventures⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ fund. Any and all opinions shared in this episode are solely personal thoughts and reflections of the guest and the host.

Transcript

Paulo: Just to contextualize this session, I know we’ve gone through a couple of GTM sessions already in the past few weeks, but from different angles. From more of a strategy level—people, finance, and also sales as well.

This time we’re going to tackle it from more of a communications, PR, and marketing perspective. We’ve brought on some great people to share more about that topic, especially in the context of companies that are multi-market and going global.

I want to start with Elaine, she’s the Senior Director of Marketing at Rippling.

For those who aren’t familiar, Rippling is a workforce HR platform providing services across different areas like HR, IT, finance, payroll, benefits—all integrated into one platform.

I’m sure Elaine can do a better job of explaining the platform, but what I want to highlight is that Elaine has had a career in B2B SaaS for global companies for quite some time now, and that’s really where her expertise and experience lie.

I want to kick things off by asking Elaine: what’s your philosophy as a marketing and comms professional, especially when it comes to GTM? Maybe that can help our participants better understand where you’re coming from and what they can learn from you.

Elaine: Yeah, thanks Paulo. Hello, everybody—really excited to be here today to discuss this fantastic topic around the role strategic comms play in go-to-market.

Maybe just to align on what GTM actually is—for me, it’s more than just launching a product. It’s about building the right foundation for your business to actually scale.

Whether you’re in a startup finding product-market fit or in a scale-up looking to expand into new markets like Rippling, your GTM strategy has to align the cross-functional team across the company—sales, marketing, product—and it all has to anchor around a really clear value proposition.

So I believe a strong GTM strategy is equal parts what they call art and science. The science part is the data, and the art part is the storytelling.

The data comes from understanding your customers’ pain points, the market dynamics you operate in, and what actually drives adoption for your product. But it’s the storytelling—that art—that’s going to resonate with the market and make people care, want to buy, and adopt your product.

For me, it’s about connecting the two. I’ve seen firsthand how well-crafted storytelling can cut through a noisy market, especially one crowded with competitors, like the one we operate in.

Whether it’s helping a tech company like Rippling scale across Asia-Pacific, or repositioning a brand to capture new audiences—or even recapture lost customers—the key is always to anchor the messaging back to why it matters to the customer. Why should they care?

It’s this balance between data and storytelling that creates something more powerful: momentum. And that momentum enables your brand to scale.

So that’s my philosophy on a strong and effective GTM strategy.

Paulo: I really love that dichotomy—the art versus science of it all.

Challenges in GTM for Tech Companies: Market Complexities and Compliance

Paulo: I’d love for you to contextualize some of the common challenges you’ve seen in your career, especially for tech companies. I know you’ve joined some of them in their early days and seen them through the learning curve.

What are some of the challenges when it comes to the art side versus the data side of GTM—especially for communications?

Elaine: I see Rippling as one of those companies that’s well-established in the US but very new in the Asia-Pacific region. So I speak from the experience of someone actually working in a startup that’s expanding into new markets.

One of the biggest challenges I’ve seen, especially for companies entering Asia-Pacific, is that the region is incredibly diverse. The countries, the cultures, the languages—it’s all so different.

The assumption that success in one market, like the US, will automatically translate to another is a big pitfall. The reality is that every new region you enter is like starting up all over again.

You can’t assume what works in the US will work in Australia. And you can’t assume what works in Australia will work in Singapore. You really need to validate demand and understand the local buying behavior, then adapt your messaging.

The science part comes from listening to the market. What are your early customers saying? What are industry or trade bodies observing? If you’ve got a partner ecosystem, engage them too. Do the market listening so you can gather the data to then adapt your messaging—the art—to the local context.

That’s the biggest challenge: not painting every geography with the same brush.

Another big challenge is underestimating how much local compliance and regulatory considerations matter when you’re scaling internationally.

We’re in a category focused on compliance, so I say this with that in mind. But many startups forget, or underestimate, just how different compliance requirements can be.

Each country has its own rules about setting up local entities, trading, employment laws, payroll, data privacy, intellectual property—I could go on.

Don’t underestimate the compliance part. If you don’t take it into consideration, it could seriously set your business back.

One thing I’ve seen work well is taking an iterative approach to GTM strategy. You can’t expect to enter a market and get everything right on the first try.

You won’t have all your messaging, channels, and operations perfectly aligned immediately. You have to be prepared to fail—but fail fast—and take the view that GTM is iterative.

It evolves depending on where you are in your scaling journey. That iterative mindset is part science—you’re using data to assess what worked and what didn’t—and then you iterate and replicate.

What I find works well is running pilot campaigns. Don’t launch into the whole market all at once. Contain the impact so if you fail, you fail small. But if you succeed, you can replicate that effort and scale it.

Always gather local insights and adjust your GTM strategy accordingly.

Building local credibility early is absolutely key—whether through partnerships, PR, or landing flagship customers.

These early efforts help you build trust in a new market, and trust is everything. Until you prove that you understand the market, you can’t effectively sell into it.

You have to earn that trust by demonstrating a strong grasp of the local context.

The key takeaways are: balance local relevance with global consistency, prioritize compliance as part of your GTM strategy, and don’t treat it as an afterthought.

Test before you scale, iterate constantly, and invest in building local credibility.

And above all, just listen. Whether it’s your local team, customers, or partners in your ecosystem—the best insights always come from the ground up.

Paulo: Thanks Elaine. I have some quick follow-up questions on two of those, actually.

On the compliance side, do you have any memorable experience where you had to adapt to a specific regulation in an APAC market?

Elaine: Yeah, Singapore is a good example. When we entered the market, we learned you can’t just send emails to prospects because of privacy laws—you need explicit permission before engaging.

Email may not even be the best platform in that context. Something like WhatsApp might be more effective.

But again, it’s about understanding what works locally and pairing that with the relevant compliance framework. That’s been key in adapting our GTM as we expanded out of Australia and into Southeast Asia.

Paulo: And in terms of balancing global direction with localization—how do you avoid over-localizing the message to the point where it no longer aligns with the company’s global positioning? Have you encountered that kind of tension?

Elaine: That’s a really valid question. I can share an example from Rippling.

It’s definitely tough to balance global consistency with local relevance, especially when you’re scaling internationally.

What I always come back to is staying core to the value proposition. For Rippling, it’s helping companies manage their people operations in one platform. That stays the same.

But how we communicate that value depends on the market.

For example, in Australia, many startups—especially venture-backed ones—are focused on global expansion from the get-go. That’s very different from the US, where startups often focus more on domestic growth first.

So in Australia, we emphasize how Rippling helps not only with local compliance but also with enabling global growth. The message is still about the all-in-one platform, but tailored to highlight ambition and international scale.

And it’s not just about market nuance. It’s also about the personas you’re targeting in each market.

The way we communicate “all-in-one platform” depends on whether we’re talking to HR, finance, or IT.

HR might prioritize employee experience and compliance, so we emphasize that. Finance cares about risk mitigation, reporting, and analytics, so we lean into that.

IT focuses on integration, security, and data accessibility, so our messaging reflects that.

But throughout, we stay true to our global story. We just tailor how we frame it, depending on the persona and the local context.

Paulo: Really hammering down that ICP or profile for each market—which can vary across markets—can really help streamline how you think about messaging.

Balancing Global Messaging with Local Nuances

Paulo: I want to give you a little bit of a break and move to our second mentor, Joel from PR Group, and introduce him as well. We’ve been in conversation with PR Group for some time now, as they’ve been helping a lot of companies in APAC go global, especially from a PR perspective.

Joel is one of their senior client directors. Joel, maybe you can share a little bit—given what Elaine just talked about and the challenges she’s seen in her own career—from your perspective helping companies at scale, especially tech companies.

What are some of the things these companies might miss or underestimate when it comes to communications and going global? Because oftentimes, comms is not really top of mind when you’re expanding to new markets.

Joel: Thank you, Paulo. Hello everyone—it’s great to be part of this podcast.

To answer your question, Paulo, I also echo a lot of Elaine’s points. Some of the considerations are quite similar, but I’ll try to provide a few insights from an agency’s perspective on how startups can solve these problems.

Whether you’re a regional organization aiming to become a global powerhouse or just dipping your toes into new markets, getting your communication strategy right can really impact your success. You need to demonstrate your relevance to each market you enter.

When we talk about key considerations, I would start with localization. And by localization, I don’t just mean translating your website or marketing assets into the local language.

It’s really about adapting your entire communication style to suit the culture of that country. As Elaine mentioned, what works in the US may not work in Germany—or even more closely, what works in Singapore may not work in Indonesia or Vietnam.

Some cultures value directness, while others prefer a more subtle, personalized form of communication. The second aspect of localization is language.

Especially in a region like Asia, with over 2,000 languages, we’ve seen cases where a brand slogan, when directly translated, ends up meaning something completely inappropriate. That’s the last thing you want as a new brand entering a market.

So the point I want to make is that we shouldn’t just translate—we should localize. Work with a local expert or partner who can tailor the key messages to reflect the cultural nuances.

Going back to Elaine’s point around regulation and compliance, this is another critical factor. The way you engage with regulators and communicate with them makes a massive difference.

This is especially true in sensitive sectors like fintech or healthtech. These industries are heavily regulated, and any miscommunication can not only cost you money but also kill your license to operate in that market.

It becomes even more important to proactively build relationships with regulators and legal experts in the market. And just as importantly, have a crisis plan in place.

When things go south, having a clear, transparent message and a well-prepared action plan can help bring you back to safer ground.

The third aspect I want to touch on is the customer, who is ultimately the most important stakeholder for all of us. Especially in today’s world, customers expect a seamless experience wherever they are.

But service means different things in different markets. In Singapore, we’re more accustomed to self-service and a direct approach.

Whereas in India, for example, service has to be much more personal. You need to guide the customer through the service and highlight the value proposition clearly.

This also applies to your social media presence. It’s not just about what you put out there—it’s also about the platforms you use to reach your audience.

WeChat might be more popular in China, Line in Japan, while LinkedIn tends to dominate in markets like Singapore or across Europe. The point is, you need to meet your customer where they are and engage them in the manner they expect.

That applies to service, support, PR, and your entire digital presence.

Just one more point to address your question around balancing global messaging with local nuances. I think we should treat the brand as a flexible framework, rather than a fixed message.

Your core message, as Elaine said, should remain constant and be at the center of everything you do. But the channels you use and the ways you engage audiences with that core message must be flexible and responsive to local cultural nuances.

Paulo: Thanks for commenting on the different topics we had already covered with Elaine and for sharing your perspective as well.

I wanted to ask if you had your own example or case study that our participants here tonight could learn from—something that illustrates how to navigate local channels or behaviors in a specific market, especially in Asia.

Joel: In terms of channels, one thing we’ve noticed is that a global LinkedIn page alone doesn’t resonate in markets like Vietnam or Indonesia. Something that helps is geo-localizing your pages and geo-targeting audiences in those specific markets.

That could mean having a microsite tailored to a market, or even a separate LinkedIn page that speaks directly to the local user base. That approach shows you understand the market and are here to solve local problems—not just coming in with global expertise.

You’re showing that you understand what’s happening on the ground and that your solutions are localized enough to address those needs.

A good example that comes to mind—though it’s not a startup—is the footwear brand Bata. For the longest time, when I was growing up, I thought Bata was an Indian brand.

Then I met people from other countries who thought it was a Bangladeshi brand. But the truth is, it’s a Czech brand, founded by three siblings in the Czech Republic.

And yet, in every market it operates in, Bata feels like a local, homegrown brand. That’s because of how well they’ve adapted to local nuances—culturally, linguistically, and in terms of lifestyle.

So for me, that’s a great case study of a brand that has truly gone “glocal”—global but local.

Effective Marketing on a Tight Budget

Paulo: I think for a lot of our participants here, we’ve been talking a lot about the context of startups—venture-backed tech startups. When it comes to marketing or comms, it’s not usually top of mind for budgeting, and there often isn’t a huge budget for these efforts.

I remember one of the CMOs I spoke to on our podcast came from a huge insurance company and then moved into a startup. She would always comment on the budget going from hundreds of thousands of dollars to essentially zero.

What advice would you have for our participants—especially those doing marketing, but even those not formally in marketing—since messaging and communication is really a role anyone in the company can take on? How can they effectively localize messaging with minimal budget, and do you have any creative examples or cases from your career or industry?

Elaine: When I started at Rippling, the way the company structures budgets is very performance-driven. You have to demonstrate efficacy and efficiency, which we measure through CAC, or cost of acquiring a customer.

We need to hit certain thresholds before more budget is allocated. So I completely understand how challenging it is to work with a small budget while still trying to make a big market impact.

My advice would be to first really understand who you’re targeting. With a small budget, you have to be extremely focused and make sure the channels you use to reach your audience are effective.

Refine your understanding of your target market and fine-tune it as much as possible. Also, understand the specific problem you’re solving for that audience, because the messaging needs to resonate.

Once you have that foundation, you can decide where to invest. Obviously, with a small budget, you’re not going to do a big billboard splash or take out a full-page ad in a top app.

So you need to think about scalable channels, and digital is a key one. It allows for precise targeting and also enables quick scaling.

You can also be creative in reaching your audience without always needing money. Look at where your ICPs are and what they’ve done—reach out to them directly on LinkedIn.

Even without LinkedIn Sales Navigator, you can use your personal LinkedIn to connect. It’s super effective because it allows you to be personalized in your outreach, which resonates more.

That’s something we’ve done at Rippling. Another low-cost but effective method is email communication.

It doesn’t cost much, but it enables scale—again, only if you know your audience and have the right message. So I’d say, to sum it up: know your audience, be as targeted as you can, and test your messaging.

You can iterate and refine based on performance. If something is resonating, double down on it.

Digital channels are a great way to get your brand out there without spending a lot. As your budget grows, you can start experimenting with other channels.

Also, utilize AI. I’m not ashamed to say I use AI in my marketing work.

Use AI to help you scale your messaging. You can run A/B tests or generate multiple message variants to test—without needing a whole team to do it manually.

Paulo: Later I’ll ask about some of your favorite AI tools, and we can exchange some useful ones for our participants. But thanks for sharing that.

Joel, any thoughts from your end? Maybe from more of a consumer perspective, since Elaine is coming from a B2B angle?

Joel: That’s true, and I think we’ve seen it firsthand. PR consultancies are often the first to feel budget cuts.

We usually advise clients that PR is a marathon, not a sprint. I’m a bit biased, of course, since I work in PR, but I do believe it’s one of the most effective tools in the marketing mix, especially within tight budgets—more so than performance marketing or advertising.

We often suggest a “keep the lights on” campaign. That means keeping your brand visible even when budgets are tight, so you don’t completely disappear from the market.

This includes things like trend jacking. If there’s a relevant policy development or issue in the news, you can comment on it and offer a perspective.

Like Elaine mentioned, LinkedIn thought leadership is a great way to use your own assets to build visibility with a captive audience. And PR today has moved far beyond just earned media.

It’s about connecting you with the right people who can drive growth for your business. Keeping a partnerships program running helps with this.

We connect clients with industry bodies or communities that already contain their target customers. That kind of engagement allows customers to directly see the value of what you offer.

Those are some suggestions we give our clients when budgets are tight—maintaining presence, offering perspectives on trends, going beyond earned media, tapping into partnerships, and staying active on LinkedIn.

Paulo: Yeah, thanks Joel. Totally understand—coming from the industry, of course—but it’s also a real issue for startups managing PR budgets.

GTM Strategy with Partnerships

Paulo: I wanted to return to the GTM and market expansion discussion with Elaine. How do you think about GTM when you’re entering a market with partners?

I’m not sure if this is something you’ve done a lot in your career, but if you have, maybe you can share. How does that differ from doing a more direct expansion or launch?

Elaine: When you’re doing a direct expansion, you have full control over your narrative. That doesn’t mean it’s easier, but it does mean you control more aspects.

When going to market with a partner, you have to identify the joint value proposition—what makes it meaningful for the customer when the two brands come together. That’s a key difference.

When launching in a new market, you typically build an ecosystem around your product—media, influencers, partners, and customers who can validate your offering.

But when partnering, it’s about defining that joint value proposition. Why should the customer care that these two brands are working together?

As we expand into Asia-Pacific, sometimes we don’t have boots on the ground in every geography. In those cases, having partners is critical.

They help us scale quickly without needing full teams in-market. You’re tapping into their expertise, their network, and their ecosystem to accelerate your growth.

So partnerships are a key part of how we think about expansion in Asia-Pacific. We’re not going to have teams in every single market, so partner reliance is essential.

But again, it comes down to that value proposition. Selecting the right partners—those who align with our goals and audience—is just as important as the partnership itself.

Paulo: I wanted to go deeper into that from a messaging perspective. Can you share how you marry your messaging with what the partner already has on the ground?

Elaine: In Australia, for example, we’re a workforce management platform. We provide software that enables companies to pay and manage their workforce, both locally and globally.

We sometimes have small businesses come to us and ask if we also provide payroll processing. Rather than saying we only offer the software, we refer them to a partner who can handle that part.

That partner uses the Rippling platform to process payroll. So the combined value proposition is: we take away the pain of payroll compliance for small business owners.

They can outsource payroll entirely to a trusted partner who uses Rippling’s system to ensure compliance and accuracy. That’s the message we bring to market together.

That partner joins us at events where it makes sense. We educate the market together—through blog posts, press announcements, and other content collaborations.

We treat them as an extension of our offering, helping to reduce the admin burden for SMBs.

Paulo: And earlier we talked about budgets. Having partners also helps ease that burden too, right?

Elaine: Yeah, that’s a great point. You can look at a joint 50/50 split for GTM investment, which helps a lot.

Global Operations and Pricing

Paulo: I also wanted to ask about sustaining global operations. Once you’re present in multiple markets, your product stack might vary—certain features may not be available everywhere, and pricing might differ too.

From a messaging or PR standpoint, how do you ease customers into new pricing regimes or limited feature availability?

Elaine: Transparency is key. Be very clear with customers about what is and isn’t available.

Also, if something isn’t available now, be transparent about whether it’s on the roadmap and when it might arrive. That kind of clarity helps manage expectations.

When it comes to pricing, no two prices are the same across different geographies. It depends on the market dynamics and the local competition.

Sometimes certain features or modules aren’t available, and we have to account for that in the pricing model. We don’t want to price ourselves out of the market.

So we ensure pricing is competitive, especially compared to incumbents. Again, transparency is what helps us manage those expectations across markets.

Paulo: Joel, any thoughts on the pricing discussion? Especially when it comes to communicating differences across markets?

Joel: We see that a lot, especially now with inflationary pressures. Companies are facing higher costs, and they often need to pass those on to customers.

But I agree with Elaine—you have to own that communication. Transparency and ownership are essential when explaining why prices are changing or why they’re justified.

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Fundraising and Reputation Management

Paulo: I also wanted to talk a little bit about fundraising and ask you, Joel. At Insignia, we often talk about how it’s probably not enough anymore for a venture-backed company to find a meaningful exit by focusing on just one market in the region.

Even in Indonesia, unless the market is extremely deep and unit economics are very strong, it might not be enough to justify a meaningful venture-backed exit. So there’s a stronger drive to go global these days.

How do you advise companies when it comes to fundraising—especially in driving a narrative around global expansion to raise money?

Joel: I’ll take that question from a reputation perspective, because that’s where we typically support organizations—by helping them build a solid reputation. Reputation plays a critical role in both attracting investors and securing funding.

When companies want to go global, having a strong reputation builds trust and confidence. That’s essential when investors are deciding where to place their hard-earned money.

If a company is known for ethical leadership, transparency, and consistent performance, investors see it as a lower-risk, high-potential opportunity. Reputation also impacts valuation—companies with strong reputations can command higher valuations because they’re perceived as more trustworthy, stable, and experienced.

That becomes especially important in competitive fundraising environments, where multiple companies are vying for investment. Perception becomes a big differentiator.

It’s like in a classroom—you want to associate with the good student, not the one always in trouble. Investors don’t want to be tied to a company constantly battling PR issues.

So credibility is something investors actively look for. I’d also highlight resilience.

There are always market fluctuations and challenges in the expansion journey. But investors stick with companies that demonstrate sound leadership, ethical decision-making, and long-term consistency.

Reputation doesn’t just attract capital. It also attracts strategic investors and long-term partnerships that go beyond funding.

It plays a major role in shaping media perception as well. Positive media attention increases investor interest.

So to sum it up, I’d say a good reputation is no longer just a “nice to have” for startups and scale-ups. It’s a critical differentiator that helps them attract investors, scale, and go global.

Paulo: Actually, I was wondering if you had a case study of a company that was able to turn things around after fixing their reputation. Preferably a tech or venture-backed company, but open to whatever comes to mind.

Joel: Yes. I was recently working with a cybersecurity company—I won’t name them—but they experienced a major issue where a software update caused a blue screen of death across multiple verticals.

It was a global meltdown that put the company in a very bad position with customers, regulators, and governments. A lot of organizations were using that software, so their reputation took a huge hit.

You can’t always anticipate these things, but if you have a crisis communications plan, mitigation strategies, and a trained spokesperson, you can recover. The stock value fell dramatically after the incident.

But they responded with a very focused, transparent approach. The CEO and regional presidents all took ownership of the issue.

They admitted fault and committed to fixing it. Teams worked 24/7 to get customer systems back online over the weekend.

Then, over the next few months, they maintained consistent communication emphasizing customer safety and security. They acknowledged the mistake and shared the mitigation plan, demonstrating how they would prevent a recurrence.

The most important thing was that they safeguarded their customer base and rebuilt trust. Over time, they reinforced their messaging around security and reliability—before anyone could define them by that incident alone.

Paulo: Thanks, Joel, for sharing that almost live case study with our class.

Navigating Mergers and Acquisitions

Paulo: I also wanted to talk about scenarios that startups eventually face when going global. One of those is M&A.

We’ve seen a lot of portfolio companies use M&A to enter new markets. It softens the landing and lets them introduce services with an existing brand.

We’ve touched on this from a partnership perspective, but how does it differ with M&A? It’s a lot more structural than a partnership—so what role does comms play, and how would you approach messaging?

Elaine: M&A communications play a massive role throughout the entire process. I’ve actually been through a few myself.

One example was when Sage acquired Intacct, and later on, Sage divested parts of its Asia business to Access Group. I lived through that transition.

What I took away from those experiences is that clear, consistent communication is absolutely essential—both internally and externally. In the thick of an M&A, it’s easy to focus on how customers or the public will perceive things.

But internal communications can be just as, if not more, important. If employees aren’t aligned and feel uncertain about job security, that anxiety spills out into the market.

Customers start questioning whether their service will continue or change. So in an M&A, I’d actually emphasize internal comms first.

Use your people as ambassadors to communicate a positive story to customers and the market. During Sage’s divestment of its Asia-Pacific business to Access, we faced a lot of uncertainty.

We doubled down on internal comms. That meant launching regular town halls, sending weekly email updates, having impromptu huddles with leadership, and running reassurance campaigns.

We clearly explained what was next. And if we didn’t have all the answers, we were upfront about that too.

Saying “we don’t have the answer yet, but we’re working through it” made a huge difference. Another key factor in M&A comms is culture.

M&A is about more than numbers—it’s about bringing two companies and two groups of people together. In my case, we were managing a divestment, essentially a separation—a kind of corporate divorce.

Maintaining a positive culture through that transition was critical. If you’re not careful, you risk losing the people you need to make that transition work.

So the comms strategy must highlight culture to keep the business operating smoothly and reduce attrition. Those are the two biggest takeaways: internal comms and culture are absolutely crucial.

Paulo: Love the emphasis on the workforce and internal comms. That reminds me of a previous session we had with Fave, where the founder talked about acquiring Groupon.

He said the first priority during the first 60 days was making sure there was clarity about who still had a job and who would be let go. Definitely important.

Preparing for an IPO

Paulo: Moving on from M&A, I also wanted to quickly touch on IPOs. Joel, you mentioned one of your earlier examples involved a public company.

For startups on the path to going public, there’s always pressure to have a strong narrative—especially when preparing for roadshows. More specifically, how early should a company start thinking about its public markets narrative?

Joel: That’s an important and timely question, Paulo. The IPO process isn’t just a financial milestone—it’s a massive shift in how a company presents itself to the world and how the world views it.

Communications plays a huge role in that transformation. The earlier a comms strategy is integrated into the IPO journey, the better.

I usually think about IPO comms in three phases: pre-IPO, IPO, and post-IPO. In the early stages, the focus should be on building a strong narrative.

It should resonate with investors, employees, customers, and media. And it shouldn’t just be about financials—it should position the company as a market leader with a compelling vision.

Closer to the IPO, the comms team becomes even more critical. They need to ensure investors understand the company’s value proposition and that the messaging is consistent across media, earnings calls, roadshows, and internal touchpoints.

Another big challenge is managing media scrutiny. Once an IPO is on the horizon, analysts, journalists, and even competitors start paying close attention.

Companies that prepare early with media training, crisis simulations, and regulatory-safe messaging tend to handle the process more smoothly. Some companies ramp up their brand quietly one to two years before filing.

Others only invest in comms after their S-1 becomes public. But in my experience, the most successful ones treat communications as a long-term investment.

They maintain control of the narrative throughout the IPO journey. If I could offer one piece of advice to the community here, it would be this: Start early. Stay consistent.

Make sure all your stakeholders—from investors to employees to the media—clearly understand where you are today and where you’re going.

Paulo: Thanks, Joel. M&A and IPOs are huge topics, and we could dedicate entire sessions to each.

But I wanted to get some quick insights from our mentors tonight on how they think about communications for these scenarios.

Building a Strong Comms Team

Paulo: Going back to Elaine, I wanted to talk about the comms team within tech startups and how they could better develop either their comms team or even their comms capabilities. Say they only have one comms person at a certain point in their journey—how would you advise founders or hiring managers to develop that?

Elaine: This point ties into what you’ve already alluded to, Paulo, and also what Joel touched on. One of the biggest missed opportunities when a startup begins to scale is treating comms as an afterthought.

Comms should be front and center. Very often, especially in the early days, tech founders tend to focus heavily on product development and then sales, leaving everything else behind.

But my advice is to see comms as one of your most strategic levers for scaling globally. Even if you don’t have the budget to build a full comms team, you can still localize your storytelling.

You can conduct local research, speak to early or potential customers, and use those data points to develop your narrative. If you have early customers, use them as your mouthpiece.

Their stories are great localized proof points. Partners can also provide valuable validation, and you can tap into industry bodies or influencers.

These don’t cost much, but they act as third-party endorsements—often more powerful than self-promotion. That’s a cost-efficient way to localize your storytelling.

Where you do have the investment, I’d absolutely prioritize media relations and building thought leadership. That’s exactly what we did at Rippling when we scaled from the US into Australia.

We launched about 18 months ago, and with the help of PR Group—our agency partner—we started early. We had local research, shared our point of view on industry trends, wrote opinion articles, and engaged journalists.

That helped position our country head as a credible industry expert. Even though he’s American, he was seen as someone who deeply understood local trends and market issues.

That credibility helped us secure media coverage and build trust in the market. One last point I’d add is that comms plays a huge role in talent acquisition.

Especially when you’re new in a market, you’re competing against incumbent brands that already have recognition. If you leverage comms well, you can not only draw customers but also attract top talent.

That’s crucial when scaling globally. Again, this doesn’t necessarily require a big budget.

You can activate your employees to advocate for your brand. You can use customer stories and partner networks to build momentum.

If you have the resources, then absolutely invest in media relations to build thought leadership at scale.

Paulo: Thanks, Elaine. I really like what you said about using your customers as a mouthpiece.

One example is Intellect, the mental health company we invested in. They started as a consumer app, but when they moved into enterprise B2B, many of their users turned out to be employees in large conglomerates.

They were the ones who referred Intellect to their HR departments, which helped the company land enterprise contracts. That’s something we’ve seen across other companies we’ve partnered with as well.

When to Pull Back on Media

Paulo: For Joel, my question is similar but with a twist. You’ve been emphasizing the importance of strategic comms, but are there scenarios where you’d advise companies not to do too much media or press?

Have you seen cases where startups should dial things down and focus more on product or building?

Joel: One situation I’ve definitely seen—especially in the startup space, and back in India as well—is when companies try to bash their competitors. Sometimes it’s subtle, sometimes direct.

But I really feel companies should focus on their own strengths and capabilities. Public name-calling or wars don’t play well for your brand or reputation.

Another scenario is when companies talk about capabilities they don’t yet have. Take a data center company, for example.

If they’re constantly talking about ESG and sustainability compliance in Southeast Asia, but can’t back it up with a year-end sustainability report, that raises red flags. Regulators might then question, “You’ve been talking nonstop about ESG, but your progress doesn’t match.”

So talking too much about things you can’t yet deliver on—especially in regulated sectors—can backfire. It puts you under unnecessary scrutiny.

Paulo: That’s very inherent to startups, though. A lot of what they build is future-looking—it’s the classic “fake it till you make it” ethos.

But at the same time, you don’t want anything you say to the media to come back and bite you. That’s something I always tell portfolio companies—especially when they use future tense language in the press.

Handling Industry Scrutiny and Pivots

Paulo: One last question—how do you deal with communications if you’re caught in collateral damage from a broader industry crackdown?

Say the media is more scrutinous toward your entire sector, and even though you’re not doing anything wrong, your company gets dragged into it. How do you manage that?

Joel: In that situation, it’s important to have a system in place to detect negative trends early. Media monitoring, alerts, and social listening give you a chance to spot issues in advance.

This is especially critical for sensitive sectors like crypto. If something does happen, the next step is having a holding statement ready.

That way, if your company gets mentioned during a broader industry issue, you can selectively reach out to the press with your perspective. The key is to be transparent, take ownership, and act quickly.

You also need to monitor whether media sentiment is getting more negative. If it is, you may need to roll out a larger contingency plan to mitigate the damage.

The other thing I’d do—if the situation gets more serious—is engage with the regulator. Not at the first sign of trouble, but if things escalate, I’d activate the government relations team.

They can help assess where the scrutiny is coming from and what steps the regulators might take. That gives you a better sense of how to prepare.

Paulo: Elaine, any advice on how to handle comms for product pivots? Say you’re shifting from a single-service platform to something more full-stack, or going from platform to private label.

Elaine: Always be transparent with your audience. Explain why the pivot is happening.

There’s usually a very good reason, and it helps to frame it clearly—why the pivot was necessary and why it matters to your audience. If the impact is negative, say so.

Then share what you’re doing to mitigate the downside and when people can expect things to improve. The key is always transparency and context.

If people understand the reason behind the change, they’re more likely to accept it—whether it’s good news or bad.