Must PR pros have established relationships to pitch reporters?
Though it’s often maligned as a crap shoot, cold pitching can, in fact, work.
I recently wrote a piece for PR Daily about how PR practitioners can foster better relationships with reporters. Whether or not PR pros and reporters should be friends is a tough ethical question.
On the other hand, must PR pros have a relationship with a reporter to get his attention?
While we often see stories like this that say yes, the answer is no, you don’t have to have a relationship with the reporter to find success.
Why do I say this? I was recently talking with a reporter who agreed that not having a relationship is not a non-starter. As Greg Sleter, editor of HomeWorld Business, explained, “Some of my best PR relationships started with an initial cold pitch.” He went on to suggest that if the topic is relevant, story ideas can absolutely come from what’s known as “cold pitching.”
Become a Ragan Insider member to read this article and all other archived content.
Sign up today
Already a member? Log in here.
Learn more about Ragan Insider.
