Posted by Karen Renzi
I can’t believe it – yesterday flew by without a post. This blog-a-day challenge might be tougher than I thought! Anyway, jumping right back in. I continue to be enamoured of the opportunities presented by HARO. Today I came across a great 2-part post on another blog: How to Respond to ProfNet, PRLeads, and Helpareporter.com Queries, Part 1 and How to Respond to ProfNet, PRLeads, and Helpareporter.com Queries, Part 2. If you are thinking of responding to reporter queries – please read this.
The same basic principles always apply when communicating with reporters – whether responding to a query, distributing a press release, or pitching a story.
- Take your ego out of the equation. Unless you are some kind of celebutante, you aren’t the “angle” of the story and the reporter isn’t going to be impressed by a lot of I-me-we words about how great you are.
- Write like a reporter. This means concise and organized to get the main points out quickly. Attention-grabbing headline or subject line and who-what-when-where-how.
- Keep it relevant. Select your main thesis and stick to it. Make sure you are talking to the right reporters. And if you are responding to a specific query, by all means make sure your pitch is 100% in alignment with it.
- Make it meaningful. Don’t waste your time writing it if it’s not newsworthy. If you were a reader of the publication, would it be an article you would read?
- Mind your words. Make sure your grammar is correct and your words carefully chosen. This is your chance to make a professional impression, and what you write might just get republished as a quote (if you’re lucky) – so make sure it is worded exactly as you intend.
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