In life sciences startups, innovative ideas outpace data generation and validation. Pivots triggered by new data or market shifts refine the paths to breakthrough therapies and devices.

Life sciences startups emerging from stealth must build visibility and credibility to secure the funding that enables transforming their vision into reality, while navigating this fast-paced journey of constant change.

Online checks are often a first step in due diligence by investors, potential partners, clients, and prospective employees. A strong digital footprint brings visibility to the company’s vision and traction, turning early-stage promise into funding and growth momentum.

Digital footprint

What is the “digital footprint” of a company? The digital footprint is comprised of the collective content that relates to the company, posted on a variety of channels in the public domain. This includes information flow directly controlled by the company, as well as third-party content. A strong digital footprint ticks the following boxes:

• Consistent narrative and lexicon, throughout all sources

• Clear mission, differentiation and traction statements

• Regularly refreshed and updated information

• Balanced sources between company-authored and third-party content

Core narrative

While the company does not have control of third-party narratives, it has control over its own content and information flow, and the opportunity to set the tone on how others talk about its vision, mission, values, innovation, differentiation and progress.

A simple and intuitive website, where the critical information highlighting the company’s potential is easily found by the busy investor, and a steady flow of strategic messaging on social media platforms (e.g., LinkedIn) are good starting points for building visibility and interest.  

Everything you communicate should be intentional, with a strategic alignment and target audience in mind to help further the mission of your startup. For example, you can show:

• Traction by highlighting publications, KOL endorsements, patent grants, partnerships and/or successful pilot studies

• Momentum by celebrating key milestones

• Growth by sharing active openings and spotlighting new team members

A clean connecting thread through the communication flow across all channels ensures that the narrative stays consistent and credible, building, over time, a story of strategic evolution in contrast to unintentional drift. This narrative also serves as the foundation for the third-party content. A clean, simple story, with consistent conceptual messaging and lexicon leaves little to no room for misinterpretation and/or misrepresentation.    

Third-party amplification

Painting a clear, differentiated, bold and optimistic self-portrait is a means of self-introduction, and opens doors. Repainting of a similar image by stakeholders (e.g., KOLs, investors, partners, clients, employees, etc.) and independent media, builds and solidifies confidence in the perceived value and promise of the company: its vision, team and execution capabilities. A Harvard Business School study found that “post-investment increases in news coverage are associated with a higher likelihood of raising subsequent financing and with improved employee quality.”

Earned and paid media offer an external platform to corroborate the company’s story. Social media activity (e.g., interactions with the company’s content; original posts that highlight the company) from stakeholders such as investors, board members, KOLs, and/or partners, signal momentum and traction. Active engagement of employees with the company’s content on social media, and positive testimonials on job boards signal a healthy culture and lived values.

Take home

1.     Build a core narrative that aligns with and supports the strategic plan.

2.     Thread the core narrative consistently through all channels of communication.

3.     Leverage the internal and external stakeholders to amplify the company’s core narrative to increase reach, build trust and maintain momentum.

4.     A focused digital footprint turns early uncertainty into investor confidence.

Reach out to Diana at diana@demix.solutions to discuss how to build the digital footprint that supports strategic goals.

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