Despite its advancing age, and the predictions by some that it may be dethroned, 95 percent of Americans still depend on email as one of their main forms of communication.
And that’s true for journalists as well. We might imagine that cutting-edge reporters in the 21st century may have relegated email to a minor role in the Court of Communications. May it never be!
As far as the media is concerned, email is definitely still king. According to Muck Rack’s State of Journalism Report 2022, 94 percent of journalists prefer a 1:1 email pitch over any other form of communication. Trendy options such as WhatsApp are just beginning to appear on the pitching landscape.
Next favorite for media is the mass email or newswire pitch.
With that in mind, how do you get the most from email?
First of all, you will need a reliable and effective database of media contacts.
You might track down every media person in your area through Google. A simple search of “Dayton, Ohio media,” where I happen to live, quickly brought a Wikipedia entry that included every daily, weekly, online, alternative, and collegiate newspaper within a 50-mile radius, along with every TV station, AM and FM radio station.
Even with this impressive array of media options, you still have to find specific email addresses for TV, radio, newspaper, and online outlets and journalists.
One way to find a king’s table of usable emails for media, i.e., they won’t bounce, is through the newswire. Infinity Concept’s very own Inspire Newswire provides a seamless and effective way to quickly reach thousands of desired media contacts based on specific demographics without having to hunt down that information yourself. The Inspire Newswire also provides external review, guaranteed placement on searchable online platforms, and a way for you to position your organization’s leaders as expert sources to the media.
PR software is another option that can serve as a helpful tool, giving you the ability to target media by topic, geographical location, and media platform. It can help you find media who are communicating on your brand’s product or service, so you can focus on people who are really interested in your subject matter. And it will provide a means for you to track how your PR efforts are performing.
Even a general email, such as newstips@TVstation.com, will help your story idea get into the queue of someone who will look it over. But you do need to know that email address, and a good PR service will provide those quickly and easily.
If you don’t want to purchase a PR service, you might invest in a subscription to an online email provider. With such a service, you can do a search of all the email addresses associated with a media source, and develop a list based on your needs, e.g., business reporters. The service may provide an opportunity to try it out for free, so you can determine if it’s a good fit.
In whatever way you reach out to media, whether it’s through a spreadsheet of contacts you’ve created, Inspire Newswire, a PR media package, or an email locator service, remember that email is still your champion. Keep that in mind, and before you know it, you’ll become PR royalty.
Let Infinity Concepts help you expand your PR kingdom.
CLICK HERE or call us today at 724-733-1200.
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