By Arthur Solomon and M.J. Wyatt
Newcomers to the PR business, and also many agency execs, are not adept when dealing with the media. Below are 25 suggestions that will assure that reporters and editors will always know your name and be on the look-out for your pitches.
1. Send your information postage due.
2. Call immediately after you send an e-mail or a fax.
3. Call during a major breaking news story; that will assure you that the editors are at their desks.
4. Make certain that you tell the editor that you have a great story, in case the editor doesn’t know what a great story is.
5. Find out the deadline time of the newsman you are trying to reach and call at that time to ensure he’ll be at his desk.
6. Offer an exclusive to several people in the same department at the same time, and also to competing outlets.
7. Don’t take no for an answer. Tell an editor that they always run similar stories.
8. Tell the editor that you’ll lose the client if the story is turned down.
9. Use Ms. when it should be Mr. and also misspell the editor’s name.
10. If an editor says they’ll get to the story in a couple of weeks and will have a reporter call you, be certain to call every day as a reminder.
11. Call an editor and say, I’ll be faxing an important pitch as soon as I hang up; please be on the lookout for it.
12. Make sure the editor knows that your client wants to approve the story before it is used.
13. Tell the reporter you need a list of questions for your client before he will agree to an interview.
14. Be sure to leave at least a two to three-minute voice mail message as a pitch. The longer, the better.
15. Never familiarize yourself with the editor’s publication, column or blog before you call to pitch the angle or send material.
16. If you think a reporter might be working on a negative story regarding your client, just screen your calls so you never have to come in contact with the reporter.
17. If a reporter asks for follow-up information, don’t bother sending it. He will probably forget about it and do the story with whatever you’ve provided.
18. If your client says something regrettable during the interview, simply ask the reporter not to include it in the story.
19. If you continue to get voicemail when you’re trying to reach an editor, just call back and use a different last digit. You’re bound to get somebody at the outlet. Then ask them to transfer you.
20. Send your background information to the reporter in a transparent plastic envelope or package. So when the reporter says they can’t find the material, and asks you to resend it, you can tell them to take a few minutes and look again because it’s in plain sight.
21. When a reporter publishes a positive story for you but gets a few small initials or phrases not exactly as you’d like it, be sure to send a detailed email asking for a correction. And never thank a reporter for a story well done. They’re used to no one following up after a nice piece – because they know you’ve already moved on.
22. Send a small, token gift to the editor with your pitch. Some clever gizmo that ties in with the story theme. If there is no such gizmo, send a $10 bill. Nothing speaks louder than money. You will not be easily forgotten.
23. If you have been sending inane pitches to editors, they may have put a block against your email so it goes directly into their junk mail. This is easily overcome by using several different G- mail addresses.
24. Never tell the reporter that the facts have changed since you sent background material.
25. If a client complains about a quote in the story, tell the reporter that the client was misquoted and insist on a correction, even though the reporter has it on tape.
Following the above suggestions will guarantee that an editor will never forget who you are when you again call.