Give editors what they want

Journalists are busy people. Editorial teams are pretty thin on the ground these days and are expected to cover a huge amount of material. Coming up with great content that will engage their readers and ultimately help journalists to deliver successful content will help them look upon you favourably.

Coverage in leading trade publications goes a long way to raising the profile of your event with your target audiences, but how can you make it through the noise and ensure that editors will pick up your stories? 

We work with journalists on a daily basis and have picked up a ten top tips that you may find useful: 

1. Exclusive stories where possible – every journalist wants to have an exclusive; original stories that no one else has covered make them stand out from the competition. This can be great if you want to make a bigger splash with one publication, but be aware that other titles will not run the piece if you offer an exclusive.

2. Interesting angles that will engage their readers – this sounds obvious but do give some thought as to who is reading the publication you are targeting and the sorts of stories that are likely to interest them. It could be new features of the event, partnerships, milestones, opinion on hot topics, new speakers lined up or people news and moves for trade press.

3. Facts and figures – media love statistics so any new research is likely to go down well. In addition, facts and figures about your event, including milestones (anniversaries, 10,000th delegate attended etc) can be a great news hook.

4. News – actual news that has not been revealed elsewhere and is relevant to readers. Don’t try to release news that you have already mentioned perhaps on social media or even at an event. This is pretty black and white for media; it’s either news or it isn’t.

5. No sales talk – nothing will turn off an editor quicker than a promotional offer sent in the guise of a press release. The concept of actual news versus special offers is sometimes tricky for companies to differentiate. As a rule of thumb, if it is an incentivized offer, it is not news. 

6. Famous faces – the media love celebrities and renowned individuals in their own sectors. Tap into any contacts you have and leverage their profile to get great media interest.

7. Keep it personal – even in a B2B scenario, a human interest element is always important. Leverage personal profiles of speakers at your event and even individuals in your company, support local charities or other CSR initiatives to show your human side.

8. Hot topics – think about what is topical at present and see if there is an angle you can relate to for your event that will interest the media. It might be the Olympics or the horsemeat scandal, whatever is buzzing at present is sure to be of interest to journalists.

9. Pictures – they say a picture speaks a thousand words and great images will give you a better chance of securing editorial with your target publications. They want to make their magazines look great and often don’t have budget for dedicated photography. See if there are any interesting angles to create a photo story linked to your event.

10. Quick response – the deadline is key when it comes to meeting editor’s needs. They tend to work to quite short timescales, with the exception of forward features, so be prepared to move quickly if an opportunity presents itself. Always ask when the deadline is (there is always a deadline) and make sure you stick to it if you want to build good relationships with your target media.

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