As in any profession, there are numerous lessons you learn throughout your career. Some are little tidbits of knowledge you pick up along the way, others are humbling situations you experience the hard way. I just thought I’d share a few of the various lessons in story pitching.
1. Don’t call a producer or reporter when they are coming up on their deadlines. If a TV show begins at 11:00am, don’t call them at 10:45am. More often than not, they are scrambling to get their shows and stories done in time and won’t have a second to spare to speak with you.
2. Know the person you are calling. Some reporters will consider it an insult if you don’t know what their beat is, or what kinds of topics they like to cover.
3. Give as much information as you can in order to tip the story in your favor. Provide your contact with as much as you can in talking points, statistics and clinical studies. The more information you supply them, the better your chances of the story or interview going the way you want.
4. Say thank you! Odds are you will be pitching your contact again at some point in the future. You want to make sure your last encounter with them ended on a pleasant note. Even if things didn’t turn out quite right the first time around, make sure you always end on friendly terms.
Happy story pitching!
