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Pitching a story to the media: Day 7
1 Comment | Posted by Kerriann in How to Get Media Attention, Intern journal
I learned a great piece of information today from my supervisor about pitching a story. In regards to assisting with a PR pitch, she let me know that one critical tactic about PR is keeping it brief. Truthfully, it will probably be one of my greatest obstacles in PR. I tend to be long-winded so I will have to be diligent in trying to reduce that.
She advised me it is one of the biggest challenges in pitching. “Saying the most about the story without giving it away. Every character is utilized. Every space, every paragraph is carefully crafted,” she said.
After thinking about it, it makes absolute sense. If you are trying to hype a story in an eight-word subject line, chances are you are missing the meaty content. More often than not the reporter will trash the pitch anyway. Do your best to make it intriguing.
Draw them in and make them interested from the moment they glance at your subject line. Yes, chances are they will only glance at the subject line; therefore it is your responsibility to be creative and informational in as few words as possible. Try to appeal to who they are and the type of stories they cover.
Unsolicited advice from me to you day 7: After trying to come up with a pitch subject line today, I realize that it wouldn’t hurt me to practice when I have some free time. So, the next time you have a few spare minutes or are lounging and watching TV I recommend brainstorming on some subject lines for practice.
1 Comment for Pitching a story to the media: Day 7
First Pitch – Euro RSCG Worldwide PR | June 6, 2012 at 11:04 AM
[...] in which newsworthy material is presented. For me, the most difficult thing to grasp is how to get to the point in my writing. I have always had a tendency to begin with elaborate introductions and use [...]