This is personal, not business

By Linda VandeVrede on October 14th, 2009 In Advice

Since I started blogging for Valley PR Blog, I’ve been the recipient of PR pitches.   If you don’t have a blog or you blog for a corporation, you may have been buffered from this activity.   Be grateful.

I’d like to humbly offer these bits of advice to my fellow public relations folks out there.    I’m no David Pogue, Seth Godin or Katie Paine, so believe me I don’t kid myself with thoughts of grandeur.   But if you’re inclined to pitch me, here are some insights:

  • Subscribe via RSS feed to Valley PR Blog.    It’s more time to read all your target blogs every morning, but you’ll get a better feel for what we blog about.
  • To that end, I am greatly interested in books about tech and tech trends and social networking tools; best practices in PR; and any scientific, validated surveys about trends in PR. 
  • I can always tell when I’m receiving a blanket pitch vs. a customized one.    I hate being lumped into an “everyman” category.  
  • Embargoes make me less interested in whatever news you have to offer, not more.
  • If I only covered a certain topic once, it’s a good bet it’s not a top priority of mine.  I’m not a green fan like some bloggers (although I do recycle!) but I’ve received a lot of “green” pitches based on one post awhile back.
  • I’m receptive to email or twitter – either is fine.
  • I try to limit my Facebook friends to people I’ve actually met and know.  

I understand what you’re up against.   It’s a tough job.  I’m just asking you to take a few more seconds to figure out what the focus and interests of Valley PR Blog are all about.  

I’m not the Godfather.  This is personal, not business.

This is personal, not business

Comments

Pat Elliott Says:
October 14th, 2009 at 11:01 am

Unfortunately, Linda, many of our colleagues work for companies that use antiquated methods to measure performance, including rewarding pitch quantity over quality. For them, sending a blanket pitch that they know isn’t going anywhere isn’t personal either, it’s business… and job security.

Deb Krol Says:
October 16th, 2009 at 5:07 pm

I would add some things: First and foremost, LEARN WHAT THE HECK YOUR PITCHEE COVERS! I can’t tell you how many times I get pitched on areas that I do not cover–it’s like, “Well, she says Indians, that must mean any ethnic issue.” wrongo, bud!

And then when I do try to tell them to take their toys someplace else, I have received some really rude replies–so you not only have pitched the wrong journalist, you’ve now just won a place on my spam list! aargh.

The very worst ones are the ones who you can never, ever get unsubscribed from–this one extreme right-wing so far they’re almost back to the left of the political spectrum publicist’s list for one. I tried unsubscribing from his list several times, only to end right back on it! It wouldn’t be so bad if only he could spell or get his newspapers straight, it’s actually kind of amusing reading about his various clients!

I think that the Southern Law Poverty Center and I are the only folks who aren’t of their narrow political bent who are actually on the list, but I seem to have ended up there because they just love sending me book pitches for books about anti-tribal sovereignty and anti-affirmative action stances. One of them was even a kid’s book about how some people play the “race card” to get ahead in school! Can you imagine the cojones it takes to send something like that out to a Native American journalist who had to work twice as hard to be taken half as seriously? Anyway PR people, take this as a lesson: take the time to study your media targets before hitting send. Lest you, too, become an object of scorn on Valley PR Blog.

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