How to build strong relationships with Journalists

    In an era of demanding news cycles and tough competition, journalists face intense pressure to deliver rapid turnarounds to meet deadlines. As a PR professional, being a contact journalists turn to for a quick comment, insight, or even story idea, is an invaluable position.

    To achieve this, PR professionals need to invest time in building relationships with journalists.

    Similarly, if you have a reputation as a PR professional who delivers strong stories and the assets needed to help tell that story, journalists will be much more likely to cover your story when they’re in a time crunch.

    According to a Muck Rack survey, 59% of journalists view their relationships with PR professionals as mutually beneficial, but only 6% see them as partnerships. These essential tips are here to help you build authentic relationships with journalists.

    Blog-How-to-Build-Strong-Relationships-with-Journalists

    Do your research

    Don’t be the PR professional who will just throw spaghetti at a wall to see what sticks. Instead of simply sending a pitch to 500 journalists from any random database, remember media lists are about quality over quantity, and most importantly, relevance.

    To make a pitch land, PR professionals should familiarise themselves with each publication and the journalist’s previous work to ensure stories align with their style and the types of stories they cover. This approach isn’t just a sign of respect – it’s the perfect way to distinguish yourself from the flood of irrelevant emails cluttering their inbox and have your story covered. A quick Google search or LinkedIn deep-dive can be the move that saves you from sending a ‘beauty and wellness’ media release to a financial reviewer.

    Meet in the middle

    Journalists need two key things: a newsworthy story and a credible source. When a journalist shows interest in your story, respond promptly with everything they need, exactly when they need it (remember they’re meeting multiple deadlines). Never just hit send on one email and passively wait – thoughtful follow-up calls and emails will transform your pitch into an opportunity. Equally important is providing additional assets. Most of us are visual learners, or at least, not fans of being inundated with boring chunks of text. By offering images, videos, or better yet, VNRs (one of Adoni’s specialities), you can maintain a level of creative control while giving journalists the material they need to tell your story.

    Clean up your pitches

    The ‘timesaving’ templates and generic software that PR professionals use have become glaringly obvious. It’s worth the few extra minutes to customise each email to save you from the embarrassment of accidentally sending “Hi//First Name//” to a journalist, making them feel like just another name on your distribution list.

    With the PR-to-journalist ratio now at 6:1, more PR professionals than ever are competing for the attention of a shrinking media pool. A poorly written pitch or media release will simply not cut it. Also quick-to-be-dismissed are overused buzzwords, jargon, and inflated claims. Be clear –  simplifying complex ideas isn’t dumbing them down, it’s using relatable language that resonates with the widest possible audience.

     

    The relationship between PR professionals and journalists doesn’t have to be defined as “It’s complicated.” It can be truly beneficial for both sides. At Adoni Media, our team of former and current journalists, media commentators, news executives, and producers have their own extensive database of media contacts they’ve worked with. They also bring their own experiences and knowledge of what worked for them (and what didn’t) when engaging with PR professionals when they were on the other end of pitch email/call.

    If you would like to discuss PR opportunities, reach out to Adoni Media through the ‘Contact Us’ button below.

    Let the Adoni Advantage be your advantage.