Pitching Successfully in the ‘News-You-Can-Choose’ Media Environment
By Linda Descano and Ellen Mallernee for PRNews
Today’s news media environment is a direct reflection of consumers’ preference for a choose-your-adventure style of news consumption. For the most part, consumers choose where, how and from whom they get news.
This means they may wind up at very different places. The mix of news people choose is as unique as they are.
Start with social media—most people do these days—and the news you’re served is very different than if you get headlines from the website of a trusted publication or television.
While this means more autonomy for consumers, it’s enough to drive marketers and brand communicators mad when it comes time to place a story. Accordingly, we must pitch differently in today’s news-you-can-choose media environment. Here are tactics media relations pros are finding useful.
Pitch for People, Not Companies
Brand marketers have an agenda—they want to sell products. However, a company’s agenda likely won’t interest audience members, much less journalists, if it isn’t rooted in purpose. When the response to your pitch is so what? you haven’t done your job.
Instead, from the outset consider crafting pitches that matter. This ensures how your brand influences people is the heart of a story. Include data, facts and other tangible examples of how your pitch’s content is important to a media member’s audience.
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