Pitching is the essential part of your media outreach. It’s what will make or break your efforts to gain media attention. The unpredictable part of PR is that it’s a soft skill, and while you can rely on your process to generate results, it’s near impossible to guarantee specific results. Even a flawless pitch can fall on deaf ears, perhaps for no reason other than arriving in a reporter’s inbox a few minutes after they left for lunch.
That said, there are many aspects of your media outreach that are firmly within your control. Like wearing your sharpest clothes to a big job interview, there are obvious steps you can take to ensure you’re prepared to make the most of any opportunity you’re given.
Do: Move carefully and deliberately
This is a simple case of quantity over quality. Take the time to know your reporters and craft a message for each. This does not mean writing a new pitch from scratch for each, as there will obviously be things you need to say to every reporter. But at the very least each pitch should contain an acknowledgement of the individual about to receive it.
Taking your time is also the surest way to ensure that you’re not making obvious and avoidable errors. There’s no reason to send off a pitch with a typo, no matter how minor.
Don’t: Send attachments or press releases without a note
Reporters don’t like attachments for a number of reasons. They’re time consuming and often inefficient. They’re vulnerable to corruption, program incompatibility, and, worse, viruses. And reporters don’t like being sent a message with nothing but a press release. It makes sense: when was the last time you were excited to read a press release?
If you have a press release, by all means include it at the end of your email. This will be a way for a reporter who is interested in the story to get a bit more information. But don’t forget the pitch! Make an introduction and give them a reason to read on to the press release.
Do: Respect a reporter’s schedule
No two reporters work exactly the same schedule, so your mileage may vary slightly, but as a general rule it is best to pitch, and to follow up, in the morning and early afternoon. By mid-afternoon nearly all reporters are rushing to meet their deadlines for the next day and will be in no position, or mood, to look over your pitch or chat with you about it. Remember, PR is a soft skill, and most soft skills require you to be accommodating.
Don’t: Hound a reporter or over-pitch
By that same token, persistence is a virtue only as long as it is tempered by politeness and respect. Aggressively pursuing a reporter will more than likely dissuade them from working with you, as repeatedly emailing will become a form of spam. If you’re convinced a reporter is the right fit for your company, but they’re not biting on your initial pitch, hold off and loop them into another round of outreach down the line.
Do: Position yourself as an expert
Only in a perfect world would you be able to consistently get feature stories for your company. But reporters aren’t looking to be advertisers, and they will always be more interested in the broader story around your activities. If you can position yourself and your company as a resource and an expert you are more likely to have a reporter approach you for additional information as they put together a story. Help these reporters find what they need and you will build your relationships with them.
The world of media outreach is fluid and extremely difficult to predict with any degree of certainty, but these are five guidelines that will help you maximize your chances of seeing success, and being prepared for any opportunities that arise.
