The New Rules For Successfully Landing Media Coverage
This truly is a new age in the public relations and media world. The Internet has turned the communication world on its head. Many say it heralds the end of traditional media, but I believe what is actually happening is not the death throws of one form of media, but a morphing of different forms of communications. This new media world is still young, but, when the dust settles, it will result in the advent of a new, more exciting and more robust media and communications world.
One of the upsides of the net, social media and blogs, is that you can now learn so much about writers, editors and producers that you are pitching. You can learn their interests and study their writings Now, when you pitch a story, you can have a much better take on whether your pitch is appropriate or off-base. You can still call or email to make sure you’re making an appropriate pitch, but the information that the Internet now puts at your fingertips makes it much easier to be prepared and go in with the right pitch.
This type of homework does take some time, but that is one of the many changes in the world of PR and media relations. Instead of sending out hundreds of emails and packages hoping that a few hit the right target, which, sadly, is how things happen much of the time, the savvy approach is to pick a small number of media contacts, do your research and make more focused targeted pitches.
With That In Mind The New Rules For Pitching The Media Are:
1. Develop a strong pitch for your product or service.
2. Don’t just make it a sales pitch, come up with a story
3. Study various media outlets that would be appropriate to pitch your story to
4. Find specific writers and producers that work at those media outlets
5. Go online, find articles, blogs or segments they’ve done and study their work.
6. Make a list of between 25 to 30 journalists to pitch
7. Tailor your release and a cover letter to each particular journalist’s needs and interests
8. Send out your pitch via email or mail. Sometimes snail mail is more effective.
9. Wait a day or two and make follow-up calls.
10. Don’t use the calls to sell, but to build relationships.
Effective PR is all about communication. If you communicate your story and pitch effectively and appropriately, you might not land a story with each pitch, but you will build strong relationships with the media. They will see you as a resource who understands their needs and their market. Take the time to understand what the media is looking for and you’re positioning yourself for success.
