WHEN IN DOUBT, FOLLOW UP: The Simple, Don’t-Miss Trick to Really Getting Media Coverage

PR guru Michael Smart is a favorite with Word PR for his practical, relationship-forward approach to media that treats editors and journalists as people, colleagues and collaborators, the same approach that wins us success for clients month after month. In a recent webinar for PR pros, Smart put numbers to a favorite Word PR tactic – following up on pitches to editors and journalists – sharing data that “80% of placements come only after follow up.” Smart also related some anecdotes of major PR placements that literally took years from the initial pitch to the final payoff of a big story, another experience we’re familiar with.

As we tell prospective clients, PR is a relationship business. Winning the trust of editors and writers with truly targeted pitches takes time, but it gets future pitches read and considered—and part of that art comes from not giving up when a first outreach gets no response. Following up requires a confidence that skips the weak “sorry to bother you” openers that can leave an editor feeling bothered and instead offers a useful story idea tied to an understanding of a particular contact’s publication or writing with a fresh angle or current trend connection to sweeten the deal. We like Smart’s term for that combo of confident persistence and real value that gets clients important coverage: “diplomatic tenacity.”