Have you ever sent out a fantastic news release or content piece only to realize your content isn’t picked up by media outlets or journalists you pitched? It’s a disappointing and even discouraging experience: You spent a lot of work pulling it all together and packing it up. And then, it fell flat.
Cue the sad trombone.
And, believe me: I’ve been there. More times than I care to admit.
Admitting your content isn’t picked up by media can feel like the biggest fail in a PR expert or publicist’s world. I mean, that’s what we’re known for, right? But, the fact is simple: we’re not playing the same game we were five or ten years ago. The media landscape has changed. And so, we need to change with it.
Reason #1 Your Content Isn’t Picked Up By Media: It’s too sales-y.
Look, I get it. You’re excited about your new product launch or the big sale you’ve got coming down the pipe. Your customers will be, too. But the media? Not so much.
News is about, well, NEWS. It’s not about promotions and sales messaging. If you’re using lines you’d commonly use in a sales deck or ad campaign, nix ’em. Focus your content on WHY the journalist (and their audience) should care about your content and add value to the piece. Include statistics, real-world evidence, and/or tie it into current headlines. Which brings us to…
Reason #2 Your Content Isn’t Picked Up By Media: It’s not newsworthy.
What makes waves and gets your team jazzed up isn’t always what the general public is going to be interested in. (I know, I know — rude!) That’s why it’s so important to tie your content pieces to current headlines and affairs. For example, a client of mine who is a lawyer recently worked with me to share a piece of content they created. The content didn’t sell them in any way, and instead focused on a hot (and sometimes heavily contentious!) topic: parents giving their children monetary gifts to buy homes. Her content focused specifically on the implications for relationships and how homes etc. are split when a couple breaks up, particularly when one’s parents provided the downpayment.
This made the content newsworthy, informative, and impactful. It’s no wonder the content, when issued as a release, was picked up by more than 120 outlets across North America!
Reason #3 Your Content Isn’t Being Picked Up By Media: It’s not tailored to the audience.
If you’re sending a generic release or taking the spray-and-pray approach to a mass send of your content or pitch, you’re doing it all wrong. It takes extra work (I KNOW), but it’s worth it to spend the time investigating, tailoring, and preparing individualized outreach for every. single. recipient.
This might mean you send your pitch to fewer outlets, but quality >> quantity.
At amPR, we use a tool to help us research journalists based on their areas of coverage, keywords, recent content they’ve shared, and more to ensure that every pitch is tailored directly to the outlet, journalist, and audience.
Reason #4 Your Content Isn’t Being Picked Up By Media: It’s lacking visual or statistical interest.
Bear with me a moment: Would you take financial advice from an outlet or journalist that couldn’t include a few solid statistics or proof points? Would you pick up a magazine that didn’t have some visual interest?
I THINK NOT.
And that can be the reason why a journalist skips past your pitch for another. Proof points and visual interest make your content more valuable and meaningful. Add the stats. Put them in a graph or visual. Make sure that the most important points can be easily grabbed.
Reason #5 Your Content Isn’t Being Picked Up By Media: It’s too much work to cover.
Newsrooms are getting smaller and smaller. Editorial teams are overwhelmed with pitches every day. If you want your content to be picked up, send it ready-to-publish. Write it like a hard-hitting news piece. Kill the sales-y and fluffy messaging. Add quotes, stats, proof points, backlinks, and visuals. Make it so easy-to-read and strong, a journalist can’t wait to put their own byline on it.
Reason #6 Your Content Isn’t Being Picked Up By Media: You haven’t built trust in relationships.
Relationships are everything in my world. I mean, think about it: it’s literally in the name. Public relations and media relations centre around strong relationships built on trust, transparency, and respect. If you want your content to be picked up by media, start building strong relationships with target media outlets. Get to know their teams. Ask about their processes. Learn how you can make their jobs easier.
Or, let us do it for you.
Ready to get your content out into the world? Let’s talk.
