Why your PR pitches are destined to fail

PR pitches often get lost in the newsroom shuffle. Thanks to today’s always-on news cycle, many journalists now file multiple stories and field hundreds of emails daily.

“I’m not alone when I say I get upwards of 25-30 emails an hour,” says Daniel Cooper, a senior editor at Engadget, where he covers consumer tech. “That means I’ve got a high noise-to-signal ratio to struggle through.”

Here are his tips for ensuring your pitches stand out from the noise:

1. Avoid common “bad” pitches. Certain pitches are almost guaranteed to never be accepted. Three types destined to fail:

Cooper’s response to this type of pitch: “Probably not,” he says, “because the first one was a bit of a stretch, and unless you’ve got some really different features, you should have pitched us months ago.”

Cooper’s response: “Just…no,” he says. “It’s the same response if you want me to interview this unrelated person for no discernible reason.”

Cooper’s response: “If it was Elon Musk, or Google or another technology personality people have an interest in, then send it over. Otherwise, don’t bother.”