Most journalists receive more than several pitches on a daily basis. And when they’re short on time and skim-reading for the next big scoop, they need a pitch that’s going to stand out. It’s simply impossible for them to review and address every single pitch that lands in their inbox, which is why it’s imperative to have a well-structured message. At Passion we create digital PR and content campaigns for people that we know journalists will want to write about and here we share our top tips to getting their attention.
Every PR professional knows the perfect pitch makes the life of a journalist as easy as possible. When journalists are working on an article, they’re always looking for the next elements — story, visualisation and expert quotes — so the perfect pitch should include as much information as possible.
Here, we’ll go through how to structure your next PR pitch.
Craft A Clickable Subject Line
First of all, you need to have an engaging subject that will make journalists want to open your email in the first place. We recommend including any unique or relevant statistics to entice the reader into reading more. If you’re targeting a specific region, it’s a good idea to make sure your subject line references the local area.
You should also research the publication and journalist you’re targeting. Look at the tone of voice of the publication and try to replicate that in the subject line. Or if you’re trying to reach a specific journalist, look at the kind of stories they typically cover and tailor your pitch towards them.
Craft Your Story With the Right Angle
A good story = newsworthiness + human connection + a unique angle. These are some of the fundamental basics of creating a solid content marketing campaign. You should package your story so it has these three elements while remaining clear about what it is you’re pitching and why it’s relevant for the specific media outlet.
If there are multiple data points, it’s a good idea to feature them as bullet points for easy reading, so the journalist can either easily find the story, or look through the statistics to find their own take on the data you’re presenting.
Include Expert Quotes
Including expert quotes from professionals and industry leaders can often increase your chances of getting extra PR coverage. And in some cases, they can even save a campaign that may be underperforming.
Work with your clients to get a quote that can be attributed back to the company or a spokesperson. Alternatively, you can use an external industry expert to give a quote on the subject and angle you’re targeting. Remember, journalists are always chasing for the exclusive quote — make it easy by handing it to them.
There are plenty of tools available online that PR’s can use to scout quotes. Our favourites are:
- Response Source
- Qwoted
- HARO
- Gorkana Media Requests
- JournoRequests on Twitter
Prepare Your Media Kit
While it’s important to keep your pitch sharp, snappy and simple, it’s equally important to include all your relevant assets like methodology, a full press release, imagery and raw data etc. The easiest way to send this is to create a full media kit in the form of a Dropbox link which you can easily include.
This way, you can keep your email short, sweet and tailored to the specific publication or journalist, while still sending them all the relevant information they need.
It’s important that you research the publication and journalist you’re reaching out to. As previously mentioned, journalists receive their fair share of pitches every single day, so they have an almost sixth sense in their ability to spot a generic pitch that was sent to dozens of other publications.
By angling your email towards the specific person or publication you’re reaching out to, you can hugely increase your chances of securing the coverage you’re looking for.
Of course, this is all in a day’s work for PR professionals. But if you’re just getting started in completing PR for your own business, you might not know where to start. That’s where we come in. At Passion Digital, our Digital PR team are experts at securing the best links for your brand. Get in touch to find out how we can help.