You know the hospitality or modern rental living market inside and out and have created the perfect solution to a pressing industry problem. Now what? Fundraising is the key that unlocks the next chapter of your business growth.
Even if you’re bootstrapped and already in business, a round of funding can mean the difference between continuing to scale and struggling to keep your doors open.
PR for fundraising enables you to create a narrative that attracts investors, fosters trust in your brand, and leads to more funding down the line. But it’s not always easy to secure.
In 2023, the value of venture capital raised by proptech companies worldwide declined for the second year in a row.* So how do you make your brand stand out for investor attention?
This article covers expert tips for using PR to secure funding, as well as best practices for announcing your successful fundraising efforts so you can make it to the next round and grow your brand.
Are you a hospitality tech or proptech startup looking to build your brand’s reputation and attract investor interest through strategic PR? Drop us a line.
Getting started: How to use strategic public relations to attract investors
Strategic PR is your ticket to capturing the attention of investors at exactly the right moment. Here are five tips to help you raise your first funding round and start scaling.
1. Establish credibility in your brand and founders to foster investor confidence
Public relations exists to elevate your company’s profile and reputation. Not only does this give your brand legitimacy, but it also helps you stand out in a crowded market. Ultimately, the goal is for investors to see you as the go-to solution in your niche.
Your brand’s credibility is everything. It shows investors you’re serious, trustworthy, and ready to make a powerful impact. By securing coverage in reputable publications, locking in speaking opportunities at industry conferences, or getting you nominated for prestigious awards, strategic PR can help you build that credibility.
In addition, early on in its lifecycle, your company’s image is very much tied to your founders’ images. This means you need to put a lot of effort into hyping up your founders, sharing their vision, and demonstrating why they’re exceptional.
Invest time curating your founders’ LinkedIn profiles and writing their profiles and bios on your website. You need to convince investors they’re the people to trust and bet on, so showcase their experiences, expertise, and innovative ideas.
2. Set yourself apart from competitors with a compelling narrative
The eternal challenge of securing investors is making your product stand out in a sea of similar solutions. B2B PR can help you position your product within a competitive industry, differentiate from competitors, and show how your company struck gold.
The secret? Focus on the market void you’re trying to fill. Pre-seed is your time to develop a strong narrative around your product and the problem it solves. Your product isn’t just another solution; it’s the answer the market has been waiting for. Make it clear how you’re solving an unsolved problem with unmatched urgency.
Make your founders’ journey a testament to ingenuity. How did they turn a personal challenge into an industry-shaping solution? That’s the story investors need to hear.
3. Tell a growth story that investors can’t ignore
Proptech PR and fundraising is all about your story and how you tell it. For investors, scalability is the most important chapter of your story — and it’s what they bet on.
Investors want to see growth. Not just any growth, but high-impact, scalable success. Develop consistent messaging to show them you’re on the path to becoming a leader in your market.
There are a few ways you can do this:
- Talk about your Total Addressable Market (TAM) and how much of that’s currently tapped vs untapped. Unmet demand means your business has room for growth, which is a huge green flag for investors.
- Highlight a rise in demand if relevant. Address consumer behavior changes, regulations-driven changes, and any other tailwinds that impact the industry and demand for your product.
- Announce your new hires strategically and find ways to show that your company is constantly expanding. You want to convey the idea that you have a huge pipeline of new clients and need to grow your team to meet demand.
Pro tip: Plan announcements strategically. Don’t announce all your company updates in the same week, but also avoid having long periods of silence.
4. Drive thought leadership and position your startup as an authority in the industry
Unless you can consistently demonstrate your authority and expertise, you’ll just be another startup idea in a crowded market in the eyes of investors. B2B thought leadership can help set you apart as an industry leader.
Strong thought leadership content provides unique insights or opinions to help people see things differently. The challenge is being distinctive for all the right reasons.
Here are some ideas to spark inspiration for thought leadership content:
- Examine what opinions people in your industry are getting wrong
- Explore potentially controversial (but appropriate) views you have about the industry
- Consider unique views on the market void you’re trying to fill
- Analyze proprietary data and turn it into valuable insights
- Do some future gazing and think about what you think the future of your industry holds
You can also build a halo of trust and influence by explaining how your company struck gold. Nothing demonstrates authority like sharing the secret sauce of how you pinpointed a key challenge and created a unique solution to address it.
Pro tip: Thought leadership doesn’t have to live on your blog. A strategic PR partner can help you secure speaking opportunities at industry trade shows, participate in podcast interviews, or comment on stories in industry media to solidify your status as a leader and disruptor.
5. Secure media coverage that gets your story in front of the right eyes
A PR strategy can help you appear in all kinds of media — from brand mentions and thought leadership articles in online magazines to podcast appearances and speaking opportunities at industry conferences.
But not all media coverage is created equal, so you need to make sure you’re showing up in the right place for your current objectives.
A PR agency can advise you on the ideal mix of publications to target based on your business goals. For example, you’ll go after different outlets depending on whether you want to reach potential investors or potential customers.
When you’re focused on raising funds, that means targeting outlets that investors are reading, like business and finance-related media.
Keeping up the momentum: How to announce a funding round so you can make it to the next
If you’ve secured a round of funding, congratulations are in order. But your work isn’t done. According to a Crunchbase study published in January 2025, only one in five companies advanced beyond seed funding in 2022.
Announcing this funding strategically, at the right time, and in the right place is how you make it to Series A and beyond. Here are three tips for doing just that.
1. Craft your messaging strategically
Never forget your target audience. Funding announcements are for the investment community because you want to raise more funding in the future. To pique the interest of potential investors, center your messaging on growth and scale — but not just any growth.
You can “grow” by burning money on internal promotions, but that’s not sustainable. To communicate high-quality growth, highlight a strategic use of these funds, such as developing a new vertical or improving product development (and how this will impact customers).
Additionally, remind inventors of your current business performance and the impact you’ve already had on your customers to demonstrate that you’re not just an idea but an operating business that’s already having an impact.
Finally, highlight the quality of investors in the round and the value they bring to the table, be it their industry expertise or their own tech or product. If you’re now a Google technology partner, don’t be shy about it.
Pro tip: Include forward messaging, but avoid overpromising. Remember, investors can find your past funding announcements at any point in the future, so don’t promote anything you’re not going to be able to deliver on.
2. Get your timing right and stay organized
Announcing funding isn’t as simple as drafting a press release and hitting send. You need to orchestrate the timing of your announcement carefully. This is especially true if the investors are publicly traded, as they will have their own disclosure requirements.
Organization is non-negotiable. To make things easier for yourself, create one source of truth. This document should clearly outline:
- Key messaging points you want to cover
- A timetable that details when exactly announcements will be made
- Task assignees to keep stakeholders responsible and accountable
- Anticipated Q&As to stay ahead of potential feedback
- Spokespeople lists and media protocols
- Dos and don’ts to guide your team
Additionally, your team needs to be on the same page when responding to the media’s questions. Create a tracker so you know what is being said and where to avoid any inconsistent messaging.
3. Maximize exposure
You want your funding announcement to reach as many potential investors’ eyes as possible, so identify your ideal publications and target them strategically.
First, try to land exclusives with tech investment publications and trade publications. You should tweak the angles of your announcements so they suit these different outlets and their audiences. For example, keep the focus business-related for investment publications, and emphasize your product and its impact on customers for trade media.
Once your exclusive announcements are live, it’s time to go wide with your press release. Make sure your marketing assets are professional and ready for public consumption at the time of announcement. They should include clear messaging about your product and share details about the impact of this funding round.
Now’s the time to maximize owned channels — including your site, LinkedIn, and other socials. In addition to posting on your corporate blog and social media profiles, encourage your team members to share as well. While socials can help you amplify your message, you need to be able to control the messaging to steer the conversation in the direction that most benefits your business.
Finally, leverage the profiles of your CEO and other leadership to get even more exposure. Offer interviews on an exclusive basis to top-tier publications, and extend the shelf life of your announcement by placing C-suite leaders on conference panels or podcasts to discuss funding.
Pro tip: Where you can’t secure organic coverage, consider paid placements to control your message and maximize your fundraising announcement’s visibility.
Supercharge your proptech or hospitality tech startup’s growth journey with strategic PR
If building credibility and recognition for your proptech brand feels like an uphill battle, B2B PR can give you the push it takes to be recognized by investors and receive that coveted round of funding.
Whether you’re striving to get seed funding or already strategizing for Series A, the tips in this article will help you get your message in front of the people who matter most for your company’s growth: investors with the power to make decisions and allocate funds.
Successful proptech or hospitality tech PR strategies require expertise, connections, and a deep understanding of your industry. Abode Worldwide brings all that and more to the table, and we understand what it takes to make your brand stick in the minds of investors.
Our proptech and hospitality tech expertise and global reach have helped companies like yours secure funding and scale. When you work with us, you can expect maximum-impact PR strategies that don’t just get your name out there: they bring in an uptick in interest from potential investors and successful funding rounds.
Are you a hospitality tech or proptech startup looking to build your brand’s reputation and attract investor interest through strategic PR? Drop us a line.
*Value of venture capital raised by proptech companies worldwide from 2019 to 2023, Statista
