Progressions

A Clueless Student’s Guide to Pitching Journalists

Public relations is about relationships and none are more significant than the ones we build with journalists. Coming from a small university, it was challenging to transition from classwork to media relations work without practical experience. In class, I covered the basics of press releases, media lists, and different types of pitches, but it wasn’t until I had the phone in my hand, calling a major network, that it all clicked. As a result, much of what I learned about pitching journalists was self-taught, and while I still have a lot to learn, my successes and failures have already taught me many valuable lessons.  

My first takeaway from my experience in media relations was to research my audience. Journalists are unique people with diverse styles, tastes and interests. Before pitching, I would always include a “beat” section in my media list that covered the journalist’s interests, significant prior stories and information from the outlet’s website, if available. This research helped me determine if the story was a good fit for that journalist. Media lists are dynamic documents that can be updated and revised at any time. The most important lesson from this was to tailor my communication to each journalist.

My very first pitch was unique, if not clunky. Naively, I drafted my short, five-paragraph press release, adhering to the inverted pyramid style. I was operating under the idea that releases should be short, sweet, and to the point, but I quickly learned from my boss and several journalist friends that this style is no longer enough. Five-paragraph releases still have their uses, especially in smaller markets with localized publications, where a journalist may write a quick paragraph about the story to meet content requirements. In my experience, and according to several journalist friends, most modern journalists working in large markets prefer narrative-style press releases that contain the entire story. Given the number of daily emails reporters receive, pitching a complete story and providing contact information makes their job easier and increases the likelihood they will pick up a story. My pitches that resulted in successful placements were all presented in narrative format, more akin to a feature than a traditional release.

Another consideration when emailing a journalist is timing. Most of my knowledge about pitch timing came from an article by Cision, which was incredibly helpful when I first started. According to the article, most reporters and editors actively check emails from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., with a break at noon for lunch. Email too early, and the others will drown out the pitch. Email too late, and the journalist will be out of the office covering another story. The best days I found to pitch were Tuesday through Thursday. Monday is when journalists tend to get the most emails, while Friday is too late in the week for the pitch to be relevant.

When sending pitch emails, I found that less was more. I would paste the press release directly underneath the email copy and also attach it as a PDF. Since the pitch was already attached, my message could be short, emphasizing the newsworthy elements of the story, as well as its significance to the journalist. Most reporters will only glance at an email before moving on, so my goal was not to sell my story in the email. My goal was to grab the journalist’s attention so they would consider opening the press release.

This brings me to my next point: email pitches are far less effective than phone pitches. Out of every placement my stories received, only one was directly from an email pitch. The rest were from phone calls. I understand many members of Gen Z dislike cold calling, but in my experience, calls are the most effective way to connect with journalists in the modern era and are much more effective at creating relationships. While pitching journalists over the phone might seem scary, I learned a few tricks that make it much easier.

Coming across as human is vital in these interactions. A common perception of PR professionals is that we are pesky and fake, so finding ways to engage with journalists naturally is essential. Two ways I did this were by leading into the pitch with the phrase, “I have a story I think you might be interested in,” and researching at least one of their recent stories so I could relate it to my pitch. Doing this sets the tone for a positive start to the call. Journalists were much more eager to hear what I had to say when I was familiar with their work and tastes, and these two tactics are easy ways to show this. Another way to engage journalists was to open the phone call with a question. After introducing myself, I would ask either “is this a bad time?” or “do you have a minute?” These questions would prompt the journalist to continue the conversation on their terms, meaning they tended to engage more. Even when the journalist would say it was a bad time, they would often give me another callback time, meaning I could connect with them later.

When pitching, I found the best way to sell someone on a story was to believe in it myself. I found ways to connect and engage with each topic. Some pitches were easier than others, but I was far more successful cold calling when I was genuinely interested in the story. These successes also stemmed from my tone. When I read off a script, I sounded more robotic, but if I spoke from the heart and alternated my tone, as if telling a friend about an interesting story I had heard, I came across as far more engaging.

Sometimes, the journalists I pitched would say they were not interested. However, after I adjusted to these strategies, my calls became much more organic, and journalists would refer me to colleagues whom they thought would be interested in hearing the pitch, even if they were declining themselves. In one instance, when I was pitching a film’s grand premiere, a journalist said he was not interested, but we continued to talk about the movie for another ten minutes. The call ended with him asking me to send him details about ticket prices. Even unsuccessful pitches can lead to fruitful conversations. PR is a relationship-based business. I often found myself asking journalists what stories they were interested in, and by the end of the summer, I had two or three who recognized my voice and would consistently take my stories.

Ultimately, many of my calls still went to voicemail and many emails still went unanswered, and that was okay. Not every pitch will land where it needs to, and not every reporter has time for every story, but pitching is so much more than just placement. A bad pitch can be the start of a good relationship with a journalist, and a good pitch can do the same. Breaking into media relations can be incredibly daunting, but by treating each pitch as an opportunity to make a new connection, incredible relationships can be formed