Catching the Journalist’s Attention

Cutting through the noise is becoming increasingly hard, as startups compete not just with other companies for media attention, but with an endless stream of content from various sources. A journalist's byline can add a lot of value and credibility to your story. We have collected some insights on how to catch a busy journalist’s attention and interest. It includes:

• What is newsworthy - and what is not?

• How to reach out?

• What to include?

• Who to reach out to?

• When to reach out?

• Preparing for the interview

• Managing Expectations and Building Relations

What is newsworthy - and what is not?

Journalists are always pressed for time. They get hundreds of pitches every week, from startups who all believe their story is revolutionary in one way or the other. The brutal truth is that a lot of the time, it’s not news.

Senior Reporter Cate Lawrence at Tech.eu told us:

I receive on average 100 press pitches a day: they range from funding announcements from startups and VCs to product launches, team expansion announcements, commentary on items in the news, requests for interviews, invitations to events and conferences.

Journalists are in pursuit of stories that matter to their readers. When we asked Cate what makes a story stand out in her inbox, she said:

An answer to one or more of the Whys: why you, why now, why should readers care? Is there an interesting founder story or a story behind the tech? What problem are you solving?

Julija JJ Jegorova at Black Unicorn PR said:

If your story lacks relevance, newsworthiness or doesn’t align with the journalist’s beat or the publication’s focus, it simply won’t run.

So, a new feature added to your product, your beautiful new office or hiring a new C-suite is likely not of much interest to the wider world. Journalists count on founders and PR professionals for quality news stories, not inbox clutter. Respect their time, understand their workflow.

As Heba Hitti, Chief Communications Officer at European VC fund Serena, wrote in a recent post on Maddyness:

Save your pitches for when you truly have something compelling to share. If you want a journalist to take you seriously, be the person who only reaches out when it actually matters.

JJ at Black Unicorn PR is taking it a step further:

In fact, pitching weak stories can actually damage media relationships.

Who to reach out to?

You have decided (that you believe) your news is indeed newsworthy. The next step is to research who you want to reach out to. A lot of the tech publications has sections presenting their team of journalists and what they are interested in, like this one on Sifted. We’d recommend reading a selection of articles from target journalists and referencing a few specific ones they've written (but refrain from going on about how much you love their work and their publication). This will help you understand their specific interests and be able to connect their work to your expertise, not your product, to identify where you can add value and offer proper insights, not sales pitches.

How to reach out?

With most of us being connected on a series of different platforms, how do you reach out to that busy journalist?

Cate Lawrence said:

LinkedIn is fine initially, or email, of course. I'd say pick a platform and stick to it upon the journalist's request - if we have given you our email, for example, it’s more time-consuming if we have to keep checking LinkedIn as you are also sending us messages there.

What to include?

Respect format requirements. If any, these are often shared by the journalists on social media, in blog posts or on the publication websites. Like EU-Startups’ piece on how to “craft a compelling media pitch.”

A few things to make sure you always include - they may seem obvious, but can never be said enough:

• Your Core Message - Open with why they are receiving this email, what is different and special, what’s making it newsworthy? (Remember what Cate Lawrence said above)

• Then follow with the how are you solving what, where and when are you solving it and for who?

• Images – a folder or attached, team and/or product in use. You don’t want the editors to cook up something, have to search for, and end up with the wrong images, like the Founders of a different startup – it has happened more than once. Also, most publications use landscape images for their articles, unlike Instagram or TikTok.

• Quotes – provide concise, quotable insights to avoid excessive editing requirements.

• Contact details – make sure to include your details and be available and respond quickly when journalists request comments.

• Link to your up-to-date website – journalists do click on them to learn more, and they do not want to waste time searching and/or finding outdated info, or nothing at all, or even someone else’s website

• Connections - Offer to connect with other experts when relevant. It shows you are connected and being comfortable with involving external sources signals credibility.

And, on repeat, respect time! The more you can serve up to make sure the journalist has all the relevant information in the first outreach, the less back and forth.

When to reach out?

Always make sure to give the journalist enough time to prepare the story for publication. They may want to carry out some additional research, and keep in mind that journalists a lot of the time also need to pitch a story to their editors – competing with colleagues for the same space.

Akansha Dimri, Founder and Editor at Tech Funding News said:

At Tech Funding News (TFN), we ideally prefer to receive press releases under embargo 2 to 5 days ahead of the planned announcement, where possible. That gives us time to review, follow up if needed, and plan exclusive coverage accordingly. If you want real visibility, send it on time. If not, we’ll have to pass. Every time!

Embargo – what’s that?

An embargo is a restriction that prevents journalists from publishing your story until a specified date and time, even though you have shared the information earlier. This allows the news desks to prepare their coverage in advance while making sure all publications can release the story at the same time. But remember that even if it normally works like it, an embargo is not agreed just because you have put it on your release – it should be confirmed by the journalist to be valid. A top tip is to keep a close eye on the list of people you have shared your news with under embargo, to discover potential leaks.

An embargo also helps protect an exclusive you may have secured with a selected journalist or publication, so that they get to break the news first, as agreed.

In terms of what day of the week to go for, some timing advice from Cate at Tech.eu:

Generally, your biggest chance of coverage is a Friday announcement - even if you don't promote it yourselves until the following week. Or Mondays. These are usually the quietest days for announcements, so you aren't competing with a whole lot of other startups.

Preparing and practising

You got a bite! The journalist may wish to interview you or clarify some questions. Now it’s time to prepare and practice. Speaking with a journalist is not the same as pitching your startup to a VC or doing a job interview – you only have one shot and less time, so the only way to nail it is to come prepared.

What’s at risk?

• No coverage at all – if the journalist is not engaging with you, or doesn’t get your message

• Bad headlines – simply the wrong message comes across, and can be turned into a negative

• You say something you don’t want to see in print – but you DID say it. You usually won’t get to see the comments before they are published.

Managing Expectations and Building Relations

Your first press release is only the beginning of your PR journey. Journalist relationships develop over months and years, not days, and not every interaction will result in coverage, just because you know the journalist. In short, media remains a meritocratic industry, where only the most newsworthy stories get covered.

PR professional Julia Jegorova at Black Unicorn PR has shared some truths on the subject:

Knowing a journalist might help you stand out in a crowded inbox, but it is never a guarantee of coverage. Believing that a journalist will publish every story you send just because you know them is a serious misjudgment.

To recap, JJ shared a few basics on good pitching and media relations that can get you off to a good start:

• Build genuine relationships: journalists are not simply a means to an end

• Know their beat: do your homework before pitching; relevance is everything

• Value their time: only pitch when you truly have something newsworthy

• Stay updated: journalists move beats and publications - keep track

• Educate, don’t dictate: offer your expertise, but never tell journalists how to do their job