The New Rules For Successfully Landing Media Coverage

This truly is a new age in the public relations and media world. The Internet has turned the communication world on its head. Many say it heralds the end of traditional media, but I believe what is actually happening is not the death throws of one form of media, but a morphing of different forms of communications. This new media world is still young, but, when the dust settles, it will result in the advent of a new, more exciting and more robust media and communications world.

One of the upsides of the net, social media and blogs, is that you can now learn so much about writers, editors and producers that you are pitching. You can learn their interests and study their writings Now, when you pitch a story, you can have a much better take on whether your pitch is appropriate or off-base. You can still call or email to make sure you're making an appropriate pitch, but the information that the Internet now puts at your fingertips makes it much easier to be prepared and go in with the right pitch.

This type of homework does take some time, but that is one of the many changes in the world of PR and media relations. Instead of sending out hundreds of emails and packages hoping that a few hit the right target, which, sadly, is how things happen much of the time, the savvy approach is to pick a small number of media contacts, do your research and make more focused targeted pitches.

With That In Mind The New Rules For Pitching The Media Are:

1) Develop a strong pitch for your product or service.

2) Don't just make it a sales pitch, come up with a story

3) Study various media outlets that would be appropriate to pitch your story to

4) Find specific writers and producers that work at those media outlets

5) Go online, find articles, blogs or segments they've done and study their work.

6) Make a list of between 25 to 30 journalists to pitch

7) Tailor your release and a cover letter to each particular journalist's needs and interests

8) Send out your pitch via email or mail. Sometimes snail mail is more effective.

9) Wait a day or two and make follow-up calls.

10) Don't use the calls to sell, but to build relationships.

Effective PR is all about communication. If you communicate your story and pitch effectively and appropriately, you might not land a story with each pitch, but you will build strong relationships with the media. They will see you as a resource who understands their needs and their market. Take the time to understand what the media is looking for and you're positioning yourself for success.

Copyright © Anthony Mora 2010

I'm Anthony Mora, President and CEO of Anthony Mora Communications, Inc. and author of Spin to Win. We specialize in public relations, image development, media training and Transformational Marketing, http://anthonymora.com.

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The Secrets to Successfully Landing Media Coverage

One of the biggest mistakes companies make when launching a PR campaign is that they approach the media as one huge unified organization. When it comes to approaching the media, keep in mind that there is no one media outlet. You are not pitching one story, nor are you pitching one media source. To be successful you need to be developing a number of different stories to pitch to a variety of different media outlets. Each media source has needs and interests that are specific to it. For example, what is going to interest the Wall Street Journal will be different than what will interest People, just as a pitch that could grab Oprah's attention won't be the same one you'd use to land a story in Playboy. The primary secret to a successful PR campaign is to focus on what the various media outlets need and pitch each outlet accordingly.

Develop your primary story: Your basic story may well stay somewhat the same, but you need to modify the pitch to meet the needs of each magazine, newspaper, radio show and TV outlet. Develop a number of secondary pitch ideas: if you're really going to be successful, you're going to want to develop a number of story ideas. Don't always stick with the obvious story. If you're launching a new beauty product, or a new technology product chances are you're going to want to focus 100% on the new product. Of course that is your primary pitch, but if you stop there, you're narrowing the media bulls-eye.

Is there a trend story connected to your product? Is there a client who's life you've changed who is willing to tell his or her story to the media? Is there a business-oriented story you could develop? Is there a human interest story that has to do with how the product was developed? Is there a seasonal or holiday story? The list continues. Take some time, brainstorm, be creative.

After you've developed your stories your next step is to create an appropriate, targeted media list. Now combine the two, match the various pitches to the appropriate media outlets. Don't pitch a sportswriter a beauty story and don't pitch a business magazine a warm and fuzzy human interest story. Study the various media outlets out there. Learn what they need. Read, watch and listen to the stories they run. Educate yourself. Create compelling stories, a targeted media list and a strong pitch. Now you're set; launch an effective, successful media campaign and watch your business grow.

Copyright © Anthony Mora 2009

Anthony Mora
President & CEO

Anthony Mora began his media career as a freelance journalist for such publications as Us, Rolling Stone and other local and national publications. He also served as editor-in-chief of two Los Angeles-based entertainment and lifestyle-oriented publications. In 1990, Anthony formed Anthony Mora Communications, Inc. a Los Angeles-based media relations company that specializes in media placement, image development, and media training. AMC Inc. has placed clients in: Time, Newsweek, 60 Minutes, CNN, The Wall Street Journal, The Oprah Winfrey Show, The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, and other local, national, and international media outlets. ! Anthony has been featured in: USA Today, Newsweek, The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, The Wall Street Journal, The BBC, CNN, Entrepreneur, Fox News, MSNBC, and other media. He has written three books. The most recent, "Spin to Win," is a step-by-step guide on how to define goals and utilize the power of the media to achieve success in any field.

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