Updated June 3, 2026. Related: PR Firms directory · Industry Leaders · Crypto & Web3 pillar.
Victoria Vaughan, who has over 10 years of experience in the tech space, primarily serving as CEO of Cointelegraph, the largest media dedicated to the crypto market with over 13M monthly visits. Victoria co-founded ICL, now a leading PR agency, to set the new standards for web3 PR & Marketing. She is also a regular speaker at the top industry events, such as Eth Denver, NFT.NYC, Dcentral, Web3 Summit Miami, and more. In this interview, Victoria talked about the current trends for tech companies in marketing and PR, challenges of PR projects, and ROI that she uses for her projects.
What are some fields you are focusing on?
My agency is focused on Web3 and blockchain. This industry is like its own universe - with specific values, rules and slang. The core value is decentralization - and a new approach to how projects are managed. Some projects in this sector have been set up as DAOs (decentralized autonomous organizations), which means the community is involved in making key decisions.
Often, these projects are launched by anonymous teams, meaning you only know founders by their X handle or NFT avatar. That can make PR coverage an exciting challenge. When it comes to communications, media outlets and working with key opinion leaders is crucial.
Web3 and blockchain have several verticals - and each looks for something different. Infrastructure brands tend to seek more classic PR to secure new partnerships, NFT projects often like collaborations with artists, while Web3 games aim to target audiences who would want to play and make money from their products.
What were some trends that you had seen in PR in 2023?
Coverage in big media outlets remains crucial for tech entrepreneurs, but we are also seeing comms shift to new media. I ran a LinkedIn poll that revealed 80% of founders would prefer to have a big following on X and LinkedIn, rather than an interview with a mainstream publication. So when it comes to personal PR for founders, social media influence matters.
B2B & B2B2C companies value speaking engagements - as appearing on stage at industry-leading events increases trust and credibility. For retail-oriented projects, collaborations with key opinion leaders play a key role in PR and community growth.
What has been your most exciting and most challenging PR project so far?
The PR campaign for our first client outside of the blockchain industry was a huge success. In the second month, we secured articles in The New York Times, Wall Street Journal and AP. We were quite nervous as it was an AI startup that did several pivots during the campaign - so we had to adapt and change strategies on the go. But it proved that the key skill in PR is being able to come up with a good angle, and ensure it fits with the current news agenda.
Crisis communications is always an interesting and challenging experience - especially when it involves financial hacks where users lose funds. You have to react quickly and have a strategy in place for different scenarios.
How hard was it for you to start your PR agency from scratch?
ICL was initially created as a media buy agency by my co-founder Alice Stork. The company was placing advertising campaigns across multiple channels - with paid and organic content, display ads, newsletters and event sponsorships. When I joined, I focused on developing more services such as influencer marketing and community growth - as well as new verticals so we could serve more clients. Having an extensive network, long-term partners who were referring us to potential leads - and leveraging our track records in advisory roles - helped us to close new clients naturally.
What differentiates your agency from competitors?
It's difficult to choose one thing - but if I had to, it would be our team. We're very results-oriented and always think about how we can help customers achieve their goals - whether that's new partnerships, securing investments, acquiring more customers or building brand awareness. PR is a powerful tool - and to deliver optimal results, it must be integrated into marketing, sales and business development strategy. That's why we also offer clients help with email marketing and BD messaging to boost ROI.
How would you recommend implementing PR in a marketing strategy? How can one define ROI out of it?
PR shouldn't just be implemented in marketing strategies, but in sales and business development too. To maximize a campaign's outcome, anything that's produced - articles, podcasts, conference speeches - need to be actively spread on social media, integrated into sales pitches, and prominently included in partnership conversations.
There are plenty of ways to assess the impact - whether that's response rates, growth in brand searches on Google, sales conversions, interest from potential investors, or the number of new partnerships.
Is it important to be present in the country, or do you think companies can hire international PR pros to navigate the US market?
It depends on the industry and your target market. If it's an NFT project eyeing an international market, hiring a PR person outside of the US isn't a problem. Meanwhile, if it's a highly regulated financial product targeting American consumers, a US PR person with experience and a network in financial communications is a must. ICL has representatives around the world - San Francisco, New York, Paris, Bangkok and the Middle East.
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