So you’ve sent out your press release about your online business and want to know if it’s going to be published. How do you follow up without making a pest of yourself?
People who just call over and over again are considered amateurs in the news business. And being a pest almost always guarantees your releases will never see the light of day on a news professional’s desk.
To follow up without looking like an amateur, you need a little patience. If you’ve e-mailed or faxed your press release and didn’t receive an error message, you can assume it was received. If you did your homework and called before sending it to make sure it was delivered to the right person, you can assume it got to your chosen reporter.
After you send the release, you need to just sit back and wait. Contacting the reporter or editor too soon after it has been sent is a great way to get your press release deleted. Being an amateur-like pest is a good way to prevent any future releases from getting published as well. But that doesn’t mean you should never call a journalist. Eventually calling to make sure it was received is the responsible thing to do. Sending another e-mail might hit a nerve, so after a few days have gone by pick up the phone and call.
Be aware of a reporter’s deadlines. Knowing the best time to call is just as important as finding the right reporter to send the release to.
When making your calls, just remember the following tips:
1) The amount of time you wait after sending the release depends on the publication’s schedule and how time sensitive your release is. Use common sense when deciding the best time to follow up.
2) Once you have the editor or reporter on the phone, get to the point without being rude. First, always check if he or she has time to talk to you. If not, ask when is a good time to call back.
3) If your journalist has a few minutes’ (which in the news business means please keep it brief’), introduce yourself.
4) Summarize the news hook. (If it’s longer than a sentence, your summary is too long.)
5) Ask if he or she thinks it sounds like something of interest.
6) If you get a positive response, say that you sent a press release a couple of days before, but you’d be happy to resend it.
7) If you get a negative response, and you sense that the journalist has a few more moments, ask either how this could be a story he or she would be more interested in or what kind of stories would he or she like to see from you in the future.
Shannon Cherry, APR, MA helps businesses, entrepreneurs and
nonprofit organizations to be heard. Shes a marketing
communications and public relations expert with more than
15 years experience and the owner of Cherry Communications.
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