By Freya Buxton, Account Executive at The Flywheelers
Earlier this summer, Jay Rayner issued a plea to the PR industry which threw a stark light on the toll PRs can take on journalists’ inboxes.
The sins Rayner lists include being inundated with unfocussed pitches, which points to a lack of understanding about his beat. Others like Zoe Kleinmann have expressed similar issues, which is a concerning pattern for the PR industry. On my first day in agency, I was told that media relations is the foundation of a PR’s career. We can’t secure coverage without pitching journalists – that’s called advertising!
So, how can we mitigate the impact PRs have on journalists’ inboxes and create constructive working relationships? The answer lies in bringing mindful practice to your pitching.
Mindful pitching ensures the recipient’s interests and preferences are front of mind, with each pitch tailored to ensure relevancy and cut through. Ultimately, you want to make the journalist’s life as easy as possible, cut through the noise of other pitches, and give them what they want.
By taking on a mindful pitching practice, you can build a reputation as a reliable PR who delivers the kind of content journalists want and build up the prestige of your organisation. But what does this look like?
1. Deep dive journalists’ beats
Take some time to understand a journalist’s beat by researching their recent coverage and social media. Media databases, like Roxhill, often give a great overview, but nothing beats reading their most recent articles to get a real sense of what interests them.
Where we can, we also like to hear directly from the horse’s mouth! We attend media information sessions and meet with journalists for coffee to build stronger connections with them and understand what they like and dislike. These meetings are also a great opportunity to quiz them on all the finer details of how they like to be pitched, such as their preferred time of day.
2. Get to know the publication
Pitching mindfully also entails an awareness of what is a good fit for the publication itself. A bit of research should tell you whether they take bylines or interviews, for example, or if they have relevant forward features coming up.
Publications also change their policies from time to time – particularly when there are changes in the senior editorial team – so there’s also no harm in reaching out to editors to try and get a sense of what types of content they’re looking for.
3. Keep your media lists up to date
The media scene is in constant flux, meaning even a media list that was solid gold last month can quickly become out of date. Sending journalists pitches that aren’t relevant is the quickest way to burn a relationship – and we get it. It shows a lack of effort on the part of the PR.
That’s why we never take for granted that a media list is “up to date” and will always check that the contacts are relevant to a story before pitching. That doesn’t mean they’ll choose your story every time, but they should at least understand why you pitched it!
4. Crafting a clear pitch
When working with technical topics, it can sometimes be easier to write more than less – articulating a complex concept simply is no mean feat!
But sending paragraphs upon paragraphs is not being mindful of how journalists work – they haven’t got the time to read half an article before they work out if it’s even relevant. Nor can you expect a journalist to “find the story” in reels of information when you’re meant to be pitching them!
Being mindful means pitching in a way that journalists can quickly and easily consume.
How? We make sure to get the key information upfront – what are we offering, from whom and in what format. This first line gives the journalist the opportunity to discard your pitch quickly if it’s not what they’re looking for. If it captures their attention, you can then expand with concise and well-considered bullet points outlining the argument, as well as a short bio to show why your spokesperson is credible to speak on the topic.
5. To follow up or not?
This is a contentious topic. And while hounding journalists with multiple email and phone follow-ups isn’t the answer, a polite follow-up highlighting something your previous email didn’t can be helpful. But often, it’s fair to assume that “ghost” means “no”.
Stepping into a journalist’s shoes
Ultimately, the premise of mindful pitching is pitching in a way that puts the journalist first. We like to put ourselves in their position and make the process as easy as possible for them, from making sure their interests are met to laying out our email pitches in a way that makes sussing-out the key information seamless.
Journalists will always appreciate useful information from PRs and it’s our job to provide it. Taking the time to learn the methods behind pitching well can help strengthen relationships across your journalist network, and is a surefire way to establish prestige for you and your agency.
If you’d like to hear more about how our mindful approach to pitching helps us secure stand-out coverage for our clients, check out our case studies or get in touch at [email protected]
