You did it! You took the plunge, crafted a pitch you’re proud of, and you’re chomping at the bit to finally hit send on that Bad Mama Jama. And let’s be clear—we’re super proud of you! You’re facing your fears, owning your expertise, and finally stepping into the spotlight where you belong.
But before you hit send, let’s double check your work one more time. Because both of us know firsthand that there are a few key things that help greenlight a great pitch—and without these pieces, your great idea could end up in the bad pitch folder. Consider this your pre-send checklist for pitch perfect media outreach.
Check One: Is your pitch specific?
Make sure your pitch is as specific as possible. Tell them what problem you’re solving, how you’re solving it and—the most important part—why their audience should care! And if you can do all of that while passing the ultimate media-readiness test, you’ve nailed a great pitch.
BONUS: Give them a counterintuitive angle with an interesting hook. What does everyone get wrong or have backwards about your industry? What small detail changes your clients’ lives in a big way?
Producers would much rather book the nutritionist who says, “Our culture has bought into the lie that fat is the enemy. I’d love to do a segment on why bacon is healthy—and how a fat rich diet actually melts body fat.” Now THAT has our attention!
Check Two: Does it match their brand?
Pitching isn’t as easy as creating a template and blasting a thousand emails into the media ether. What works for Buzzfeed will not work for MindBodyGreen will not work for The New Yorker. It’s kind of like television: You could probably pick up a script for a comedy TV pilot and figure out pretty quickly whether it belongs on CBS or HBO.
You significantly increase your chances of rising to the top of the flood of pitches producers and editors receive if you make it clear that you understand the media outlet’s brand. What kinds of stories have they run in the past? How do they incorporate humor? Are they family-friendly or edgy? Is there a throughline or theme to the kind of content they gravitate toward?
Check Three: Will it resonate with their audience?
The best pitches visualize one very specific person and tailor the advice to helping that person solve a problem. To take your pitch to the next level, you need to identify who that ideal audience member is for each outlet you pitch. And it helps to get as specific as possible.
Let’s pretend that the walking embodiment of a Today Show viewer is a 38-year-old mother of two living in Mesquite, Texas. And let’s pretend that the walking embodiment of a HelloGiggles reader is a 24-year-old administrative assistant living in Brooklyn.
If you were a relationship therapist, you would approach those two clients entirely differently—and the same goes for your pitch. You might pitch a piece on surviving the “Seven Year Itch” to the Today Show, but a piece on tweaking your Tinder profile might go over better at HelloGiggles. By researching the outlet’s audience, you also save yourself—and producers and editors—precious time by not wasting good material on people who don’t need it.
There’s a mythology created around superstars that talent makes success easy. It perpetuates the idea that if you’re good enough, the world will open its arms and throw you opportunities. But it’s a myth—pure and simple. Everybody gets rejected over and over again. Steve Jobs. Oprah. Beyonce. Everybody.
You’ve heard that fortune favors the brave, but the media favors the persistent. The people who continually put themselves out there, who aim for the one “yes” in a sea of 100 nos. And if you want to make it in the media, you not only have to learn to stay hungry—you have to be able to stomach rejection.
Here are 4 ways to make rejection go down a little more smoothly:
1. Follow up…
Producers and editors are constantly inundated with emails. Before you bust out the pint of Ben & Jerry’s, it’s imperative that you give your pitch a follow up bump to ensure it was, in fact, rejected.
But, whatever you do, do not send a blanket email that just says, “So…what did you think of my pitch?” They’re not going to go digging for your pitch—and this is a surefire way to get a Liz Lemon level eyeroll in response. Acknowledge that they are busy people, give them a brief summary, and link them back to your full original pitch. So, for example:
“I’m very aware that you get tons of emails every single day and might have missed this one. I wanted to pop it back up to the top of the pile and hopefully catch your eye. As a quick reminder — I’m a GI doc and I’m using a new diagnostic tool in my office that is helping patients knockout acid reflux sooner than ever before. Here’s a clip of me on ABC talking about it. Full details below. Looking forward to hearing your thoughts!”
Now, that’s a great follow up!
2…but know when they’re just not that into you.
Let’s be real: If you followed up, and heard nothing, she’s just not that into you. And look, as you learned in our Valentine’s Day post, you’re building relationships in the media—and not everyone is going to be a perfect match at first. Better to cut your losses and move on in pursuit of the right fit.
And sure, you never know—culture may shift, the news cycle make quake, and suddenly, the producer that got away may remember your now perfectly relevant pitch and pick up the phone. But we can guarantee that if you’ve harangued them with email after email—with no reply—they will be hesitant to pick up the phone, even if you’re an ideal fit.
3. Tweak your pitch.
If you try the same pickup line every night for a week in a row—and nobody bites—it’s time to rethink your approach. The same goes for your pitch. Look it over with a fresh pair of eyes and try to see it from a producer/editor’s perspective. Is it clear and concise? Are the stakes high or are you doing the old “letting you know about this” pitch (which never really works)? Is it specific? Does it solve a problem? Also, ask a trusted friend for honest feedback (keyword: honest). If she didn’t know you, would she keep reading?
4. Keep it in perspective.
There is a cacophony of factors producers and editors have to consider (timing, topic, have they just covered this recently, does their boss not like this topic as a rule, etc). It may have nothing to do with your talent level, the validity of your idea, or the power of your message.
Rejection is, in so many ways, completely the wrong term for what’s happening when someone passes on your pitch. It’s not always a flat-out rejection, but more like a swing and a miss—and there are lots of those.
Remember they’re trying to solve a very specific puzzle, and both you and the producer are hoping your pitch is the right piece. It may not complete this picture, but it might be the exact right fit for the next one. Keep getting better at what you do, stay persistent, learn from every no—and eventually, the pieces will fall into place.
Imagine this: You’ve finally scored a pre-interview call with a producer or editor. They liked your initial pitch enough to reach out, but they’re really interested in hearing what else you’ve got. Do your eyes go wide with panic, brain scrambling for something—anything—to say? Or do you say, “No problem! I’ve got seven ideas locked and loaded.”
The media, like opportunity, only knocks once: When you answer the door, will you be ready—or standing in your bathrobe?
The time to stock up on content is now. And the truth is, creating content is as much about habit as it is about talent—the more often you flex your creative muscle, the stronger it will be. This week, we’re throwing you three prompts to stretch and flex your old ideas into fresh content. Three prompts. Zero excuses. Let’s do this!
Mine pop culture. Producers and editors are always looking for pieces that tap into what’s relevant right now—and using pop culture is a great way to make your topic resonate with audiences. Take something that’s buzzed about this week—a TV show, album release, Comeybowl—and use it as inspiration. Look at how many op-eds you saw last week about how Comey’s experience with Trump mirrored what it’s like to be a woman in the workplace. Or how many experts have used mega-hits like Wonder Woman and Game of Thrones to shed light on their field of expertise.
What is everyone missing? Cassandra once famously yelled, “HEY! THAT HORSE IS FULL OF GREEKS, YOU IDIOTS!” (But, you know, in Homeric Greek). Be the Cassandra of your field:
- What big problem are we ignoring?
- What small problems do we dismiss that might have a huge impact down the line? What’s the one thing that—if we all just paid a little more attention—would change everything about X?
- What does everyone assume is great, but is actually awful.
Write about that! For example, New York Times comedy critic Jason Zinoman recently wrote a brilliant counterintuitive take on Dear Evan Hansen, the most beloved Broadway musical of the season, called Dear Evan Hansen: You’re a Creep. Especially after Sunday’s TONY win for best musical, his article stands out.
Hack it. Write down five super simple, hyper-specific actions people can take right now that will change their life. In other words, give us five ways to hack (insert your field here).
Five things we can do right now to help us sleep better that aren’t “go to bed earlier.” Five easy, one-step things I can do right now to start a personal savings. Little life-hacks like this are a producer/editor’s dream. And look, while we both know you’ve got a brilliant thesis or book in you, segments and articles are all about small but potent bursts of information.
Now get out there and create some content!