How To Write Media Pitch Letters: Tips & Templates
For journalists, media pitches are a dime a dozen. But, as an entrepreneur, you should ask yourself, “how can mine stand out among the hundreds a reporter receives each day?” If you’re looking to grow your business with a great article or some event coverage, you’ll need to write pitch letters that have a significant “wow” factor. Below are 9 tips on how to write a pitch letter, along with some pitch letter example templates.
What Is a Pitch Letter?
A pitch letter, a.k.a. “pitch,” is a message that you send to relevant media outlets about a product or service you offer. Your goal is to get someone who works at a publication, such as a journalist or an editor, to write about what you do.
When writing a pitch, you should describe your product and why it’s relevant to the media person you’re contacting. You should also cut to the chase about why they should cover it. You don’t need to go as long as a full-on press release, but you do need to check all the basic fact boxes.
Why Are Media Pitches Important?
Media pitches are the most efficient way to contact and persuade individual journalists or reporters. They give you full power to explain your story however you want and give you more control over what the media says about it. Plus, only you get to decide when to send pitches, meaning they give you some control over when the media tells your story.
Media coverage is critical for businesses, too: They help present your company to your target audience. News platforms usually publish their stories all over their social media. That’s more exposure and brand awareness to a loyal crowd.
For example, if you run a clothing store on a nearby pedestrian-only street and you’re going 100% sustainable, pitch your local daily newspaper. They may be interested in the local spin on a worldwide, growing trend in sustainability. Also, highlighting your shop as a leader may encourage new customers to swing by your storefront.
What Are the Different Types of Pitch Letters?
There are four types of media pitches. Below are the differences between them and how to write each one.
- Cold pitches - A cold pitch is when you reach out to someone with whom you’ve never spoken before. Your message needs to be very compelling to attract attention in this type of pitch. First, you should briefly describe who you are and what your product does. Then, you’ll provide a call to action on why the person you’re contacting should spotlight you.
Save Pitch templates and insert them anywhere using keyboard shortcuts.
Trend pitches - Journalists often write news stories about recent events or something that can be connected to larger trends. If something you’ve done recently seems relevant, now's the time to send out a mass email to your media contacts. For example, if you’re the first woman in your town to own a coffee shop, your pitch may be particularly relevant during Women’s History Month.
Thought leadership pitches - Through this type, you’ll ask journalists if you can write a piece within their pages. This route is primarily worth pursuing if you’re an educator or a highly experienced person in your field. Most of the time, media outlets prefer that you first propose your story idea rather than turning in a finished article. Doing so will allow the editor to assist you with an outline and give you general guidelines, such as word count.
Follow-up pitches - Don’t forget to follow up! It’s OK to message your media contacts a second time. Journalists are very busy people, so it’s possible that your message fell through the cracks. Following up with a reinforcement of your initial message also shows reporters that you’re serious about your story and that you’d be worth a second look.
9 Tips For Pitching to the Media
Set yourself up for success with these 9 tips that can help you decide what you should include in your pitch and what you can exclude.
Do Your Research
Before sending your story idea to a journalist, get to know the publications and reporters of interest. First, get to know the publication as a whole and find out which journalists cover stories relevant to your company. in your realm. Then, you’ll need to find their contact information. You might see it on their author page on the publication’s website. Alternatively, you may need to look at the journalist’s personal website or social media bio.
One big note: Never reach out on social media – not even to ask for an email address. Always stick to email. If you can’t find a journalist’s contact information, that’s because they’re keeping it private. Respect that and find someone else to pitch.
Personalize Your Pitch
Once you’ve decided whom you’ll contact, start writing your pitch. You can and should send your idea to multiple journalists, but don’t send the same email every time. Instead, for each journalist, you pitch, create a new email with a personalized message.
Save Pitch templates and insert them anywhere using keyboard shortcuts.
Your personalizations should reflect the journalist’s interests and tie their recent work to your story. For example, you can mention what you enjoyed about a specific piece of theirs and how it relates to what you’re pitching. You should also address the journalist by their name and clearly state the publication, so your pitch doesn’t appear insincere or like a blanketed template. Although these steps might be a bit more time-consuming, personalizing your emails pays off in the end. You can automate this task by using a snippet tool such as Text Blaze to create templates that are easy to personalize.
Don't Send An Email Blast to Multiple Contacts
As easy and efficient as email blasting can be for media exposure, it often doesn’t work. That’s because media blasts are often impersonal, and if you’re email-blasting press releases, you’ll be providing information rather than persuading people. Plus, email blasts regularly wind up in the Promotions tab with all that other junk in your target journalist’s inbox. Reporters are more than just email addresses on a contact list – they’re people too – and they merit individually contacting with tailored pitches.
Write an Eye-Catching Subject Line
Subject lines can make or break PR pitches. Keep your subject line clear, concise, and intriguing – try to reel in journalists without sounding like an ad. Words such as “exclusive” or “interview opportunity” may help, depending on your story. But they’re not substitutes for a compelling hook. Try to approximate a title that would make you click on a full-length article.
Make Your Pitch Quick and Easy to Read
Congratulations! Your subject line got a journalist to open your email. Make sure your email is short, sweet, and attention-grabbing to keep their attention. Focus on what your business does and why the journalist should cover your story now, and provide just a bit of background information. You should ideally keep your email under 200 or so words.
Include Bullet Points
To make your pitch easier to read and provide key talking points, it might be a good idea to add bullet points to your email. To start your email, write what you’re trying to promote in sentence form. Then, you can break the rest of your email into bullet points mentioning the specifics of your story. Though this approach can be a little unorthodox, it can be effective if you follow the examples of the templates later in this piece.
Ask Yourself If the Topic Is Truly Newsworthy
Is now really the right time for you to pitch your story? If you can confidently answer yes to this question, then you’re on the right track. If not, come back to pitching another time and focus on other promotional efforts for now.
To go the extra mile, conduct some research to prove your story’s timeliness. Any relevant facts, figures, and articles you provide can help show the journalist why it’s essential for them to cover your story now. Plus, when you save journalists some time in their research, you make preparing a story easier.
Properly Structure Your Pitch
The proper structure can keep your pitches professional and easy to read. Below is a general structure for you to follow.
- Hook. Your hook should relate to the types of stories the reporter usually covers. For example, if you’re trying to promote a vegan makeup product, your hook can tie the reporter’s recent work about cruelty-free cosmetics to your brand.
Save Pitch templates and insert them anywhere using keyboard shortcuts.
Call to action. Your call to action tells the journalist what you want them to do next. What is the point you’re trying to get across? Are you seeking a news-style article that basically rehashes a press release? Do you want the reporter to profile you and your company? Be clear about what you want them to do.
Value proposition. This is the meat of your story. It tells journalists why they should write a story about you. To figure out your value proposition, ask yourself: What makes you stand out more than the other 100 pitches? Now’s the time to bring in your “wow” factor.
Conclude. Just like with any other written conclusion, you’ll quickly review your main talking points. Then, you’ll thank the writer for their time and say you look forward to speaking with them soon.
Follow Up If No Response
If you didn’t receive a reply after your initial pitch, don’t become discouraged – non-replies happen often. Plus, there’s a chance the journalist didn’t see your first email. Send a quick follow-up email if you don’t hear back within a few days or a week. Just write a sentence or two asking if the person is interested in further discussing the idea with you. Then, be sure to reply directly to the email you sent, so the journalist can see your initial story idea.
3 Pitch Letter Examples
To bring the above ideas to life, check out the three examples below. Each of these templates includes spaces for incorporating all the key pointers. They’ll all bring you one step closer to getting the exposure you deserve.
Pitch Letter Template 1: Cold Pitch for Product
Would you be interested in trying out our newest product,a collection of healthy vegan cupcakes from our company Mama's Little Bakery? I thought you might be interested in this based on your recent article on {formtext: name= Best healthy homegrown bakeries in Chicago; cols =35}.
Mama's Little Bakery is a brand that focuses on fresh, healthy & artisanal products. Our founders launched the company because they believed deeply in this mission. Each of our products is vegan, gluten-free & free from allergens, we’re eager to have you try ours so you can see what sets us apart from our competitors and why it matters.
Let us know if you’d like a sample. Once you’ve tried it, we’d be happy to discuss future coverage. Thanks for your consideration, and looking forward to hearing from you soon!
Sincerely, Rachel
Pitch Letter Template 2: Thought Leadership Pitch
I really liked your recent article about {formtext: name=Female leaders in tech; cols=20}. I’ll certainly be taking some pointers from it – namely, the parts about how {formtext: name=women need to network more; cols=20}. And that’s all related to what I do, which is why I’d like to guest write my own article for your publication.
In my article, I’d approach the same subject matter as yours from a slightly different angle and offer my perspective as someone {formtext: name= who offers networking sessions to female leaders in tech; cols=45}
Let me know if you’re interested in having me write this guest post for you. Thanks, and looking forward to hearing from you!
Thank you, Sheila
Pitch Letter Template 3: Follow-Up Pitch
Have you gotten a chance to read my previous email about {formtext: name= vegan cupcake samples; cols = 18}? Below is my original pitch for a refresher. Thanks and looking forward to hearing from you!
Thanks, Rachel
Personalize Pitch Letters with Text Blaze Templates
Writing pitch letters can be exhausting and time-consuming – until you add Text Blaze to your arsenal. Text Blaze is a free browser extension that offers fully customizable, easy-to-use templates and snippets that’ll streamline all the repetitive parts of pitching. With Text Blaze, writing and personalizing pitches stops being tedious and starts being easy and fun. You’ll have completely customized pitch letters in under a minute – and after that, coverage might follow.
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