5 dreadful practices that annoy reporters

You want your press release to get picked up. You may not know it, but the reporters you contact want your story. However, there are a handful of bad practices that drive your contacts insane. All of this could add up to your story going nowhere—or worse.

1. You pester them.

Want to immediately get on a reporter’s bad side? Call them up constantly while they’re on deadline or conducting an interview. And then ask them why your story isn’t in the paper or online yet.

Eventually they will not only ignore you, but all your future press releases as well.

2. You pitch terrible stories.

Reporters review a lot of content every day. Whether they write it, edit it, or just read it and roll their eyes, they see about ten million words a day. The last thing they want to read is another awful pitch that has nothing to do with their readers.

Make sure the story or press release you submit makes sense for the reporter you’re pitching. If not, he or she might begin to think everything you submit is a waste of time. Ask yourself: Would you read your story? If not, don’t send it out.

3. You write crappy headlines.