Pitching to media

Media can help get your story out to thousands of people you don’t know. Media comes in the form of traditional mediums such as newspapers, radio and TV. However non-traditional media: social media, websites, blogs, e-newsletters, industry associations and networks has become equally valuable for reaching new audiences.

How to pitch media

Identify the right publications and channels and know when to hit them 
Remember that you want coverage in the media that your crowd read and use.
In other words, getting a feature in the New Zealand Herald, while exciting and affirming, may be of limited value if your project primarily benefits local people in Gore. 
You won’t have time to target all media (and not all media will be interested anyway). So, spend some time identifying your essential channels and hit them first.

Note that different media have different lead times. 
You should aim to approach long lead print publications and larger, more popular publications at least three months in advance.
Short lead, more reactive media, such as online publications and smaller regional newspapers and radio can be approached a week prior to launch.

Your crowdfunding campaign may be of interest to:

• Local newspapers, radio stations and TV channels.
• Arts publications, especially those with a keen interest in your discipline. Don’t forget the digital arts publications.
• National arts programmes.
• National arts journalists who create content for multiple publications.
• Magazines that regularly feature cultural content. Think North and South, the Listener, Kia Ora, New Zealand Geographic, NZ Life & Leisure etc. Remember that magazines like this are long lead, which means they create their content three or four months out from publication.
• Social influencers and bloggers with an interest in your art form or your community.
• Arts organisations that have their own magazines, e-newsletters and social media communities.

It’s also worth considering:

• Local businesses, especially if your project benefits the local community and they have a significant social following/ prominent real estate in your core target area.
• Local community groups.
• Does anyone in your network have PR expertise or a connection to media?
• Does anyone in your network have a large social media following? Ask anyone of influence to share your campaign with their audience.
• And don’t forget to send information to Boosted, so we can promote your project on our social media channels and through our emails.

Have an angle

You must have a newsworthy angle, or your story will not be picked up.
Things media like, include:
 

• Firsts.
• Human interest.
• Jeopardy stories – solving a problem.
• Cute factor.
• High-risk.
• Local connection.
• Major impact.
• Personal journey.

Think about ways you can create media moments at key stages of the campaign.
These can be strong photo or TV opportunities, key interviews, a fundraising stunt, sneak peeks of rehearsals etc. A media moment should be strongly visual and ideally newsworthy in its own right.
Media moments create another opportunity for you to invite select media and may even score you double the coverage from some key channels.

Make it easy for media

Prepare an info pack for the media. Include:

• A media release (more on this below).
• Factsheets on associated information.
• Great images – remember to include a strong image of yourself as well
• Video.
• A campaign blurb and snackable lines they can share on social.
• Your hashtags and social handles, links etc.

Email your info pack to your media contact. Then follow up a few days later with a call. Keep following up until you get to have a conversation or receive an email. Just because you haven’t heard back doesn’t mean they’re not interested. They’re busy.

How to write a media release

Media releases summarise the key facts of your story. They also need to be juicy enough to sell your story to busy journalists inundated with pitches. They need to be short and well written so journalists can pull content directly. If possible, make your media release visual by including a couple of striking images.
There is a formula for media releases, and you should follow this format.

Date 

• You can embargo the publication of your release until after a certain date if required.

Headline

• Make your headline punchy and memorable.
• Summarise the key reason why this story is newsworthy.
• Evoke curiosity. Make the journalist want to read more.

Lead paragraph

• Put the most important information in this paragraph.
• Answer the questions: who, what, when, where, why and how.
• Keep it concise and compelling, two to three lines long.

Body of release

• Provide more information. But keep it short. Your job is to provide the essential facts and whet the appetite. Journalists can contact you for more.
• Put the most important information at the beginning of the release and the least important at the bottom. Many journalists may not have time to read to the end.
• Use short sentences and short paragraphs.
• Write in the third person. He, she, they.
• Use the active voice.
• Don’t use hyperbole or marketing speak. A media release is meant to be factual.
• But do tell a story and make your release entertaining and easy to read.
• Use quotes and attribute all quotes to a person, or an organisation. Ensure quotes are approved for use before you send your release to the media.

End 

• Finish the release with –ENDS so people know the release has finished.

Contact information 

• Add the sentence: For further media information contact: _____
• Include a contact name, email and phone number.
• Include your website URL, your Boosted campaign URL, your social handles and campaign hashtags.

Boiler plate (About you the artist, or your arts organisation)

• A paragraph or two about you as an artist, or the arts organisation you’re crowdfunding for.
• This is useful background information that isn’t essential to the release.

Images and video

• Include a link to a folder of downloadable images and links to video.
• High quality images improve your chance of publication. Ideally, provide images at 300dpi.
• Name your images so that it is immediately clear what each image is. Include photographer credits in file names.
• Ensure you have the rights to use and provide all imagery to media publications.
• Make sure any photography credit details are clearly stated to the media. We include a document with captions and credits in the image folder.
• Video may be shared on social channels.
• Campaign promotional images are unlikely to be used, unless you photograph the artists with a promotional billboard or similar.

Require help?

Sometimes delegation is the best way to go.
A professional freelance publicist can free you up to focus on nurturing and growing your network. Just make sure you engage your publicist with plenty of notice, so they have time to bring great ideas to the table and go on the journey with you.
If you’d like advice around this, Boosted is here to help.