PR Advice for Professionals

Improving E-mail Pitches

by Patty

As the communications industry becomes based on technology more and more everyday, many practitioners, including us here at MMI, find ourselves turning to e-mail to pitch stories for clients. Though live pitching is still most effective, e-mail pitching is a way to reach many reporters in a fraction of the time it takes to call them. Personal interaction is lost through e-mail pitching, but oftentimes, the increased number of contacts made pays off in the end.

In a great article recently posted on PR Newswire, Aliza Sherman says that “in an industry where most reporters receive dozens of e-mail pitches daily, it is important to set your pitch apart from the rest.” Sherman gives a few suggestions of how to improve your pitches to increase your chances of gaining client exposure:

Focus Your Subject:
If you don’t get a reporter’s attention, your pitch will end up at the bottom of the inbox. The best way to grab attention right away is to tell a reporter what you want in the headline. Put your client’s name and company into the subject line of your e-mail, along with the topic in order to ensure that the reporter doesn’t have to do any digging to figure out exactly what you’re after.

Directly Address The Topic
Remember that reporters are busy too. They are working under deadlines and often pressed for time, so don’t waste time making small talk. Avoid using the first few sentences of your e-mail to introduce yourself or tell the reporter why your client is so great – use them to address the query. Sherman suggests using a “bulleted check list” to show how your client is a perfect fit for the story.

Make Follow-Ups Clear
Reporters get multiple pitches every day, so it’s helpful to remind them which query you’re addressing. If you send any follow-up e-mails, be sure to mention any previous exchanges you’ve had to refresh their memory. Be specific – if a reporter doesn’t remember you, he or she certainly will not remember your pitch.

Sherman says that the most important thing to remember when sending e-mail pitches is that every reporter is different. Each reporter has a specific way that they like things to be sent to them. By doing a little research and catering to what they prefer, your pitch is more likely to be considered.

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