Just back from the DBevent, a three-day business development session for storage professionals.

Interesting to hear presenters lament the dearth of venture capital for tech startups as well as the longer times and higher revenues required for IPOS.

As a result, many entrepreneurs are taking alternate routes to success. They are bootstrapping, collaborating with their partners or turning to angel investors for their initial capital.

The good news is, many startups are succeeding with this new model.  They are introducing new products and delivering value to their customers.

Although the temperature may be rising, summer is not the time to ease off on your marketing and communications activities.  In fact, June, July and August can be strategic planning months, an optimal time to lay the groundwork for a fall product launch and to ensure that the second half of the year is as strong as the first.

To make a big splash at that early September trade show, you need to get to work now.

Does your messaging need to be fine tuned or updated?
Is the PowerPoint compelling and ready to show?
When will you schedule the analyst tour?
Can you demo the product online?
Are your beta customers onboard as references?

Setting key components of your communications campaign in gear now will help you generate more attention and excitement when you need it. So put the suntan lotion aside and oil up your PR campaing instead.