5 Reasons They’re Ignoring Your Pitch, According to 1,300 Publishers

5 Reasons They’re Ignoring Your Pitch, According to 1,300 Publishers. Neglecting to Do Your Research The most time-consuming aspect of media outreach shouldn’t be the email itself, but researching just where and who to pitch. Seven out of ten publishers reveal one of their top pet peeves is pitches that are irrelevant to them and their beat, so take the time to find the right editor or writer for your content once you’re sure you’ve found the right publication. “Get to know the publications you are pitching to and the people who run them before you pitch. Building potential contacts begins with brainstorming the publications and websites your target audience frequents, then prioritizing them based on who will have the most influence (usually higher authority sites have more readers and engagement). Coming Across as Boring Taking the time to find the best contact and then becoming familiar with that writer’s past work will help you craft a more personal and relevant pitch, which in turn helps you avoid another common publisher pet peeve: boring pitches. “Make it interesting—treat your subject line like it’s a headline.” – Chicago Tribune Further, stand out from a flood of boring and shallow email templates by finding a personal connection with the writer, whether that’s briefly commenting on an article related to the content you’re about to pitch or sharing a quick anecdote about a mutual interest you found on their Twitter bio. While photos are the most commonly published content formats, the demand for data visualizations and infographics are on the rise, according to publishers. “Care about my audience. Meticulous list building, personalizing pitches, and proving the value of your content will help you avoid the common PR pitfalls publishers reported as their biggest pet peeves.

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5 Reasons They're Ignoring Your Pitch

The running joke in our office is, “Pitching isn’t easy.” Ask any PR professional, and they’ll definitely agree. It can be a challenge to build relationships with publications, journalists, and influencers as a means of building brand awareness and reaching a targeted audience. That’s why my team at Fractl surveyed 1,300 publishers across all beats and authorities to get a better understanding of what they’re looking for and what they’re vehemently ignoring.

With only two percent of publishers surveyed admitting they never read pitches, emails going straight to the spam or trash folder shouldn’t be the go-to explanation for your pitching being ignored (though it’s still a possibility). Rather, the answer is a bit more complex and could be due to a variety of factors typically revolving around the pitch itself.

Publishers Reading Pitches

We narrowed it down to the five most likely reasons your pitch is actually being ignored. Here are some insights on how to avoid falling into these all-too-common pitfalls according to 1,300 writers, editors, contributors, and reporters.

1. Neglecting to Do Your Research

The most time-consuming aspect of media outreach shouldn’t be the email itself, but researching just where and who to pitch. Seven out of ten publishers reveal one of their top pet peeves is pitches that are irrelevant to them and their beat, so take the time to find the right editor or writer for your content once you’re sure you’ve found the right publication.

“Get to know the publications you are pitching to and the people who run them before you pitch. Nothing is worse than spending ten minutes on a call when you’re under deadline only to find out it’s completely useless to your readers.”

Wall Street Journal

So what should research entail? Building potential contacts begins with brainstorming the publications and websites your target audience frequents, then prioritizing them based on who will have the most influence (usually higher authority sites have more readers and engagement). It’s essential to have a solid understand of where your target audience lives on the internet to help guide your targeting efforts and get your brand and content in front of the right readers.

Of course, just because a publication may be a good fit for you doesn’t mean you’re a good fit for them; be sure they actually publish third-party content before seeking out the best point of contact for your initial pitch. Besides a cursory site search or browsing through the editorial contacts and archives, tools like BuzzSumo and Cision can help you find the best contact as well as influencers in your vertical. Even social media like Twitter lists can be a huge help in list building.

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