Pitching Tips from the Colorado Governor’s Tourism Conference

At the annual Colorado Governor's Tourism Conference last week, I had the opportunity to sit in and listen to a panel of five journalists from various publications across the state give their best tips and tricks for pitching. As someone who spends countless hours pitching journalists each week, I found many of their tips to be not only helpful, but ultimately essential to score quality coverage for clients.  Here are some of the top suggestions that will help you to land great coverage:

• Tom Hess, Editor of EnCompass: Look at 2015 editorial calendars before pitching to see if your story is already a fit for upcoming editorial. EnCompass is always looking for one-of-a-kind experiences and wants to know how their readers can go recreate that same experience.
• Daliah Singer, Associate Editor of 5280: Pitch specific stories – not just a person or a place. The story should have a news hook, tell what’s new or timely, and go beyond the obvious angles. It’s also beneficial to consider different story formats and give those suggestions in your pitch.
• Kelly Bastone, Freelance: As a freelance writer who contributes to multiple national outlets, Kelly has the easiest time selling stories to her editors that are saturated with “place-ness.” In other words, make sure to include why someone would need to go to your specific property or destination to have this awesome experience.
• Jeff Todd, Mountain Newsroom Reporter for KCNC-TV Denver: When pitching broadcast, it’s typically better to call over sending an email. In a breaking news situation, it’s essential to get information out through as many channels as possible (email, phone, social channels, etc.) so that it’s easily accessible.
• Jenn Fields, Travel and Fitness Editor of The Denver Post: Pitch smaller and unique trends, not larger obvious stories such as microbrews. Make sure the story fits the targeted audience.

Tell us, what other great pitching tips have you learned from journalists?