Episode 33: 5 Mistakes to Avoid When Sending Out Your Pitch to the Media, Podcast Host, or Journalist
Your pitch is ready. You're about to press that send button…
Make sure you have your ducks in a row first!
In this episode, I’m sharing the five things you need to make sure you have correct before you send your pitch out into the world.
First things first, start with the obvious. No misspellings, no dead links, addressed to the correct individual(s), and formatted cleanly. Take the thirty seconds to review everything, in order to send out a professional first impression.
If you need a refresher on how to send a pitch and how to cold email or cold pitch, go back to episode two of this podcast where I talk about my unique and winning CPR Method™.
Moving on from number one, make sure that the journalist hasn't just covered something similar. If they’ve recently covered the same topic, or something close, they’re not as likely to immediately cover it again. So keep them on your radar, and save your pitch for a later day.
The third thing to focus on is an incredibly strong subject line. This is the most important part of your pitch. You want to make sure that the subject line is super, super enticing - without it being gimmicky. If you need help with this key element of your pitch, I’d encourage you to check out my PR Secrets Masterclass.
Number four of my mistakes to avoid, is to roll up your sleeves and get clear on your messaging. Before you send out that pitch, make sure your email is concise. Even if you’ve nailed the subject line, if a journalist opens up a lengthy, overwhelming email it’ll go nowhere.
Lastly, end with a strong call to action. It shouldn’t come off as begging, or a “please”. Instead, present yourself as an industry expert that can offer connections with other people in your community.
“Say, hey, here's my pitch, here's why it matters. And I can connect you with all of these other people who can give their point of view.”
- Gloria Chou
To ensure you’re not making those rookie mistakes when sending out your pitch, this episode is a must!
Topics We Cover in This Episode:
The top 5 mistakes that ruin pitches
How to avoid triggering spam filters
Great subject line examples
The sweet stop on the number of insights to share
Tying your pitch to something seasonal or relevant
How the CPR Method can help nail relevancy and conciseness
If you want to land your first feature for free without any connections, I want to invite you to watch my PR Secrets Masterclass where I reveal the exact methods thousands of bootstrapping small businesses use to hack their own PR and go from unknown to being a credible and sought-after industry expert. Register now at www.gloriachou.com/masterclass.
Resources Mentioned:
Gloria Chou PR Podcast: Episode #2, CPR Pitching Method™
Gloria Chou PR Podcast: Episode #32, Vincent Phamvan
Additional Resources:
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Here’s a glance at this episode…
[3:55] We want to make sure that the subject line is super, super enticing, but we don't want to make it gimmicky. We don't want to make it weird and spammy.
[8:18] You want to do the work to make sure your messaging is completely dialed in. And that means talking in short, concise sentences.
[8:34] So make sure you roll up your sleeves, and do the most important work as a founder, which is get clear on your messaging, and keep shaving away at it until it is super concise.
[12:46] Remember, you are a vessel of valuable information, you are a valuable conduit between the journalist and your world.
[13:06] If you can say, hey, here's my pitch, here's why it matters. And I can connect you with all of these other people who can give their point of view.
[13:26] Remember, it's all about having the abundance mindset and approaching it from a place of self worthiness. You deserve to be seen, you deserve to be featured.
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Gloria Chou 0:00
All right, so for those of you who have gotten your pitch ready, you're ready to press that send button, I want to make sure that you have all your ducks in a row. So this episode are the five things you need to make sure that you have an order before you press that send button. Whether it's a LinkedIn message or a longer email. These are the five things that are a must. And don't make this mistake without checking. Hey, friends, I'm Gloria Chao, small business PR expert, award winning pitch writer and your unofficial hype woman. Nothing makes me happier than seeing people get the recognition they deserve. And that starts with feeling more confident to go bigger with your message. So on this podcast, I will share with you the untraditional, yet proven strategies for PR marketing and creating more opportunity in your business. If you are ready to take control of your narrative and be your most unapologetic and confident self, you're in the right place. This is the Small Business PR podcast.
Gloria Chou 0:52
The first one is I want to make sure which is very obvious to check the spelling formatting and to make sure that the name and outlet of the person receiving it is correct. A lot of times when we're outreaching, and only our own outreach, it can seem like so much easier to just copy and paste and press send. But be careful that your Gmail or whatever email that you're using, is not improperly formatting it. What I mean is, a lot of times when you copy and paste, the text can be wonky. It can be dark purple, it can be small and large. So just give it that extra 30 seconds to make sure that it's formatted properly. And one more thing is if you do add a hyperlink, which I really encourage you to do, because it allows you to not add attachments which can trigger their spam filter, make sure that the hyperlink is properly done when you transfer it from person to person. So again, this is a quick 32nd nonnegotiable, you got to spell their name, right, make sure the formatting is correct, the hyperlinks are proper, and that you have given the right contact information. So that's whether your cell phone number or your email, or what have you. That is just out of respect and courtesy. And if you want to know how to send a pitch out and exactly how I teach you to cold email or cold cold pitch, go back to episode two of this podcast where I talk about my unique and winning CPR method. That's again, episode two. And you can access that right now by going to Gloria Chao pr.com/the Number two, and that's spelled ch o AU. And you'll know exactly how to write a pitch moving on from number one is the second thing you must check before you send out an email is make sure that the journalist hasn't just covered something super similar. What I mean is, if they just covered someone with the exact background to give an exact, let's say it's on a podcast, right, and they just interviewed someone who talked about introverts and how introverts can win and still communicate with power in this in this virtual landscape, you're probably not gonna want to pitch that right. Or if someone just interviewed someone on their show who was a mom a mompreneur with the same kind of mindset hacks for time management, they're probably not going to want to cover it right away. So just make sure that you're not making the mistake of pitching something that they just covered. Same thing for me is if I'm about to pitch something for myself, I want to make sure that the journalist or the podcaster, or Blogger literally didn't just publish another thing or an episode with another PR, a small business PR expert, right, you want to give it some time to breathe, it doesn't mean that they're not going to cover generally your industry, it just means that if they just covered it, you might want to wait a few weeks, but have them on your radar. Number three is make sure you have a really solid subject line. And I teach this in my PR masterclass, which you can access at Gloria Chao pr.com/masterclass. But the subject line is the most important part of your pitch. Because if your subject line is not eye catching, they're not going to open the email. So we want to make sure that the subject line is super, super enticing, but we don't want to make it gimmicky. We don't want to make it weird and spammy, like, Hey, did you know or, Hey, I made you a video or guess what I found that's gonna make them feel like it's spam, and they're probably not going to read it. So as a journalist, they're browsing through hundreds of subject lines, you want to make sure your subject line fits in the preview, but is also specific so that they know what the pitch is about. So they can make a quick decision on whether or not to open it. Another reason why the subject line is so important is that it allows them to go back later on and do a quick search. I can't tell you how many journalists I've interviewed where they don't respond to every email they get, obviously, right because that would be insane. They don't have enough time to respond. But what they do is they file it under a certain folder maybe by keyword or by industry. And it's as easy as them doing a quick search later on for them to go back to the person who sent them an email so that they can interview that person. So you want to make sure your subject line has As the idea the specific insight or the summary of the pitch. So for example, instead of saying, oops, you forgot your gift idea, right? If you're going to pitch like a last minute gift idea, you want to say something like in the subject line, last minute gift idea for the Eco conscious mom under $50. Do you see how that specific, it gives them exactly how and what you're pitching. And that way, if they are making a gift guide or product guide for under $50, that's last minute, boom, there you go. Right. So you want to make a specific another example of a winning subject line could be we're launching the first app to do XY and Z. And we're helping startups overcome this particular problem, right. So it tells the journalist what the news is, which is you're launching something and what you're launching, right, that's also another great angle is around launch times when you're announcing that here we are, this is what we created, right? You only have that one chance to announce that you've launched so you make sure that you do use that time and make it immediate moment. Another example of a great subject line is three insights from gym owners who reopened after the lockdown and turned a profit. So I like the number three reason I say this all the time. And if you've listened to any of the previous episodes, I give tons of examples. I like the number three because it's not so many insights, and it's not too little. And it gives the journalist an option if they don't like the first two insights to maybe pick the third one. So I like the number three. Another example of a great subject line that will help them decide whether or not to open the email is something like this, this one behavior from your employee is the top indicator that they will leave in 60 days. This is one of the pitches that I wrote, recently for a PR starter pack member who upgraded to a one on one session with me, she was an organizational consultant, and a leadership coach. And we came up with a really strong angle, despite all the different angles that we came up with. She liked this one the most. Another example is I am a doctor. And this is what patients should know about this new medical bill. So that's a regulatory angle. And if you are in a regulated industry, if you're a doctor, if you're a lawyer or finance, one of the best ways to be newsworthy is to not talk about yourself and your experience, but to help the audience decipher or understand a new piece of law or policy. Right? If you're in beauty, it could be something in the FDA and they have approved or have found an ingredient to be toxic. Right? If you are in finance, it might be something around tax season. So there's always a way to tie your pitch to something seasonal or relevant. And if you've watched a masterclass or listened to episode two of the podcast, you'll know exactly what I mean. So that's number three is make sure you have a really strong subject line that tells exactly what the pitch is about, and that it's not gimmicky or spammy. Alright, let's move on to number four. This is a fourth thing you have to make sure, before you send out that pitch is you want to make sure your email is concise. Right, what I mean is, let's say you have mastered the art of the subject line, and they open the email if it's just paragraph upon paragraph upon paragraph, it is so overwhelming for a journalist who gets hundreds of emails, they're just not going to read it. Remember, it's all about respecting their time and being of service. And you want to do the work to make sure your messaging is completely dialed in. And that means talking in short, concise sentences. And I'm sure you've heard of this before that it takes a lot more skill and effort to communicate something in a shorter amount of time than a longer amount of time. So make sure you roll up your sleeves, and do the most important work as a founder, which is Get clear on your messaging, and keep shaving away at it until it is super concise. I teach this in my CPR method, which is again, episode two of this podcast, you can go to Gloria Chao pr.com/to To listen to it. But the CPR method, I lay out word for word how you can actually write a cold pitch or an email, the CPR method stands for credibility points of view and relevance. And from cold calling and cold email emailing 1000s of times because remember, I never had a PR agency experience. I never had any fancy contacts. I was never in the cool kids club. I had to literally cold email and cold call, I created this proprietary method just from picking up the patterns on what worked and what didn't. So the CPR method allows you to have a framework a structure to write your pitch because you probably have a billion things you want to say. And you want to fit it all into an email. But that is such a rookie mistake. And it's the number one way to tell that a founder has not quite mastered the art of the pitch. So you want to make sure that your pitch follows the CPR method. You want to trim it down to three paragraphs. And if you want make sure that you put in bullets or numbers I really like bullets or numbers so that when they open it, it's concise. It's not just three huge paragraphs. I like to start actually with relevance. So the CPR method stands for credibility, point of view and relevance. And I want you to have all those things. But in the actual email, and I teach those in my master class, and when I work one on one with clients is, I actually put the relevance in the very beginning paragraph, because you are competing for the journalists attention, every single line, so you don't want to lose them. You don't want to bury the lead, right? You've probably heard of that before. And the most important part of a pitch is relevance. Why does it matter to them? Why should they open it? Why should they not file it away for five years later and forget about it. So boom, you want to start the email with setting the stage, why it's important right? Now, it could be something like we are now in tax season. And this is why it's so important for small business owners to not and make this one mistake, or we're in graduation season. And we have 100,000 new students looking for jobs, here are three skills that I find trending on LinkedIn that employers are looking for, right? So do you see you want to start with the relevance. So that's what I mean by making sure your email is concise, and not giving like five paragraphs painting a picture of where we are, now, you want it to be super short and concise, here's what's happening. Here's why it matters. Here's my point of view, here's how you can contact me. So that's number four is make sure your email is concise by trimming it down and having bullets or numbers to make it easy on the eyes. The last thing that's an absolute non negotiable along with the rest of the things in your cold email or pitch, before you send it is, you want to have a strong and confident call to action at the end, you don't want to end your email with, we cannot wait for you to share this story and feature us here's what we're doing and why it's helping that energy is an energy of eagerness of desperation of you, basically trying to get the journalist to run a free advertisement for you. And remember, as experts, we do not want to pay for an ad. And the way to get out of paying for an ad is by positioning yourself as an industry expert with a point of view. And that's why the CPR method is amazing, because it allows you to bypass having to buy an ad. So the call to action should not be begging, it should not be pleased to feature us it should not be we would love for you to include us. It's literally like, Hey, I've seen this firsthand. I know this is what people are talking about. I'm happy to discuss this in further detail and connect you with someone who is experiencing this. Now, whatever you're doing come back to me this is super important is that one of the ways you can be super valuable to a journalist is by connecting them with other people in your community. So if you're a life coach, it might be other life coaches or entrepreneurs that you coach, if you are an author and might be connecting them to readers or authors. Remember, you are a vessel of valuable information, you are a valuable conduit between the journalist and your world. So put that there, offer that up and don't have the scarcity mindset of Oh, the journalist is just going to skip over me and go directly to my contact. No, it's only going to make you more valuable. If you can say, hey, here's my pitch, here's why it matters. And I can connect you with all of these other people who can give their point of view. Right? So if you are an Etsy seller, or if you're on Shopify, and you're talking about a new policy or a new trend, you'll be like, Hey, I'm happy to connect you with other artists and people and don't have this scarcity mindset. Remember, it's all about having the abundance mindset and approaching it from a place of self worthiness you deserve to be seen, you deserve to be featured. And the fact that you have connections with other people, it's only going to make you more powerful. Another thing is, you're basically allowing the journalist to validate whatever you're pitching, you're saying, Hey, this is a pitch, I can validate this right away by connecting you with these people or connecting you with these customers who have found that my method works, right. So you're telling them not only this your stuff work, but you're giving them a way to validate it because that's why they have their journalist integrity is because they need to validate that you are not just talking about things that you actually it's actually fact based. And that's what separates journalism with just paying an influencer is their integrity, and that's why they have such a high bar, and people really value their opinion. Right. So that's the last one is have a strong and confident CTA. Say you're happy to discuss it further.
Gloria Chou 14:24
Maybe give a sample of your product if it's easy and accessible. If you have something that's very expensive, like $500 speakers, then maybe you wouldn't give them a free, free sample of it. But you can give them a link to a video or a sample like a sample audio clip that gives them the experience of your product, right? Or you can connect them with other people in your community. And make sure to always leave your cell phone number as well. This is why it's so important is the episode right before this one with PR starter pack member Vincent Van Van he actually talks about how when he left a cell phone number for Quick response, the journalist texted him and was like, hey, I want to get more info on this. Are you ready for a call? Right? Once the journalist knows that you have something substantive to say and that you can give them a quote, it's just a matter of getting on the phone. Remember the whole pitch is not to tell them what the story is, is for them to be able to decide whether or not you are a credible source is for them to act, and to decide yes or no, let's get on the phone or not. So you want to make it super easy for them by giving them your contact information, especially your cell phone, because a lot of times journalists will actually text you back. So that is another way you want to have a strong and confident CTA. There you have it this week's short episode, with the five non negotiable things you must check for before you hit that send button. I remember everything you want is on the other side of the send button. So get out there, keep pitching, have the energy where you are not bothered by getting rejected because having the rejections and being able to be okay with that. That is the energy that's going to allow you to keep persisting until you get that Yes. And you just need that first. Yes. Before the dominoes start to fall. I know you got this. And I look forward to seeing you here next week. Hey, small business hero. Did you know that you can get featured for free on outlets like Forbes, The New York Times, Marie Claire Pop Sugar and so many more, even if you're not yet launched? Or if you don't have any connection? That's right. That's why I invite you to watch my PR Secrets masterclass, where I reveal the exact methods 1000s of bootstrapping small businesses used to have their own PR and go from unknown to being a credible and sought after industry expert. Now if you want to land your first press feature, get on a podcast, secure a VIP speaking gig or just reach out to that very intimidating editor. This class will show you exactly how to do it. Register now at Gloria Chou pr.com/masterclass. That's Gloria Chou c-h-o-u pr.com/masterclass. So you can get featured in 30 days without spending a penny on ads or agencies. Best of all, this is completely free. So get in there and let's get you featured.