WHAT JOURNALISTS WANTHow to build relationships, deliver remarkable content,

get journalists to cover your organization, and ace a tough interview.

Lawrence Ragan

Communications, Inc.

SPONSORED BY:

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CONTENTSIntroduction

Your online newsroom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1

Before you pitch: relationship building . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Pitching . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Press releases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Acing the interview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11

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INTRODUCTIONA producer at an ABC affiliate in upstate New York occupies a different niche in the media ecosphere from that of a London-based editor at Reuters News. But when it comes to pitching reporters, their advice is similar.

Journalists are swamped. Their inboxes are overflowing. They don’t have time for off-topic pitches or information-choked emails. Cut to the chase.

“Just tell me what you want,” says Larissa Hall, digital content manager at 13WHAM in upstate New York. “‘I want this guest on your morning show. I want this big opening covered. I want you to send cameras to this place at this time.’”

Adds Mark Jones, the London-based Reuters global communities editor: “The thing that really gets journalists’ goat is the kind of unsolicited and irrelevant media release plugging up their inbox. ... You can see from Twitter what [journalists] are interested in. It takes a few seconds. It allows you the option to focus your distribution list on people who are most likely to run with the story.”

It can be a humbling experience to promote a story angle you know is great but can’t get reporters to look at. It gives you a leg up if you act like a pro.

Here’s how to reach out to media outlets, interact with journalists, and ace that interview.

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YOUR ONLINE NEWSROOMThese days, reporters tend to find sources through search engines. Yet organizations arrange their sites as if journalists were typing your URL into a browser, says Andrew Davis, author of “Brandscap-ing.” When members of the media find you, the search engine may lead them in through a back door, via LinkedIn, Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, news stories, or blogs.

That means changing the way you approach your newsroom—and your website. You need rich con-tent optimized for search, drawing bloggers, reporters, editors, and producers to you and your quot-able experts.

“Not making simple, obvious visual material available at the point at which you interest a journalist is kind of unforgiveable in 2014,” Mark Jones says. “And yet most people do.”

If you want the ink, give reporters, editors, and producers what they want. The following will help build both your relationships with journalists you know and your SEO with those searching for sources:

• A REAL CONTACTS PAGE. Include phone numbers. Check your SEO by Googling yourself, using phrases like “Acme Inc. media contacts” and “Acme press contacts.” (Most journalists won’t use the term “newsroom” to describe your corporate newsroom.) A Pulitzer Prize-winner at a major Ameri-can paper wants to tear his hair out when all he finds is an email address or, worse yet, a Web form, which leaves him uncertain of whether his message really went through. He recognizes that PR is a tough job, he says, and he respects those who do it well. But often publi-cists are hard to reach when there’s a fast-breaking story. “Generally,” he says tartly, “ if I leave an email stating my urgency, I hear back four days or so later from some apologetic flack, hoping that the response is not too late.” Make it easy to reach you.

• MEANINGFUL BOILERPLATE. Want a reporter to click away and search for a competitor without even calling you? Scrub all significant information from your “about us” page (location, size, reve-nue, number of employees). Mask your business in mystical blather. Then you may end up with a description like this: “Our mission is to serve by manifesting a shift in the retail paradigm—one in which beauty, experience, and magic are composed onto a revolutionary platform...” So what does the above company do? It sells carpets (not magic ones) and home design. A bewil-dering array of organizations won’t even tell you where they are headquartered or describe their business in terms a reporter would use. Think of how a reporter might describe you (“Telefónica, a Spanish telecommunications company...”). Crank out a description along those lines.

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• A HIGH-RESOLUTION IMAGE GALLERY. Not only do many organizations fail to provide these, the images they do post often don’t meet the media’s quality standards. Why pictures? Because they are heavily shared and turn up high in searches. Jeremy Porter of the marketing agency Definition 6 recalls his first job out of college, representing a toilet manufacturer. A dud of a client, he thought. But when he and a photographer visited the factory, they found a quality-control guy inspecting thousands of toilets lined up on the floor. The photographer shot a picture, and the Associated Press distributed it worldwide, spreading the brand name in a way a press release never could have.

• VIDEO. TV and other media with declining staffs are increasingly interested in using B-roll, or raw footage of factory floors, hospital staff at work, or other areas of interest. Eighty-one percent of bloggers and traditional media post outside video, affording an “opportunity for communicators including placement of unedited video on media websites,” according to D S Simon Productions’ 2014 Web Influencers Survey. Chrysler makes it easy to download HD video, says Ed Garsten, a former CNN correspondent and bureau chief who heads Chrysler Digital Media. The stories help TV reporters decide whether the visuals are sufficient “to cover stories or, frankly, cannibalize what we’ve done, and pull a video or some sound bite.”

• EMBED CODES. Media outlets want readers and viewers to watch video on their own websites. That means that if you want an outlet to use your video, offer embed codes.

• INFOGRAPHICS. Infographics are a great way to spread your brand or research on the Internet. Coca-Cola has a liberal reuse policy for infographics. It successfully pitched a graphic about its #5by20 program, through which the company seeks to empower women, to the Daily Beast. The graphic was also a success on social media.

• OPTIMIZE FOR MOBILE. Journalists don’t live behind desks. They search for information on the scenes of fires, shootings, conferences and sporting events. When a crisis such as a hurricane takes out power and Internet access, they file updates and access websites through their smartphones. Many journalists also report live from industry events, such as a technology conference or product launch. Make it easy on them by using responsive design. Besides, it’s just plain smart to do so. More than a billion people own a smartphone and access the Web through handheld devices, says Ashley Brown, who leads digital communications and social media for The Coca-Cola Company. Simplify your design and be concise, remembering that people are reading your copy on a small screen.

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• USEFUL BLOGS AND STORIES. By contracting with writers to create content, U.S. Waterproofing increased visits to its website thirtyfold, to 30,000 a month, in just 17 months. Stories that boost your SEO also bring journalists in search of experts to quote. But avoid copy choked with boosterish prose, industry jargon, and silly superlatives. Stumped for story or video ideas? Rewrite your press releases to read like stories, and lead with a person, rather than the product. Gather ideas from your sales staff or customer service warriors: What are your most frequently asked questions? Answer them. Google auto-fills are another great source of ideas.

• EXPERT PROFILES. Post bios and descriptions of your executives and other sources. Include video clips, speeches, and interviews (both in-house and media) so TV producers can determine whether your experts would have a good on-air presence. Add high-resolution photos, and link to articles, books, and white papers they have written to help draw searchers to your experts. For example, Anders Jeppsson, global head of gaming at BlackBerry in Malmö, Sweden, raises his profile and SEO by linking from a bio page to company information, organizational videos, media stories, and other content.

• BRAND JOURNALISM. This is a far bigger topic than can be dealt with in a bullet point, but much of the above content can be offered in a journalistic style. Brand journalism isn’t just a way to tell your story to the public. It is also speaks directly to the media in language more compelling than a press release. One huge success is HSBC Global Connections, which resembles an online magazine and interests both customers and journalists in topic areas such as Europe, Asia-Pacific, Finance, and Market Entry. Intel and GE have also learned to tell their stories in ways that resemble tradi-tional media coverage. One way to practice this is to cover your customers. MasterCard Netherlands is creating videos about customers, such as Het Vlaamsch Broodhuys bakeries, which have gone cashless. The story was followed up well by the media because of the video, according to Weber Shandwick, which designed the content strategy for MasterCard.

• SHARE BUTTONS. In the age of social media, it’s essential to make it easy for people (including reporters) to share your content on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, and other platforms. But don’t stop at blog posts. Add social and email sharing to increase visibility for all your content, from press releases and video clips to executive bios and blog posts.

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BEFORE YOU PITCH: RELATIONSHIP BUILDINGMAKE YOUR TWITTER OR LINKEDIN FEED A GO-TO SOURCE

You’d love to be a go-to source for your industry. But do your Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and other social media accounts reflect that? Are you tweeting a string of “hooray for us” product announce-ments? Why would a reporter follow that?

How about your personal Twitter account? Is it all foodie photos or lamentations over that epic fail by the local sports team? Or are you making yourself a source in your industry?

Ninety-two percent of journalists mine social media for story ideas, according to the D S Simon Productions survey. The most successful communications professionals use their social media to provide information that interests journalists, says Drake Martinet, head of platform for Vice News and a former associate editor at The Wall Street Journal’s “All Things Digital.”

Tweet industry developments, innovations, and tips. Speak in a human, non-corporate voice. Avoid spin and jargon. Journalists aren’t asking that you forget who you work for, but if it’s a stream of marketing-speak, nobody’s going to follow you.

On LinkedIn, an organization’s page offers messaging possibilities many don’t fully exploit, says Lori Russo, managing director of Stanton Communications. The header image is a billboard that journal-ists will see. If you have a new campaign, product, or senior leader, change your image to include it. Add tags for your products and services. Again, post your videos, white papers, and case studies, and get your executives to do the same.

ENGAGING WITH JOURNALISTS ON SOCIAL MEDIA

When some reporters work a story, they throw out a question on Twitter, such as, “What are the most important breakthroughs in the medical industry?” Follow reporters—and make lists of your most important targets—so you know what they’re talking about. Be the first responder. If you dawdle, someone else gets the mention.

Don’t be shy about reaching out to journalists, says Sree Sreenivasan, a Columbia University adjunct professor and cheif digital officer of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Reporters essentially are doing the same thing when they try to get a source to comment. First, cultivate a relationship.

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“One day, follow them,” he says. “Another day retweet them. Then eventually ask them for something. But if the first time they ever hear from you is a request, they’re more likely to ignore you.”

If you’re going to retweet someone, don’t just click the retweet button. Instead, quote them in a tweet of your own, and include “RT” or “MT” and their @ handle. Tell your followers why the tweet matters, or even just add “Yes!” or “I agree.”

“Don’t always be an asker,” Sreenivasan says. “Be a giver. Be part of the ecosystem and participate. If a journalist makes a request, respond to them even when it’s not [about] your client. … But if it’s just ‘me, me, me, and my client,’ you’re not going to get a lot of traction.”

In other words, be helpful. Jones, the Reuters editor, recalls how, when his wife was out of town a few years ago, he spilled red wine on a new kitchen surface, staining it. Yikes! Luckily, his wife wasn’t on Twitter, so he tweeted seeking ideas to help clean up. A PR pro replied with a solution. (It involved lemon.)

“A few days later, the same person rang me up and came on to me with an exclusive of some social media research,” Jones says. “And I just thought it was a fantastic way of public relations people behaving. Help journalists in trouble out. Find out what he’s interested in, and then serve up a little exclusive.”

Adds Zach Seward, senior editor of Quartz: “The most reliable way to reach a journalist is with an @ mention on Twitter. You may or may not get a response, but you’re pretty reliably going to be seen.”

MONITORING HASHTAGS

Patrick Garmoe, social media strategist for PureDriven, says many reporters monitor the Twitter hashtags of topics that interest them. They mine nuggets of information, story ideas, and sources.

“I know that they’re looking for information; they’re seeking it out,” Garmoe says. “But they’re seeking out the experts, the people who are hard to track down, because those are the ones that they need to talk to.”

Garmoe also has a list of PR tools and helpful websites on his blog.

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TARGETING THE RIGHT REPORTER

Off-topic pitches have annoyed journalists from time immemorial, and many PR pros still aren’t familiarizing themselves with specific journalists’ interests. Before pitching reporters or bloggers, read their work. Twitter makes this easy nowadays.

This sounds like a no-brainer, but it bears restating. Beth J. Harpaz, a travel editor for the Associated Press, is swamped with emails announcing hotel openings, even though the AP doesn’t cover open-ings. Yet some travel publicists apparently haven’t figured that out.

If the AP assigned a reporter to every hotel opening, that would be all it writes about. Rather, the wire service does big-picture stories, such as the start of ski season, or a piece on Jackie Robinson destinations in Brooklyn, pegged to the release of the movie “42.”

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PITCHINGMAKE IT HUMAN

Is email dead? Not if you’re pitching to bloggers and mainstream media. Twitter may allow you a chance to chat, but like most reporters, David Pogue of Yahoo Tech and PBS’ “Nova” prefers email. But please, be succinct.

“Make the whole thing a half screen,” he says. “Make it human—not artificial. Get to the point. Tell me what you’ve got, the price, and when it’s coming out.”

Pogue receives about 150 emails every day (not counting spam), and if an email fits certain criteria, he responds. Otherwise, he doesn’t have time. Nothing personal.

The AP’s Twitter feeds are reserved for posting stories, not conversation, Harpaz says. If you want to pitch a story, use email.

Follow the news in case there are opportunities. If something big is happening in travel, chances are the AP will have a follow-up story on it, Harpaz says. The AP wrote about travel safety following a series of rapes in India and assaults in Rio de Janeiro. Harpaz quoted several sources offered by alert PR pros who were following the news and had clients with something relevant to say.

Reporters remember those who have helped them, particularly when you’re not pitching your own client. Harpaz says that if you’ve helped the reporter find a source in the past, she at least owes you a hearing on your pitch.

THE SUBJECT LINE

A few years back, a political reporter at a major U.S. daily was delighted by what was then a new feature on Outlook Express: those little pop-up windows announcing incoming email included a delete button. Now he could trash irrelevant or off-beat pitches and press releases without opening them.

It’s harsh, but the battle for journalists’ attention starts with your subject line. Don’t miss this chance to grab the reporter, editor, or blogger.

Successful subject lines follow rules similar to those of headlines. The good ones:

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• Thrive on brevity• Demand strong verbs• Omit needless words• Leave out unessential detail• Force you to think, “What am I sharing?”

A few tips from the pros:

BE SPECIFIC. 13WHAM’s Hall gets floods of emails with vague subject lines, such as, “Mother’s Day is around the corner!” (Sure is. Delete.) Better: “100-year-old grandma to run Mother’s Day marathon.” USE “YOU.” The word “you” can boost open rates, when you connect the subject to a benefit. Not, “You are not going to believe the latest news on subject lines,” but, “How your subject lines can make you famous.”

THINK SEO. Add keywords from your pitch and the reporter’s topic areas to boost the open rate.

EXPLAIN “WHAT’S IN IT FOR ME?” That is, what’s in it for the journalist and the media outlet’s readers or viewers? This is essential for the body of your pitch, as well.

KEEP IT SHORT. Many experts advise you to keep your subject line to 50 characters or fewer. Bear in mind that the last few words of a long subject line may not display unless the recipient opens the email.

THE BODY OF THE PITCH

The ideal email is a short paragraph explaining what you’d like the reporter to cover, Pogue says. Here are two he liked:

• David, I see that you’ve been covering digital cameras a lot. Wondering if you’d be interested in one that shoots underwater and costs less than $100? Press release is below. Contact me if you have any questions.

• David, my client sells a laptop that can be dropped from six feet, get dunked in water, and survive in 300-degree heat. Let me know if you’re interested.

There’s no fluff to wade through. In an instant he knows the gist. Also, he says, make sure your contact information is easy to find.

Holly Zuluaga, a former reporter who is a senior account executive for Raffetto Herman Strategic

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Communications, writes that you must answer these questions:

• Why should I care? Journalists are looking for stories that have an impact on their readers.

• Why now? A news story must have “today value” and demonstrate urgency.

• How is this new? If there’s not a new angle, it’s not enough to say, “I saw your story about X, you should write about my company, too.”

• What can you offer? Sources? Visuals? B-roll or photos?

The question of what you can offer is an important one. Whether you’re pitching a gadget or an inter-view with your executive, video makes the point that something is visually interesting or a source will be articulate on camera.

PR pros who have a journalism background know the rhythm of a news day. Still, there is always the one who didn’t get the memo and calls right on deadline. At an a.m. daily, the newsroom becomes busier as the day progresses and deadline approaches. You’re better off sending that email in the morning.

Should you follow up with a call? Pogue says no, never. He’s swamped. No time. Many reporters agree, although less-famous journalists may be more open to a follow-up. If you’ve built a solid relationship with a reporter—say, they have used your ideas or sources in the past—it’s easier to call. Either way, Hall of 13WHAM says bluntly, “Don’t stalk anyone.”

If you do call, the best time depends on the medium. Reporters for a.m. papers are generally at their desks by 9 a.m. or 10 a.m. For TV, it depends on the show. Reporters and producers who work on morning shows, airing at 5 a.m. or 6 a.m., start work at 10:30 p.m. the night before, says Hall. Call at 9 a.m., and they’ll already be back home in bed.

Evening TV producers get in at 9 a.m. and tend to have a meeting right away. A good time to call is at 10 a.m., after the meeting, yet before the day gets crazy. Assignment desks are best to reach around 6:30 a.m., when they’re putting together the day’s schedule. Weekend events are harder to pitch, coming when most media are short-staffed. Yes, you had to hold that river cleanup on a weekend when volunteers could show up. But that reasonable choice means fewer reporters are available to drop by your event.

That said, a great time to pitch is on holidays, Hall says. Banks are closed, sources are out, and nobody’s calling reporters back. All of a sudden that press release starts looking pretty good.

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PRESS RELEASESWHAT TO INCLUDE

Great. You’ve interested the press. Reporters are opening your email. They want more, and they turn to your press release. Make sure it’s written in a jar-gon-free voice that answers the same questions your pitch does (i.e., why should I care?).

When speaking to reporters, don’t spin. Speak with the facts. Braggadocio (“We’re the best darned floor wax on the planet”) is unlikely to get quoted. Back up your claims.

Link to a landing page with all your rich media content on the topic. Also, link to your video content. (You did produce a video, didn’t you?) While you’re at it, always list contact numbers on press releases. You’d be amazed how many organizations don’t bother.

One reporter for a New York daily asks, “Do companies or government agencies think news organizations will just print a press release without asking any follow-up questions?”

20 WORDS NEVER TO USE IN A PRESS RELEASE

Michael Smart, principal at MichaelSmartPR, once got together

with Pogue, then a New York Times technology columnist, and

drew up a list of “cursed words” and hype phrases that undermine

your credibility .

Take it from them . Steer clear of these:

• Landmark

• Revolutionary

• Groundbreaking

• Breakthrough

• Turnkey

• State-of-the-art

• Best in class

• Cutting-edge

• Leading-edge (we’ll add “bleeding-edge”)

• Best of breed

• Awe-inspiring

• Decadent

• Sumptuous

• Breathtaking

• Extraordinary

• World-renowned

• World-class

• Stunning

• Beautiful

• Dramatic

Reporters read these phrases many times a day in pitches and

press releases . These are the PR equivalent of a guy sidling up to a

woman at the bar and saying, “Hey, there, I’m the handsomest

dude you’ll ever meet .”

Yes, there are exceptions to any rule . Use these if you wish . Just

don’t say we didn’t warn you .

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ACING THE INTERVIEWSo you’ve got an interview scheduled. Maybe this is great news—a chance to promote your product. Or maybe you’re dealing with a crisis. Either way, manage expectations candidly.

Let’s say you’re a spokesperson for a city or a power utility bracing for a storm. Mitigate the crisis beforehand with a frank assessment, says Gerard Braud, a media coach and former network TV reporter.

Say: “You will lose creature comforts. You will not have electricity. There will be no heat. There will be no air conditioning. You will have no water. You will have no ice. Get out of town.”

YouTube is the second-most-powerful search engine on the planet. Want your spin on that refinery fire to turn up in a search? Don’t “corporately sanitize” the title of your video. Call a fire a fire, not “an event in which something got warm and caused flickering images,” Braud says.

Lee Gordon, director of corporate communications at 180 Communications and a former TV reporter, offers these tips:

TAKE CONTROL. If you work at a company, put your executive or expert source in front of a back-ground with your logo. Make sure the interviewee is wearing the corporate shirt. Don’t let the reporter move the interview into a corner.

CHARM WORKS, BUT BE SUBTLE. Shake hands with the reporter, and don’t forget the photogra-pher or videographer. Mention a story that you liked. Gordon recalls how well Florida Gov. Charlie Crist played a live interview. Just before the cameras started rolling, he told Gordon, “That story you did about the high school player with one arm? That was awesome.”

PRACTICE. Grab the newspaper, and read it out loud. Overcome the awkwardness you feel when somebody walks up and sticks a camera or tape recorder in your face.

REMEMBER YOUR POSTURE. If you stand, don’t sway. If you sit, don’t jiggle your legs. A TV interview takes five minutes. You can do it. Also, look at the reporter, not the camera.

STAY ON MESSAGE. The average story is 1:05 minutes, minus the intro and signoff. The average sound bite is 12 to 17 seconds long. Keep it terse, and keep hitting your key points.

IF YOU STUMBLE, COUGH. This works only in prerecorded TV interviews, but if you find yourself rambling, sabotage the shot. Cough, apologize, then say, “Sorry, would you mind asking me that

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question again?” Then say it better. TV can’t use that coughing quote. Just don’t turn into a tubercu-losis patient, though, or they’ll be on to you.

DON’T FILL IN SILENCES. Pausing and waiting is every reporter’s favorite technique. Don’t fill awk-ward silences with nervous blather.

NEVER SAY, “NO COMMENT.” It looks like you’re hiding something. Say, “I understand you’ve got a job to do, but I can’t talk about that,” or, “I’m the wrong person to ask.”

IF YOU DON’T KNOW, SAY SO. Don’t answer a question you’re uncomfortable with. Say, “When is your deadline? I don’t know that information right now. Let me get back to you.” Then, actually do it.

FOLLOW UP. If you like the story or found it fair, then tweet or email to thank the reporter (and the photographer or camera operator). Reporters get knocked all the time. Gratitude they’ll remember.

Working with the media doesn’t have to be limited to a discouraging round of phone pitches to impa-tient reporters and editors. Beef up your online newsroom. Become a digital source. Don’t always beg, but help the media out. Promote their content. Add value. Offer content that lures journalists. Write pitches and press releases as if you’re speaking to fellow humans. You’ll notice the difference.

YOUR PR TOOLS DON’T JUST NEED TO WORK.

THEY NEED TO WORK TOGETHER.

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