How to Pitch to Journalists in the Social Media Age
By Ashton Blatz | October 27, 2021
One of the biggest complaints about the social media age is that it takes away from personal interactions with others, but in public relations, this is not the case. While it used to be standard practice to send out mass, non-personalized pitches to journalists, social media has altered the way PR agents interact with journalists. Nowadays, if a journalist receives a standardized email with no personality, it will be left unanswered.
To people new to PR, sending out a copy-and-paste email may sound like a good idea. It’s easy, it has the information the journalist will need, and it will reach a lot of people. The problem with these kinds of emails is that they don’t stand out. They’re boring and noticeably low effort.
So, how do you make a pitch interesting and get the attention of journalists?
Journalists are people just like anyone else, so think about how you would get someone’s attention who you’ve never met. Here’s a hint: start the conversation with something about them. Find out what topics they usually cover, their interests and hobbies, and anything else than can give your email a personal touch. Learning about the journalist you are pitching to can also strengthen your relationship with them for future interactions.
The best part is that all of this information can be found simply by finding the journalist’s social media accounts. You can find the journalist’s social media links on their bio if they work for a specific outlet, by looking up their name, or by finding their website if they have one.
After you find this information, you can start the email with telling the journalist how much you liked their most recent article or what you think about something they just tweeted. Tell them why you think the information in your pitch would benefit them specifically. And don’t send the same email out to everyone. Personalize it for each journalist and you will have a much higher chance of getting a response.
Social media means that everyone’s information is easily accessible. If you won’t put in the small amount of time to research the journalist you are pitching to, then why should they put in the time to read and respond to your email. If you take the time to learn about the person you are pitching to, it will greatly increase how many responses you receive and improve your relationship with that person.
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Author’s Bio: Ashton Blatz is a CSUN student studying journalism with an emphasis in Public Relations. He has a passion for working with the LGBTQ community and hopes to have a career working for a LGBTQ nonprofit. During his free time, Ashton enjoys reading, writing, and playing video games.