I work in public relations and marketing, but spent about a decade as a journalist — newspaper reporter, newspaper editor and freelancer. As such, I have been on the receiving end of lots of story pitches from PR people. That’s experience I now put to work on behalf of clients.
Here are five ways to pretty much guarantee that you won’t get news coverage from the media.
1. Call or email when the journalist is on deadline. Unless you’ve got a huge breaking news story – like a giant corporate merger, for example – calling a journalists when they’re on deadline is a sure way to get rejected. A couple of tips for avoiding this:
- On phone calls, start by asking if the journalist has a minute or two. If he or she is on deadline, you’ll find out.
- Know the deadlines of the media you’re pitching. Morning newspapers are deadline in from mid-to-late afternoon. Weekly papers usually have one day where they’re on deadline. TV broadcasters have to hit deadlines for each of their daily broadcasts. Avoid these times.
2. React slowly. When a journalist does express interest, respond fast. Reporters have real deadlines that they must meet; if you don’t help them meet those deadlines by responding in a timely way, they’ll find someone else who will. And often, once that deadline has passed, your chance for coverage may have passed, too.
3. Contact the top editor or producer. Most of the time, the top editor or producer is not who you need to pitch to. Figure out who the beat reporter, assignment editor or bureau chief is who is most likely to be the one who will actually make a decision on whether your pitch is a story for the news outlet. For small news outlets, the top editor or news director may indeed be the right person to pitch, but for most outlets, it’s not.
4. Bait and switch. Imply something is available – previously unreleased financial data, a high profile interview subject – and, once a journalist has expressed interest in the story, tell that person that something isn’t available. Most journalists can and will walk away; once they go away, so does your chance for publicity.
5. Emphasize your publicity needs over the news outlet’s news values. Whether you agree with their approach or not, most news outlets are focused on certain news values – local interest, a particular kind of news (business, lifestyle, politics, etc.), timeliness, strong personalities in their stories. Since you need the news outlet’s cooperation to get the coverage you’re seeking, know the media’s needs and look for ways to meet those needs. These news values widely from outlet to outlet, so the pitch to The New York Times should be different than the pitch to a trade journal or a local TV station.
Of course not doing these things is no guarantee that you’ll get coverage. In the United States, at least, there are fewer journalists and more PR people than ever before, which means even with a well-crafted, on-target pitch, it’s still tough to get a response from busy news people. But I can guarantee you that avoiding these five bad practices will put you a step ahead of many publicists.
What are your top do’s and don’ts when pitching stories? Please share in the comments.
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In no particular order, I'm a writer, MBA, ex-journalist, blogger, geek, strategic communications pro, father, struggling novelist 
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
One of my “do’s” is to create a VERY short tease intro with enough info for them to decide if they want to know more or not. I end that intro with “am I catching you at a good time?”
For example, I managed publicity for the grand opening of a camp for kids with serious illnesses and diseases. Here’s how I opened each phone call.
“Hi, [name]. My name is David Mullen and I’m calling with a story about a prominent family overcoming personal tragedy to found a camp for sick kids. Am I catching you at a good time?”
They all knew right away if they wanted to hear more and, if not or if they were on deadline, I gave them an out. That intro helped land a two-page feature story in People magazine and a 5-minute feature story on Good Morning America. And, for the GMA placement, I left that intro on her voicemail. You know how reporters/producers/such never return voicemails, right? She called me back 5 minutes later wanting to hear more.
If you can synthesize the essence of the story into a single sentence to lead off with, it gives the journalist a very quick read on his/her level of interest. It’s a great way to show that you respect his/her time.
Mark – When I was a reporter, I bristled when publicists dangled a story and threatened to give it my competitor (AP) if I didn’t bite.
Another turn-off was unsolicited gifts delivered with press kits.