You’re sitting at your desk – biting your nails – staring at the email you drafted to the editor of your favorite magazine. You change a few words. Then change them back. Then you say **ck it, hit send, close your eyes and breathe a sigh of nervous relief.

Said editor receives the email. He/she digs the subject line and opens it. He/she reads your first line – yawns, hits delete, and moves onto the next email.

What just went wrong?

The opening sentence of your pitch is crucial to capturing the attention of the media. You are competing against tons of different distractions (ringing phones, exasperated co-workers, a junked-up inbox, the wafting smell of freshly brewed coffee).

If the first line of your email sucks, you’ve lost them.

So, how can you deliver a first line with enough razzmatazz to keep them reading?

Share the Love

If you’ve done your homework and researched the outlet before pitching, you should know the most recent stories your target has worked on. If it genuinely appealed to you, and your product would be a fit for a feature that’s similar, why not take this opportunity to pay them a compliment?

An example: Dear xx, I recently enjoyed your piece in the latest Marie Claire magazine on Healthy Beauty. I was surprised to hear that pear is such a great ingredient for the skin and can’t wait to try the recipe you provided!

Knock their Socks Off with a Stat

Find an interesting and thought-provoking statistic that ties into your business and hit them with it right up front. For example, if you have a product that induces laughter or wrote a book on laughter, you might want to say something like: Can a laugh a day keep a heart attack away? A recent study by the University of Maryland says yes.

Bonus points if you are delivering original results from your own survey or study.

Make them Shake their Head in Agreement

Aim to get that “a-ha” moment from the media. If your product/service delivers a solution (and I’m willing to bet they all do) – you might want to start by getting them to say “yes” to your question and be compelled to hear the solution. For example: Are you tired of kinky strands but not ready to make a commitment to chemical straightening?
 

Do you struggle with clever openings for your media pitches? Do you have lots of success with certain “openers”? Spill it in the comments below!

You’re all ready to pitch a national magazine, newspaper, radio show, blog, website, or television show.

But wait….what do you say in your pitch? The obvious answer is to tell them how great your product or service is. However, these types of pitches aren’t “news.” And they are the quickest way to get a lot of rejections from the media (or hear nothing back at all)

The way we create “news” is to tie our product or service into something newsworthy. You need a great angle. Confused? Don’t fret. I’ve decided to do all the hard work for you.

Check out this swipe file of 10 pitch ideas you can use right now.

And, before you begin, remember that the media operates on different lead times. This means how far in advance they work from their deadline. When pitching the media, always remember:

National magazines work 4-6 months in advance. So, in March you should be pitching for June, July or August.

National television works about 4-6 weeks in advance (sometimes farther and sometimes closer to deadline depending on the show).

Newspapers and radio work fairly close to deadline – think 1-3 weeks.

Blogs and news websites vary from 1 week to several months, depending on their popularity and editorial schedule.

10 Pitch Ideas You Can Use Right Now

1. Tie into an upcoming holiday. Do you have the perfect gift for Mother’s Day? The best recipe for 4th of July?

2. Better yet, look for quirkier holidays that fit your business. We love Chase’s Calendar of Events.

3. Piggyback on the latest celebrity trends. Celebrity divorce rate at an all-time high? Perfect timing for marriage counselors, sex therapists, or those with books or products that help relationships. New hairstyles or beauty treatments sweeping Hollywood? (p.s. this also gives you an excuse to indulge in reading the entertainment magazines!)

4. Piggyback onto national news stories. Simply check the morning headlines and see if anything fits.

5. Research studies and statistics that lend credibility to your product or service. These are often found within national news stories, medical journals, or even trade publications (industry-specific publications).

6. When in doubt, use the weather. Solve winter weather blues or can help beat the summer heat. And you can pretty much “spring clean” anything (life, desk, pantry, workout, etc).

7. Buddy up with some other small business owners and try a trend pitch. A trend pitch is when you collect a group of people (typically 3 or 4) that have a common yet interesting story. For example, a client of mine recently landed a 2-page spread in Essence Magazine for being part of a trend piece on entrepreneurs with full-time corporate careers.

8. Work on a monthly basis. We know September is Back to School. November and December are all about holidays. January is all about the New Year. March is popular for bridal stories. June is prom season. Summer is travel time. Daylight savings is another goodie.

9. Be the hero. Did you overcome adversity to make it where you are today? The media loves human interest stories, and everyone loves a hero.

10. Solve the problem. If your product or service solves a pesky, or even humorous, problem – share it with them! A great example is Real Simple Magazine’s problem solvers feature. Each product they feature solves a problem so well, it instantly makes you shout “I need that!” If your business does the same, go get em!

Which pitch ideas have worked best for you? Leave a comment below!

And, don't forget, Boost Your Fame Factor closes this Friday! If you want a program that teaches you everything about publicity + social media and marketing – this is for you! http://www.boostyourfamefactor.com