Successful media pitches are one of the make or break ways to get people talking about your brand no matter whether you’re in the beauty industry, wellness sector, or travel business. According to Business Wire, journalists and editors receive hundreds of media pitches daily from a variety of brands and businesses across the globe. It is up to them to choose and decide which one to write on and publish. So, rather than bombarding the media house with information, it is essential to send in a pitch that encompasses the main message of your business’s products and services in an impactful way.
The story of your product needs to be able to translate into a newsworthy article, but don’t worry. Piccolo PR is here to give you tips on how to craft a successful media pitch.
Piccolo PR’s Guide To Media Pitches
- Know your audience – The first step towards building your media pitch is increasing awareness about your audience and interests. Make use of the tools available online such as Google analytics or Facebook business page insights, to understand your target audience. This will help you know which your audience prefers publications and channels of communication, and accordingly, you can then send your media pitches to those publications. You can also refer to common keyword searches and find out the ones resonating with your product story. Putting your pitch across at the right places will get you the recognition your brand deserves!
- Choose an angle for your story – Contemplate and write your pitch with a particular angle. Make sure it is sending out the main message along while highlighting the perspective of the story. When you consider just how many pitches editors get a day, writing your media pitch with a specific angle can help you stand out from the crowd and increase your chances of getting it published. Journalists tend to be busy and don’t waste time with incomplete and partial information. A pitch with an angle will save them time, and it’s highly likely they will be interested in pursuing it further. Make your angle relevant and timely so that it is of interest to the journalists as well as the readers. For example, writing a pitch on the growing changes in consumer behavior can be pivoted to “The Growing Changes of Consumer Behavior During Covid-19.”
- Send personalized pitches – It is a human tendency to be known and treated with respect. We all like attention and even crave it. Keeping that in mind, it is essential to note that if you email a journalist without mentioning their name anywhere, or without writing a message for directed toward them specifically, your mail is likely to get ignored. Always ensure you include pleasantries in your email, make sure to add the name of the journalist you are reaching out to, and be genuine in your approach. Do not forward the same mail to several others. Be specific, give attention to the details, and customize your message according to the publication you are reaching out to. This will not only lead toa greater chance of engagement but also help enhance the credibility of your brand.
- Make your pitch engaging – Develop and present your pitch in the form of a story. Do not let your pitch be monotonous and boring. No one is interested in reading jumbled up information that’s is dull and ineffective. Increase your chances of getting your product story published by crafting it in a way that leads readers to want to learn more about your brand. Be creative, unique, and innovative in your approach. Use metaphors, anecdotes, and your brand’s story to gauge eyeballs. Be truthful and genuine. This will ensure your story is appreciated and gets featured. Remember, the pitch should be attractive enough to catch the journalist’s attention and encourage them to write a story on it!
- A clear and concise pitch – Ensure that your pitch isn’t lengthy as in today’s times; no one has got the time to read loads of information. It is recommended to write up to 3-4 paragraphs and not more than that. Ensuring that the first paragraph includes all the important information is essential as the journalist will get an idea about the product story from it. This will help outline your brand’s major ideas, making it easier for the journalist to get the gist if it is present in the top-most paragraph. Furthermore, if using email, it is necessary to include a strong subject line to make a huge difference. Journalists sometimes choose to read and ignore stories based on its subject line. Establishing a subject line that is relevant, specific, and powerful would help in paving the path for a newsworthy piece.
- Do your research – You must know which media houses and journalists you will reach out to with your pitch. This can only happen if the research is thorough, as it will give you an insight regarding which publications fit your brand’s story and will be likely to publish an article on it. Sending pitches to random publications without any background information and study won’t be of much help. Send your pitch to reporters and journalists who write stories in the genre matching with your product. Try reaching out to many reporters of various publications as you never know how many responses you’re bound to receive.
- Maintain friendships with journalists – The last but not the least point of significance is to try and be on good terms with journalists and editors. They are the decision-makers who decide and write on a media pitch. Building a good rapport with them is essential for your brand to get media coverage. Stay in touch with them and be cordial. This will help in building a connection. They will remember you, and the next time you send a pitch, the journalist would be kind enough to read it and publish it. Be helpful, respond well to them, and work on building relations with journalists.