As a PR professional, building strong relationships with journalists is the key to success. However, this can sometimes be easier said than done.
Cision has released its State of the Media Report for 2024, where over 3,000 journalists across the world have given their opinions of the current state of the industry, as well as insights into how we, as PR professionals, can collaborate better with them.
I covered last year’s report here if you want to see how much the industry has changed since 2023.
Social media in 2024
Social media is a key tool for marketers and journalists alike.
In the past year, journalists have used social media to:
- Publish and promote content
- Source information
- Interact with their audience
- Network
- Monitor news, keywords, competitive media etc
- Pick up on trending topics
The report found that only 3% of journalists did not use social media for work-related reasons, so the overwhelming majority are actively present across social media platforms. This makes it a great channel for marketers and PR professionals to connect with them.
In the coming year, journalists plan to be more active on:
- Instagram (44%)
- LinkedIn (39%)
- Facebook (34%)
- It’s worth noting that Facebook didn’t make it to the top five in last year’s report, but sits at number three this year, showing clear intent for journalists to increase their professional use of this platform
- YouTube (28%)
- X – Twitter (24%)
- TikTok (21%)
- WhatsApp (11%)
- Threads (10%)
What makes a ‘perfect’ pitch?
Finishing the sentence “The perfect PR pitch is…”, journalists said:
- “Relevant to my audience.”
- Concise and to the point. Bullet points are great or short sentences that tell me what I need to know.”
- “Actually newsworthy, not just a brand trying to get eyeballs.”
Relevance really is key. Nearly three-quarters of journalists claim that only 25% of the pitches they receive are relevant to their audience, and 77% state that spamming them with irrelevant pitches can lead PR professionals to end up blocked, which isn’t much use when you finally do have something of value to share.
Remember that journalists are human too, with limited time to find information and create content from it. Really consider whether what you’re offering is right for each particular journalist before sending a pitch. If you have media lists set up, consider adding a section to note down the areas / topics a journalist covers so you can easily select the right contacts for each release.
How to pitch to a journalist
The content that journalists most want to receive from PR professionals is:
- News announcements / press releases (74%)
- Original resource reports (61%)
- Exclusives for stories (55%)
- Access to events (44%)
- Interviews with industry experts (44%)
And they say the most useful sources for generating content and ideas are:
- Press releases (68%)
- Direct pitches (47%)
- Industry experts (47%)
- News agencies (37%)
Press releases came out on top for both questions, but crafting a press release is an art in itself. We have some handy guides in this area on our blog, including a guide to writing a press release, advice to help your news stand out and ways to make product releases more newsworthy, as well as tips for press release distribution.
Should your pitch include images, videos and other graphics?
The multimedia elements provided by PR professionals that prove useful for content are:
- Images (72%)
- Data visualisation / infographics (34%)
- Videos (33%)
- Web polls / surveys (29%)
Sending additional materials alongside your pitch can be useful in many instances, but these aspects should add value to your pitch and not be included just for the sake of it. If your press release is detailing a new product, images of the product would be useful to include. If you’re sharing new research and have some complementary infographics, these can also provide value to the journalist. Nearly half of journalists said that including multimedia elements makes no difference to how likely they are to pursue a pitch, so there’s no need to include images or videos if they don’t add value.
Should you follow up?
Once you’ve sent your pitch, should you follow up with the journalist? Nearly two-thirds of journalists said that following up one time per pitch is fine. Sending a follow-up email with some additional information that could complement their piece can be a great way to secure coverage, but avoid going over the top and sending too many follow-ups.
Only 8% of journalists feel that multiple follow-ups are effective in encouraging them to use your content, and 48% stated that repeated follow-ups can lead them to block you from contacting them again.
What can we do to help journalists?
There are a few different things that journalists want from PR professionals to make their job easier:
- Understand their target audience and what they find relevant
- Connect them with experts / spokespeople and set up interviews
- Provide data and key research
- Respect their deadlines
- Provide new and relevant story ideas
You can write the perfect pitch that leads into the perfect news, story or research piece, but if you’re not considering the journalist throughout the process, it may have been a waste of time.
This is a two-way street: you want the coverage and the journalist wants value. Understanding what the journalist wants and needs is a great way to tailor your PR activities in a way that benefits both parties.
You can download the full State of the Media Report here.
