Written by: Matt Yuyitung, Communications Coordinator, NeighbourLink North York & Outreach Manager, The Pigeon
Have you ever found yourself in a position where your media pitch just isn’t landing? You’ve worked so hard and you feel you have the perfect story but you keep striking out? Never fear – I’ve asked five different journalists from a range of Canadian publications to share their own advice to help you craft the perfect pitch.
“The biggest thing that I look for from a publicist’s pitch is some level of familiarity with what I write about and what the publication covers. I know that if a publicist is pitching me, they’re probably pitching 50 other writers and editors (as they should), but any specific reference to my and Exclaim!‘s previously published stories shows me that I’m not just another stop on their PR blitz, but someone who they genuinely think will connect with their pitch.
“Ideally, the pitch would summarize the key points of the story, offer some context and continuity for the publication and provide suggestions for secondary points that can pad out the story or that might fit with other content ideas. It’s great to know that there’s some level of flexibility for the story to fit the publication’s needs, rather than regurgitating the same key points that might lead us to publish the same story as another outlet. Most editors and writers are looking for some level of uniqueness to help us stand out, and any intel and guidance from the publicist that can help uncover an interesting, distinctive angle can really help determine whether or not to pursue a story — plus, it helps me build a relationship and a level of trust with a publicist for future stories. That particular technique has led to some long-lasting professional connections and even friendships!
“Common mistakes I’ve noticed include going to one of my colleagues after I’ve already passed on a pitch (spoiler alert: I always consult the other editors when turning a pitch down) or demanding a particular level of coverage (e.g. a cover story or major print feature), particularly when we don’t have a working relationship. And, of course, there are the little things, like getting the publication’s name, location and focus wrong; I try to be understanding when it’s clearly a cut-and-paste error (I get it, we’re only human), but if a publicist calls me Bob, that’s a really great way for me to completely ignore a pitch.”
– Matt Bobkin, Features Editor, Exclaim!
“I’d say first of all that PR folks should really understand someone’s beat before they pitch. If you pitch me a mental health related story but it’s about something in the U.S. or in B.C., I am likely going to ignore it. My mandate, as shown by my bio on our website, is clearly the GTA and/or mental health issues that affect Canadians broadly.
“Also, any pitches that are too niche without wide appeal or consequence for a huge number of people will usually get turned away. If you’re pitching me about a very niche fundraising project, chances are I will ignore it. But if the fundraising project is tied to a bigger issue that affects a large portion of the city for ‘X’ reason, then I’d be more inclined to follow-up.
“However, PR pitches that also make a point to say they’d put me in touch with someone with lived experience on ‘X’ issue tend to help a lot more and I’d be more likely to respond because you’ve helped me with one of the biggest challenges of writing stories: finding a face.”
– Nadine Yousif, Mental Health Reporter, The Toronto Star
“Develop a relationship. There are emails I will pay more attention to not because of what is in the subject, but because of who it is from. That relationship comes with experience. Show that you know not just their beat, but also their particular interests, writing style and deadlines.
“I think it is always a great idea to have real people ready to interview. Journalists always strive to include the voices of real human beings with lived experiences or who are otherwise affected by whatever news they are writing about, but sometimes the pace of daily news can make finding those people a challenge.”
– Joanna Smith, Ottawa Bureau Chief, The Canadian Press
“Do your research! I’m sure this seems obvious, but I get a lot of pitches addressed to a name entirely different from my own, or that pitch a Calgary-based story despite the fact I moved to Toronto months ago, or that don’t even bother with a name and address me as ‘Dear newsroom.’
“With some exceptions I would hazard a guess that most reporters aren’t interested in pitches about a singular company, product, launch, etc. What I mean is this: A pitch about a cannabis company opening a new store in Toronto is not something I would write about, unless there was something really significant about that store opening. What I would write about — and did write about — is the fact that Toronto is getting a TON of new cannabis stores recently. If a PR person had pitched me that story, and offered their client, a new cannabis store, to interview, that would have been a yes. In other words, I’m looking for a story, not an announcement. I’m not here to do free advertising for the sake of writing an article, .
“Similar to the above, I’m not a fan of pitches that offer up an interview with someone — say an industry expert, or a company CEO — about a topic, but without an actual story attached. If something happens in the news and one of those people is well-qualified to comment on that event, then that pitch becomes very timely. I often add those people to a list of expert sources available for comment. But without a news hook, it’s probably not happening — unless you’re offering up someone uber-famous and hard to get.
“It’s great when PR pitches reference a previous story of yours to explain why they’re pitching you a story. It’s not great when that story is from when you had a different job. For example, I used to report on Calgary. Now, I report on business — national, with a Toronto focus. So if a PR pitch begins with a reference to a story I wrote before I got this new job, I doubt it’s going to be successful. It’s not difficult to find a journalist’s current job and location, we usually keep that on Twitter.
“I don’t like getting pitches on platforms other than my work email. I’m talking mostly Twitter and LinkedIn, as I haven’t received pitches on other platforms (though I do occasionally receive them to my personal email, which I do not recommend!). If I get a pitch on Twitter or LinkedIn, and it sounds interesting, I’ll ask the person to email me.”
– Rosa Saba, Business Reporter, The Toronto Star
“I receive hundreds of PR pitches a day and, from my personal experience, I feel that I can say most reporters/journalists out there are not looking to write content that sounds advertorial (there is a whole niche of writers who DO write advertorial content, but that’s a different ballgame).
“So, if you’re writing me a pitch, I want to know WHY your product/event/company matters to my audience at this exact moment in time and space. I don’t want a pitch that is just telling me something is launching because I can’t write that — it would read like a paid advertisement. But, if you create a narrative of how your story fits into the larger picture and why we need to know about it in today’s world, that’s great.
“For example, if you’re pitching a new flavour of cookies and you send me an email saying ‘Hey! On Monday, ‘X’ Cookies are launching!’ I will pretty much instantly delete that because there’s no real way for me to easily spin that into a relevant news story without doing a ton of work on it.
“However, if you’re pitching me the same product, but you do your research and crafted a strategic angle like the owners of the companies has a really captivating life story and you lead with that, or maybe Toronto is currently experiencing a chocolate chip shortage, but this cookie company defeated all odds then, you’ve successfully set up the writer with a pre-crafted newsworthy narrative.
“And last but certainly not least, include quotes, photos — anything that creates a narrative!”
– Abby Neufeld, Digital Journalist, CTV
In a nutshell: build relationships, know who you’re pitching, provide high-res photos and sources – and most importantly help the journalist understand what makes your story idea so compelling. This is your opportunity to really sell why your story deserves attention, so make sure you make it count!
If you’d like to read more on working with media, we encourage you to check out some past CPRS Toronto blog pieces below and follow us on social media for regular industry updates.