How to compile the perfect media outreach list

With all the digital noise—Twitter, Facebook, Google+, niche-specific online communities, and many more—it can be difficult for a digital PR professional doing outreach for a client to know where to start.

It’s good practice to create a highly targeted list that suits the content you are trying to pitch. It’s also good practice to find the best contact information and the preferred method of contact for each media outlet.

If you have a media database, you can start there, but how do you organize your database information efficiently? Do you have all the right information? Is there a better way to filter or sort results? How do you find information outside your database?

Here are some tips on constructing your perfect media list:

Starting your search and organizing your info

You can start with a basic search via Cision or any other database you have access to. It’s important to find a contact email and not just a general outlet email from the website. You’re not as likely to get a response from info@websitename.com as from an actual editor or writer for the site.