3 Steps To A a Kick-Ass PR Pitch

...And why most of them really suck

Presented By

www.pinegrovepr.com

“I focus on my goals, and try to ignore the rest.”- Venus Williams

Step 1

Pitching with PurposeWhat’s the focus of the pitch?

- Achieve coverage of your business or company

- Introduce yourself/your company to a media outlet

- Provide value (data, sources, opinions)

HOT TIP:Providing valuable, timely

information to a journalist is one of the best ways to create a

relationship with a target publication. Have new

data, sources, or an in-house expert who can weigh

in on a trend? Use them!

Pitching with PurposeHow will you measure pitch success?

- Pieces of coverage

- Website traffic

- Increase in branded searches

- Social media buzz

Watch dem spikes!

Measurement Quick Tips

Extra!

Coverage Tracking- Use a tracking service like

Mention (www.mention.com) to help gather all your press hits and keep tabs on brand coverage.

- If you don’t have budget for a tracking tool, setting Google Alerts can help pick up the biggest pieces.

Website Traffic/Branded Searches- If increased website traffic is

your biggest goal, check Google Analytics for past referral traffic to see what outlets are pushing the most traffic to your site.

- Often, it’s smaller, more niche outlets the provide the most valuable traffic, not the big TechCrunch hits.

- Watch for branded search spikes in addition to increased traffic, oftentimes outlets have rules about linking directly back in articles, so branded search increases can sometimes show traction.

Social Buzz- If you’re looking to make a

splash on social, leverage influencers in your space. Treat them as VIPs and give them a first look at news and features you want them to share.

“No one thinks your baby is as cute as you do.”- Overheard

Step 2

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Remove the BiasAsk yourself the hard questions, because the media definitely will:

- What makes your brand better than others?

- How do you differentiate yourself from your competitors?

- Why should your target outlet care?

In one sentence, Talk about how your Brand is innovating the space, why

what you’re doing matters and who it matters to.

“At FitChip, we’ve developed a stick-on electrode for professional athletes that

measures all vital activities in real time, helps predict future performance, and can head-off potential health risks

before they happen.”

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Remove the Bias Become an expert in your own industry.

Knowing how to pitch properly includes knowing what’s going on

in your market, not only from a competitive standpoint, but also

where you fit into the marketplace from a third-party perspective.

- What are the major trends in your industry?

- How does your company fit into those trends?

- Find the stories you want to be in, and create an unbiased angle to help your brand fit into future stories

“Thou shalt always honor pitching protocol.”- Pinegrove PR

Step 3

Choose Thee Target Wisely- Do your research

- Don’t perpetuate the crappy PR industry reputation by blanket pitching everyone and their mother at TechCrunch.

- Look up prior articles and make sure they’ve recently written on your market/topic/area of focus.

- When you’re convinced you’ve found a relevant contact, you can pitch them. ONCE. A follow-up is acceptable, but trust that the journalist has seen your email, and if he/she isn’t responding, it’s a no.

- Refine your pitch, and potentially research and try another relevant contact, as long as you’ve given enough time for your first target to respond.

Thou Shalt Keep It Short- A paragraph (maybe two) is plenty

- If you can’t sum up your company messaging in a few sentences, it needs to be revised.

- Get to the point. What are you asking for? An interview? Just providing information? Offering up some expert quotes? Tell your recipient within the first few sentences, and then repeat the ask at the end.

- Links are okay, attachments usually aren’t. Unless the journalist asks for an attachment, leave them out. You can paste additional information underneath the signature line, or just simply include a link.

Honor The Golden Rule- Treat them like you’d like to be treated

- Newsflash - journalists are working people just like you and me. Treat them as such. There is nothing wrong with your pitch being a little conversational or (gasp) even controversial and fun to read. Can you imagine skimming dry boring press releases day after day? You’d probably be a little hesitant to open all those unsolicited emails too.

- Honor their time. They’re busy, you’re busy, we’re all busy. Give them relevant, timely, intriguing information and let’s all get on with our day.

- Be available. If you pitch someone, their email should be responded to immediately and your representative should be ready to talk. Make sure you’re prepared.

Quick Pitch Template

Extra!

When in doubt, try this:

Hi [journalist],

My name is [name] and I work with [company name, hyperlinked]. At [company name], we have developed [product/technology] that [main differentiator] for [target audience] helping them to [benefit of use].

I recently read your article on [outlet name] on [subject], and I thought you might be interested in our perspective on [trend]. I’d love to set up a quick 20 minute intro call to have one of our [executive team, experts, clients] talk to you about their thoughts on where the [market, trend, company} is heading. [Optional to add another hook here. We thought your point about xyz was intriguing, but we have a more controversial viewpoint..].

Please let me know if there is a day/time that works best for you.[your name]

Do your research, actually read their

articles

Calling your company the “Uber of XXX” is the lazy person’s way of pitching.

Missteps

Mail merging is the stuff of nightmares - for both parties involved. Just no.

Missteps

Don’t try to tie your company/product/brand to a completely irrelevant holiday just because you

know there will be press pickup.

Missteps

A snappy subject line is great, but a misleading one just pisses everyone off.

Missteps

Don’t be a PR pest. Persistence is admirable, stalking is still criminal.

Missteps

Questions, feedback, loud noises you want to direct our way? Hit us up! www.pinegrovepr.com