Managing Entrepreneurial Visibility in Tech Startups: Characteristics, Challenges, and Strategies

Veronika Kneip () and Melanie Slavici ()
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Veronika Kneip: Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences
Melanie Slavici: Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences

A chapter in Management of SMEs and Startups, 2026, pp 37-57 from Springer

Abstract: Abstract We introduce entrepreneurial visibility as the result of entrepreneurial communication and illustrate this concept using empirical research on 30 tech startups in Germany. Building on communication strategies for established companies, entrepreneurial communication considers the unique challenges and opportunities of young, growth-oriented startups. Based on our empirical study, we use the categories “target groups,” “phases,” “media and alternative visibility tools,” and “factors that promote and hinder visibility” to illustrate the tech founders’ self-image of entrepreneurial visibility. Therefore, we build on and develop current research on entrepreneurial communication and the resource-based view on startup visibility. The actual visibility dynamics, which are not always linear or rational, are explained with the help of so-called visibility chains. Those chains develop dynamically and often depend on the support of relevant stakeholders. In this way, we show how individual visibilities build on each other and can reinforce each other. Our work thus has implications for research on entrepreneurial communication and practical consequences for startup founders, ecosystem actors, and policymakers.

Keywords: Entrepreneurial communication; Entrepreneurial visibility; Tech startups; Germany; Qualitative research (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
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DOI: 10.1007/978-3-032-17538-0_3

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