Last week I talked about writing press releases and why fear of writing one or not having a release shouldn't stop you from going after publicity.
Got a story? Pick up the telephone. Every day people without a press release get a story covered with a verbal pitch. If you're targeting the right media and you have an interesting timely story, you could get quoted, interviewed or booked on the spot.
Peter Shankman of HARO (helpareporter.com) is on record saying he hates press releases and thinks they're dead. In my view, press releases still have value, but mailing a slew of paper press releases to every media outlet around is probably on life support. Who has time to open all those envelopes? Especially since most releases wind up in the trash bin anyway.
Email releases have pluses and minuses. Yes, they're easy and immediate, but emails do go astray and reporters get a lot of spam. Since most reporters work on tight deadlines and get hundreds of emails every day, if the subject line doesn't catch their eye instantly, the delete button is their best friend.
Most reporters today like email pitches, but every reporter has a preferred way they want to be pitched. Want to know what your target media wants? Check their website and/or telephone them and ask? You want to do everything you can to make it easy for reporters to do their job and easy for them to work with you.
Most people send the release first and then telephone the reporter a few days later to follow up on their interest. Most reporters hate these follow-up calls. Their attitude is - if I wanted to do the story, I'd call YOU. Often all you'll get is their voicemail. It's worth leaving a short message, because sometimes they were interested but the release got buried under the 50 other things they had to do that day, so your call is a nice reminder to dig it out. Only leave one message. Don't call over and over.
I generally like to hear a pitch over the telephone BEFORE someone sends me a release. That's efficient for both parties because it lets each one gauge interest in the story up front and you may get to share some extra give-and-take about the idea and build rapport.
But....phone pitches need to be short and to the point. Make sure your pitch is going to the right person and is something that works for their audience. For example, a TV reporter may be pregnant or getting married so the story speaks to them, but will it fit into their show?
Remember publicity is not advertising. You want to "sell" the idea to the reporter, but you don't want to be too sales-y in your approach.
If the reporter likes what they hear, they may ask for something in writing, before committing to the story. Be ready to send more information in a news release, a fact sheet, a press kit or online link, photos,hand-out b-roll, or to overnight a book or product sample.
As soon as you get off the phone, do it right away. Be prepared to give them whatever they need.
Now when you send an email or a package, the reporter is expecting it. You've gotten their attention and are one step closer to getting your story told.
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