7 Tips on Writing the Perfect Pitch

Hello lovelies! How’s your week going? I hope it’s moving in the direction you want it to be. Can I share some updates with you about Babe Crafted? BC is 3 months old & I’m so excited for what’s to come. We have a team of awesome women who work with us on events & we’re working with a new contributor that we can’t wait for you to meet. It’s an exciting period of organic growth & change.

One of my favorite women is Glennon Doyle & one of the many things I admire her for is that she’s very open about the fact that she’s bringing her audience along for a journey that is teaching her as she goes. I hope to be as honest & brave as Glennon. I manage & curate Babe Crafted as well as work with a handful of PR clients. Until Babe Crafted is fully sustainable, my clients allow me to keep my toolkit fresh and take care of my adulting needs, like electricity & a fridge full of cold brew coffee. I know that one day soon, BBC will be my main squeeze and I look forward to continuing to share along the way.

Lately, I’ve been pitching stories for clients to be included in national holiday gift guides, so it’s gotten me thinking about the anatomy of a pitch. I’ve narrowed it down to 7 steps & thought it would be the perfect post for this week. We’re all making plans to finish the year strong, so be sure to check out my tips below and even share your own in the comments & on social. Thanks for joining us on this journey & stay boss. xx

-G

Before you pitch, make sure you have the following:

1. Have high resolution photos on hand.

Our world becomes more visual every second & high res images are a must when you’re presenting your brand. Quality photos that are relevant to the story you’re pitching are so very important. It’s valuable to have a few different images to work with since you don’t know for certain what the editor or reporter is going to need. When pitching, we tend to embed one photo in the email (at a size that fits the frame of the email — no larger) and attach two more images to the message. If you have a larger selection of photos, feel free to share a Dropbox link so she can choose which photo(s) will work best in the feature or roundup. 

2. Name your photos.

Please, for all that is sacred in this world, name your images! Never send someone an image that’s called IMG342.jpg. It’s the opposite of helpful, and as someone who is pitching a story, your job is to be as helpful to the person you’re pitching it to as possible. They have enough deadlines & details to worry about and shouldn’t have to guess what the contents of the photos are or who the owner of the photo is. A proper way to label a photo would be: Product_BusinessName_PhotographerName1. If you took the photo and own the rights to it, you can leave the ‘photographer name’ bit out. This goes for not just images you pitch, but also the ones you upload to your blog & social media pages. It’s better for your SEO and it’ll keep you organized. #winning

3. Update your bio.

We want to make working with us as easy as possible, and the best to do this is to provide the reporter with what info she needs to write a review, feature your product, include your business in a roundup, etc. A bio with up-to-date details on how a product was made, who made it, & how long the company has been around for is worth its weight in Rosé. Keep the bio on your website updated, too! 

When you make the pitch, be sure to:

4. Find the right person for your pitch. 

Find the masthead so you can reach the relevant editor; search for stories that have already been written & contact those writers. Avoid emailing general addresses as much as you can. Your message getting into the right inbox shows that your email belongs there. ;)

5. Tailor your message.

If you’re pitching to more than one media outlet, make sure your message reflects that— ensure you mention the right outlet in your email & that you’re not talking about TV segments to a magazine. Editors get an unthinkable amount of story ideas a day & we want them to choose yours, so make sure your story idea fits their audience or else you’re just spinning your wheels. 

6. Say thank you.

These two words go such a long way! Remember all those story ideas we talked about Editors receiving every day? Be sure to thank her for her time spent considering yours. 

After you pitch:

7. Follow up. 

If you don’t hear back within a few business days, send a friendly follow up to touch base & see if your pitch is a good fit for their audience & upcoming content.

Happy pitching!