The journalist's day
Put yourself in their shoes; journalists are the life-blood of their publications. It's the content they produce that keeps people browsing the website, reading the magazine, buying the newspaper, listening to the broadcast or watching the television programme. This in turn impacts on the circulation figures and audience reach, and affects the amount of revenue that can be generated by advertising. It's a heck of a responsibility.
So what are journalists looking for and what sort of stories are they likely to use?
Journalists are busy people, so they will be drawn to material which makes their lives easier. They will also receive dozens of press releases and hundreds of pitch emails every day.
Before you send yours ask yourself:
- If you were a journalist, would you consider it worth receiving?
- Is the story newsworthy?
- Is the content relevant to the publication's readers?
- Is it well researched with facts and figures, quotes and sources included to illustrate points?
- Is it objective?
- Is it well written?
- Is it potentially good enough to use just as it is?
- Would you want to read it yourself?
What journalists don't want:
- a company sales pitch
- claims that are not backed up by facts
- stories that are not relevant or of interest to their readers
- unsolicited material in their inboxes
- harassment - by phone or email
- large attachments they haven't asked for.
Different journalists like to be contacted in different ways. Some prefer email. Others won't look at unsolicited emails and would rather receive a quick call. A few sectors still elect to receive paper-based releases and will request electronic copies if they want to use the story. Make sure you find out what is required first and check that your story is relevant to them so that you target your release at the correct correspondent.
PR professionals know they've arrived when journalists start to contact them and/or their clients to request information for potential inclusion in forthcoming features. They do this because they are confident they will be:
- provided with timely material they can use without heavy editing
- given speedy access to relevant spokespeople and third-parties for supporting comment and quotes.