Valley PR Blog

6 easy tips to avoid bad PR pitching

By Dan Wool on October 31st, 2007 In Advice

Has bad PR pitching really become the norm?

To their deserved credit, the McRae Agency was singled out by Arizona Republic Business reporter Cathryn Creno at the PRSA breakfast event this morning for their excellent approach to her. I paraphrase, but Creno cited the McRae team’s respect for her space and their overall handle on the news value of their client.

Is McRae really the exception rather than the rule? Examples have been coming out of the woodwork for quite some time. There was Chris Anderson’s “had enough” post yesterday banning naive PR people from his Inbox. But both the Bad Pitch Blog (not surprisingly) and former Phoenecian Jeremy Pepper cited several other examples in their responses.

I have faith that if you’re reading our blog, you know what you’re doing but if you know someone in the “bad pitch” category — please pass these six tips along and help us all:

(1) Know how the newsroom operates. Know the difference between editor vs. reporter. Know which reporters handle which beats. Know that a pitch on deadline is the kiss of death.

And, especially, understand that sea changes at the Republic and other major market newsrooms are underway as they cater to online audiences. Business Editor Kathy Tulumelo put it best this morning — they’re writing for a reader who craves personalization over mass distribution. If you pitch to a reporter, think like their editor, or better yet their online content manager.

(2) Develop face-to-face reporter relationships. Yes, we love email. Yes, social media is “it”. But if you doPR that way exclusively, you’re a fool. No relationships, no press. You will not sustain your career long-term. It’s that simple. Oh, they’ll remember that write-up they did on your client, they just won’t remember you. Coffee is for closers.

(3) Pitch with the reporter, not to the reporter. Understand that pitching is a process. Go in with the knowledge that barring some urgent and spectacular (i.e. hard news), you will not hit paydirt on the first pitch. It usually takes multiple contacts before the story gets published. Many pitches can take months from start to finish. And you will need to work with the reporter every step of the way. So, also (3b) be proactive.

(4) Respect the reporter and his/her schedule. Plan ahead. Newsrooms are thin and deadlines are tight. Know how reporters like to be contacted. Ask them (on the phone — see above) if “now is a good time to talk.” See who’s covering for them if they’re going to be out. Gauge their interest instead of selfishly slam selling them. Do some of their legwork for them. New Biz Buzz editor Chad Graham talked about how the Arizona Biltmore PR staff spent time tracking down a reclusive duck with a Donald Trump comb-over for a photo. That’s what you have to do. They earned the story and massive respect.

(5) Have more than a skin deep understanding of your client/product. If you can’t anticipate and answer basic questions about your press release or pitch, you’re toast. Know the ins and outs of your client/product. Know exactly who the competition is. Understand how and why it makes or will make money. And are you prepared to answer the logical progression of questions 3-4 levels deep? Then if you happen to get stumped, you’re at least in a position to praise the question and promise to find the answer.

(6) Tailor your pitch. Every reporter is different. Your pitches should be different as well. A press list is a starting point, not a tactic. Otherwise, you are a spammer; you are the telemarketer at dinner. Know your audience and the reporter’s. Personalize everything you can.

Want Your Picture Icon? Go to gravatar.com and set a picture up to your email address for free. It also works on thousands of other websites, too!