Top Tips to Pitching to the Media

Are you ready to pitch to the media? You have made the smart decision of using PR to get your message across to the media. First, let me congratulate you on this point! This is a big step in the right direction of growing your media exposure!

By now you have probably sat down and looked at your topic, have fully developed your message and are confident and ready to start getting yourself out there. The obvious next step is to really get out there and start pitching to the media!

Here Marsha shares with us a few quick tips on how to effectively pitch to the media!

1. Never pitch yourself. When you get in contact with the media, dont pitch your company or YOUR qualifications. Marsha says, Focus your pitches on THE ISSUE that you are an expert on. If you are a doctor specializing in natural health pitch a show idea or story about the 10 foods that will fight off illness during the flu season.

By pitching the issue you get the producer or journalist interested in your story first. What they want are hot, newsworthy topics that will grab and hold the interest of their viewers and readers, they do not want to be sold to.

2. Be careful not to pitch your product. If you are a product manufacturer it is very important that when you are pitching to the media that you do not focus the pitch on your companys product or service.

Marsha says, If you have a product or service, focus your pitch on the problem that your product or service solves. If you produce a line of gourmet cookies pitch a show or story about the value of quality family time and offer tips on how moms and dads can share baking time with their children. Again, producers and journalists shy away from pitches that sound like infomercials and it is an instant turn-off to their audience.

3. Supply facts to the media. Although the media will do their own homework - dont rely solely on the results of their research. Marsha says, Supply them with your data in advance . This is especially important if your topic is controversial as you want them to have the data that supports your position. When you are pitching it is useful to have as many facts ready to use as possible.

A busy producer may not be willing to take the time to hear your story if it is explained in a difficult to understand manner. The more time you save explaining, the more time you can spend pitching the benefits of having you as a guest or featured on their pages.

4. Phone a friend. If you are topic is controversial then have some like minded friends or colleagues that can join you when you are a guest for backup. Marsha says, If youre pitching a controversial topic to a radio or TV show, select the guests you want to appear with you.

With this group you will have a better handle on the segment and have people with you that will support your message. This helps you gain acceptance with the audience. If you do not have suggested guests to pitch to the producer, and they pick it up, you may just be setting yourself up for an on-air ambush, which if you are not prepared, can land you in deep water.

So now that you know, lets get out there and start pitching!

Article Source: http://www.articlemetropolis.com

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