Rule One: The first golden rule that applies to any aspect of media relations is to look through the magazine you are pitching to, and see what they write about. Don’t pitch something to them if it doesn’t sit in-line with the style of stories they usually print. Contrary to what you may believe, and no matter how powerful you think your power of persuasion is, you can’t convince a magazine to run something that isn’t in-line with their editorial guidelines/vision.
Rule two: Most business magazine articles aren't straight "profiles” that talk about individual companies, what their product/service is and how great they are performing (unless, of course you are an uber-successful company that’s grown from one founder to 500,000 employees in the space of 5 years). Business magazine stories tend to look at how a company solved a particular problem. You can’t be afraid to admit you've run into difficulties – because that conflict, and how you’ve overcome it, is highly interesting to fellow businesses (ie. The readers of the magazine) – and that makes it interesting to the magazine editor. Also, sometimes your story is better told from one of your client’s points of view – because it really illustrates your product/service solution in action. Recruiting happy clients who are happy to speak on your behalf provides good fodder when approaching business magazines – especially if your client is a high-profile business or has a particularly interesting application of your product/service.
Rule three: Make sure you clearly communicate to the editor/journalist exactly what makes your company unique. Is it your product? Have you found a new way of doing things in a modern market? As in all areas of business, you need to set yourself apart from your competitors.
Rule four: Write your pitch as if you were telling the story to a 5-year old. Don’t use complicated business phrases or acronyms, or technical language. Just because you’re pitching to a business magazine, it doesn’t mean that every journalist there understands what a ……is.
Rule five: Provide numbers, stats and hard facts. Objective information (like turnover, profit, number of employees, years in operation, number of customers) is how you actually prove your claims to greatness!
Rule six: Don't send press releases every day or every week. There are a lot of other businesses out there with a lot of products, services, customers, changes, growth etc. Instead, send a really well-crafted proposal for an article, listing everything you think the editor ought to know about your company.
Rule seven: Don’t send information about anniversaries, milestones, charity donations or sponsored events to a general business magazine. Lots of companies have and do these things – so stick to what makes your business unique.
To learn more about this author, visit Sarah O'Brien's Website.
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Sarah O'Brien
(Visit Sarah's Website)
Sarah O'Brien is an ex-journalist and
Senior Partner at Square One PR &
Communications.
Square One PR provides communication
solutions to businesses that want to stand
out in their industry.
Communication is an important part of
every business. When it's managed in a
strategic, proactive, and result-focused
manner the effect on the image, growth and
success of a business is astounding.
Square One also focuses on helping small
businesses and entrepreneurs make the most
of their PR on a tight budget, and has
recently launched Australia's first DIY
PR Pack, which includes a consult with a
Senior PR Account Manager.
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