For the better part of four years, I had the good fortune to work as a producer on “Our Region’s Business,” a terrific regional affairs program that airs on NBC affiliate stations in four states just before “Meet the Press” every Sunday morning.  It was a great experience for a lot of reasons, not the least of which are the lessons I learned about pitching the media. 

The world of public relations looks a bit alien and can leave you scratching your head … or contemplating suicide/homicide … when you’re on the receiving end of those pitch phone calls and e-mails.  Once my name appeared in the closing credits of the program, I quickly learned that the pitches would come from every direction. 

When you’re a producer you expect that you’ll get calls from PR folks, but it never occurs to you that you need to be on your guard at family functions or the dentist’s office.  One clown pitched me a story about his business while taking a break from entertaining the children at a birthday party.  I’m not just calling him a clown; he really was a clown – in full makeup, the big shoes, red nose and wig.  Turned out he also did bachelorette parties – definitely not a fit for our Sunday morning broadcasts.  Another time, I was pitched a story about a growing family dental practice WHILE I WAS GETTING A ROOT CANAL.

The timing of those sorts of pitches never seems to be quite right, but I wasn’t ever bothered by them either.  Well, maybe by the clown pitch …  The pitches that really bothered me, though, were the ones by people who make their living doing PR but who didn’t seem to know anything about me or, more importantly, our show.

“Our Region’s Business” covers regional business news, public policy and government, and stories about the people and attractions that make Pittsburgh one of America’s most livable regions.  Those are fairly broad parameters, and you’d think that paid PR professionals would understand that it’s their job to find the angle from which their stories can be covered to fit a given show or audience.  But more often than not I found that the people who pitched me had little understanding of our show and expected me to figure out why their stories would be of supreme interest to our viewers.  Not only did those folks not land their stories on our program, but I found myself less inclined to give them much of my time when they e-mailed or called with other pitches down the road.

Pitching media isn’t all that complicated, but pitching media successfully does take a little bit of effort.  So here are some lessons I learned during my time as a television producer – lessons that continue to help me as a public relations professional.

1. Know something about the outlet you’re pitching.  No PR pro can be expected to be an avid viewer/listener/reader of every television show, radio program, podcast, publication and blog on the planet.  But we can – no, we must – take the time to do a little bit of research before we pitch.  We’re not making cold calls like a bunch of telemarketers.  So spend some time identifying the outlets you’ll be pitching, and use the tools you’ve got at hand – whether you subscribe to one of the big media monitoring packages or you rely on Google – to learn a bit about the sort of stories that they cover.  Approach an editor/reporter/producer with an angle that’s right for her audience, and you dramatically improve your chance of earning coverage.

2. Relationships matter.  The assignment editor at your local TV station doesn’t have to be your best friend, but take the time to learn his name.  Find out what the production schedule is like in his newsroom.  Pitch him before he sends his crews out for the day, and offer yourself and your clients up as resources and experts he can call on when he needs somebody down the road.  Remember, successful relationships involve a give and take.  If you demonstrate that you’ll do your best to come through when an editor or producer asks you for something, he’ll do his best to cover your stories when you call on him.

3. Be flexible; be easy.  I can’t tell you the number of times I was pitched stories that had merit but wouldn’t work for our show the way they were presented.  Often times, if I were pitched a guest whose story wasn’t really as newsworthy as he might think, I’d suggest we pair him with an industry expert who could help to broaden the discussion.  The original caller still got his time in the spotlight, but my job was to make sure the discussion on the show was topical with broad appeal.  After all, we weren’t in the business of putting guests on the show simply to hawk their products and services for seven minutes at a time.  I was amazed at how much pushback I got from PR pros who didn’t want their clients to share the spotlight or who griped because we planned to run their interviews in the B block instead of the lead.  Those folks didn’t get invited back often.  Rather, I’d go time and again to the PR pros who not only welcomed my ideas about broadening the appeal of their stories but had even taken the time on their own to put together a list of possible guest pairings for me to consider.  Bottom line – the easier you are to work with when you’re pitching your stories, the more often you’ll find success getting yourself and your clients in print and on the air.

4. Be flexible; be creative.  Sometimes, your pitch is solid but just doesn’t work.  The angle isn’t right for the show or it’s too similar to something they’ve just done.  Be prepared to reshape your pitch by approaching it from an entirely fresh angle.  Or two.  Or three.  Give the editor or producer on the other end of the line a few different ideas about how she might tell the story.  Even if none of your suggestions are quite right, you just might find she’s intrigued enough that she uncovers an angle you haven’t considered.  And that collaboration between the two of you will pay off in the form of good coverage and a strong, valuable relationship.

Have some tips of your own for successful pitching?  How about stories of pitches gone horribly wrong?  Send them my way; I’d love to hear about your experiences working with – or as a member of – the media.

Contact me by e-mail at shawn.bannon@bannoncommunications.com, and follow me on Twitter!