Sometimes it might be tempting to mass send the same press release to hundreds of journalists, however, this rarely works. Read on below to find out why.
They are not tailored to the reader
Given journalists are looking to publish content that is relevant for their readers, they are very unlikely to respond to a mass pitch. Because your pitch doesn’t demonstrate how it is of value to their particular readers, it’ll probably be ignored in favour of a bespoke pitch personalised to the individual journalist, their publication and their readers’ interests.
Brand-driven rather than news-driven
Mass-mailed press releases tend to be more brand-driven rather than trending news-driven. By this, we mean that they are mostly focused on the brand and its news, rather than relating this to what is happening within the wider news agenda. To maximise your chances of coverage, it’s worthwhile blending your brand’s news with key statistics or contextual information to demonstrate the timeliness of your pitch.
100s of journalists have received the same pitch
Journalists are always looking to differentiate their content from their competitors’ content to ensure they offer their readers a unique perspective. When they receive a mass-mailed press release, they know that hundreds of other journalists will have received the same news and so will be very unlikely to write about it as they’ll assume the story has already been published elsewhere.
The limited occasions when mass mailing does work
This having been said, sometimes mass mailing pitches to journalists does work to disseminate information quickly. For instance, this includes sharing product suggestions with shopping editors for their gift guides or updating fashion and beauty editors on red carpet looks during awards season.
Note that if you do send a mass-mailed press release, include an unsubscribe link to remain GDPR compliant.
Best practice…
In most cases, when pitching to journalists, we recommend tailoring your pitch emails to the individual journalist and the publication they write for. This makes your pitch stand out from others and demonstrates to the journalist that you’ve taken the time to make your news relevant to their readers.
If you’d like further training on how to PR your business email us via hello@fallowfieldmason.com