By Bob Cavosi
Companies preparing for an IPO require a communications strategy that is designed to evolve as the company moves closer to market. The process is iterative, and each step is crucial to crafting and articulating a company’s story and investment thesis.
This process is the first chance for some companies to start telling the equity and capital markets story, and to further elevate the company’s market visibility and brand position. A general guiding communications principle for companies seeking to go public is this — start early, maintain a disciplined message, and take control of the story and narrative.
Before the S-1 filing: shape the story early
The most important communications work happens before the IPO process formally begins, ideally at least 12 months in advance of an S-1 filing. This can be achieved in many ways: story and key message development, start talking publicly about the company’s financials and growth trajectory at a top-line level, and build out a corporate website and social media profile. At this time, media and message training for key executives and spokespeople may also be in order as your communications team has an opportunity to generate tangible story opportunities and schedule media interviews.
During the early stages, the objective is straightforward: take time to define the narrative clearly. What does the company do? Why does it matter? What is the company’s competitive differentiation? What are the business and industry growth drivers? That crystallized story should be carried consistently across media, corporate communications, and digital channels.
The alternative is to wait until the final stretch to develop and execute a proactive pre-IPO communications plan and approach — this creates a compressed timeline and reduces control of the narrative. This can cause companies to react to the outside influences and influencers shaping how the company is viewed and perceived in the investment marketplace.
Such a default approach is bound to fall short, particularly given the burgeoning pipeline of IPO deals that will be making a mad dash to go public when the window fully opens, as explained in our previous post, Before You File: Condition the Market (Or Get Lost in the Rush).
During filing: a disciplined and more stringent communications approach
Once the S-1 is filed, the communications landscape will shift in the backdrop of the pre-IPO “quiet period.”
“Business as usual” internal and external communications can, and should, continue. Review and scrutiny of external communications by the Securities and Exchange Commission is an important consideration for a company’s legal, communications, and senior management teams during this period.
These communications will still require significant scrutiny. Words that can be viewed as “promotional,” or anything that can be seen as a boost to the stock ahead of an IPO or in the aftermarket, should be avoided. Regulators have the responsibility to protect investors and the authority to make inquiries about words that veer away from the facts. Study results or scientific data that may have been described as “transformational” prior to filing must now only be described factually to pass muster.
Lastly, high-profile media appearances with top-tier business media during the quiet period, particularly those that could be perceived as promoting the stock, are generally off the table. Messaging must be tight and more measured.
The same standard applies across digital channels — the tone and narrative should be factual, not promotional. Stick with the facts, and don’t get caught in the crosshairs of promotions.
Listing day and beyond: be ready to activate
IPO listing day is not just a milestone. It is a moment of maximum marketplace visibility for the company and its leadership.
When the groundwork has been done early, listing day becomes less about introducing the company and more about reinforcing what the market already knows and understands about the company’s story, investment thesis, and leadership. The messaging and story platform isn’t being built at this juncture — it is being validated by investors, sell-side analysts, financial and trade media, industry analysts and influencers, and by the organization’s own employees, among other audiences.
On listing day, there likely will be an opening or closing ceremony for the appropriate stock exchange. Your communications teams will set up a series of broadcast and print/online interviews on listing day for the CEO. Completion of the IPO road show, IPO pricing, and listing day media outreach and investor activities is the culmination of a year-long process, and a new beginning as a publicly traded entity.
The through line
Across every stage, one principle holds: companies need to own their story early.
If they do not, the market will do it for them and not always in their favor.
The tools and channels may continue to evolve, but the fundamentals have not. Timing, discipline, and clarity remain the difference between companies that command attention and those that struggle to define themselves once the spotlight turns on.