Developing Solid, Lasting Media Contacts

You may already have PR strategies in place, or you may be just starting out. Either way, the name of the game is contacts: identifying the media outlets to target, and uncovering which reporters, editors and producers to pitch. How do you find them? For starters, read the appropriate trade and consumer magazines.

To ensure that your public relations placements will be noticed by the appropriate audience, make sure you read all appropriate industry, trade and consumer publications. Identifying publications to target will lead you to the right reporters, editors and producers. In addition to reading trade magazines and newsletters, also visit the right industry websites. All of this “research” can help you better understand distribution issues, what retailers are looking for, what new trends are pending, how to approach advertising to your market, and other “insider” information.

Read consumer magazines to:

1. assess their editorial content for suitability to your objectives;
2. get a better picture on advertisers and the angles those advertisers use to reach their market, and
3. assess the messages these publications disseminate to their audiences.

Note which kinds of topics, angles and trends are getting the most coverage, what subjects are regularly referred to in columns, and what the readers’ concerns are.

You will increase your odds of appearing in any publication if you give its respective editors what they want. You will not get your story told if the editor or publisher feels that your story will not help sell copies or subscriptions, or not increase advertising. If you can’t take the time to look into this, hire someone who can do it for you. Otherwise you are wasting valuable time and losing important opportunities.

You also need to learn what type of articles specific reporters are writing. If you want to initiate a successful public relations campaign (and of course you do!) you must charge yourself and all employees and friends with the task of sending you clips of stories they see in publications that are, directly or indirectly, related to your business sector. Then use these stories to your advantage.

For example, let’s say you saw a story about one of your competitors. You immediately know that this reporter is interested in your business segment. This is a door left open and an opportunity for you to initiate a conversation with that journalist! The easiest way to initiate contact with a reporter is to say: “I read that article you wrote and thought it was (choose one or more: thought-provoking, informative, balanced, well-written, etc.) Considering your interest in this topic, I thought you might also like to know (explain how your business or the story you are telling fits in)…”

They may not be immediately responsive. They may say: “I’m finished with that story.” That’s fine. You have let them know that you are a future resource who can broaden their story. If you are really clever, and call well-prepared with several bullet-pointed story angles, you might just be able to convince them that there is a worthwhile follow-up story. Clever is the key word here—you never want to imply that the reporter or his or her story was lacking. Rather, you want to provide the reporter with angles for additional coverage on the topic or become a resource for future stories in your arena.

When you read magazines and newspapers, watch television or listen to the radio—listen and read consciously to find topics that can connect you with writers and editors.

Track down the right reporter…
To get a story its day in print, you might have to contact four, five or even more editors at a newspaper before you find one who will listen to your pitch. Many times we send information out to multiple editors, and follow up with them many, many times before we get coverage. However, take it from me, persistence pays royally! If you believe your story is worthy of print, keep calling until you find the right reporter or editor. Sometimes one section of a newspaper or magazine will reject your news release, while another will enthusiastically accept it. Rejections don’t mean that the publication is not appropriate for your story. It may just mean you have not yet found the right reporter.

Don’t discount freelance writers. To get your story into a newspaper or magazine, it pays to track down those freelance writers who write articles—especially frequent articles—for the particular publication you’re targeting. Look for freelancers who specialize in writing about subjects related to your company or business sector.

When you find published news or feature articles in your area of business, begin making lists of every reporter and publication covering your topics. Soon you will have accumulated a healthy media list of likely candidates, since reporters tend to write on topics that are similar in their preferred genre—health, money, fitness, technology, sports, new trends, medicine, etc.

Search for and read your competitor’s press releases.
Quite often, in ways that you may not have noticed, your competitors distinguish themselves through distinctive descriptors or key words they use in their news releases.

A smart way to unearth reporters covering your sector is to look for key words found in your competitors’ press releases. Input them into search engines, and you will discover who is using their releases, which gives you another opportunity to expand on these stories. And, once you have the reporter’s name and publication, you are on your way to a new contact who might be interested in highlighting you and your company in their next story.

A suggestion here: Google and google often. Use Google’s comprehensive search engine to quickly find out which reporters are covering topics like yours.