4 Tips to Adapt Your Approach When Pitching to the Media

When it comes to promoting your live event or festival, pitching to the media is a vital asset. If you master the art of pitching live events to the media you’ll gain ultimate exposure. 

Pitching your idea to anyone can be tricky, nevermind journalists and media outlets. 

As time has gone on the media landscape has dramatically changed, and the amount of pitches that are sent to the media has only increased. 

This means you need to adapt and change your strategy effectively so that you can have the best possible chance of getting your pitch considered for publication.  

That is why we want to discuss these four top tips that can help you adopt a new approach when pitching to the media. 

How You Can Adapt Your Pitch to the Media 

Okay so maybe you’re at the stage where you have already got your pitch ready to be sent out, or you might not have started a pitch yet at all. If one of these scenarios resonates, then the next four tips can apply to you. 

Don’t Just Use Your Words

We’re currently living in a time that allows us to communicate in a plethora of ways. 

Before the internet our main forms of communication were sending letters and making phone calls. Since then there has been a tidal wave of new and innovative platforms which allow us to use different means of communication.

You can adopt some of these new methods into your pitches going forward. Doing so could prove to be a huge benefit.

Incorporate a story into a podcast and send snippets of it to certain media outlets. Or maybe you could generate an eye catching infographic that perfectly demonstrates your concept or research piece.

The written word is powerful so don’t discount it, but also adapt your communication style to different sources. Certain media will suit different communication styles over others e.g. a podcast snippet could be useful for a radio station to easily embed into their show as audio

If you have a live event then how about sending a short pitch video which shows the highlight reel of what your show is all about? This video could be used as part of your coverage should your pitch become successful 

Think outside the box and get creative! And remember, content is king. 

It’s Not All About Promoting Yourself

At the end of the day you’re essentially pitching the media so that you can promote something. Whether that be a live event or an outdoor festival, your ultimate goal is for the media to give you some sort of coverage.  

So how do you make your pitches less about ‘promotion’ and add authenticity and relevancy? Use these two tips as a guide: 

• Provide Value – Share some valuable insight that the reporter can share with their audience. It will also show you have authority in your specific area. That could be facts, stats, research, a brand new initiative, anything that adds insight and value. 

• Tell a unique story – A great story sells itself. If you can make your story interesting and unique then it will resonate with the reader. Do your research – what makes your story interesting? What is the ‘hook’? What makes it stand out from the rest? 

Look at Past Coverage Each Media Outlet Has Published

A great way to adapt your pitch is to focus on what other coverage each media has published previously.

Is it similar to what you can offer? Is there a particular topic that one journalist likes to cover? Is there a hot topic that this outlet writes about regularly? 

If it is then there could be an opportunity for you to put your own unique spin of it and pitch your idea.

Imagine you host a unique live entertainment event within a niche industry. There may only be a select few media outlets that you think will cover your story.

But if you do your research you could probably find other media sources publishing similar content. If you do then you can highlight this to them in your pitch, showing that you’ve done your due diligence and can offer relevant and timely information/content.  

Never underestimate the power of some research!

Keep Up to Date with Trends and Current Affairs

Trends go out of fashion as quickly as they come into fashion these days. That’s why it is super important to always keep one ear to the ground should there be an opportunity for you to capitalise. 

An emerging trend within the live events industry could be your ticket to a winning pitch. If your outdoor festival or live event incorporates one of these trends then the media could be enticed to cover it.

After all, the hype that trends bring only lasts a small amount of time so the media will be quick to jump at the opportunity to cover it.

Get good at spotting these trends early so you can adapt your pitches to suit.  

Media Relations in a Changing World

While the methods of pitching your live event may change, the core principles of the pitch stay the same. Adapting your strategy allows you to stand out, be relevant and resonate with the right people. Keep it short, keep it snappy, get to the point, be clear in your intentions, and make sure you stand out from the rest!

Media relation campaigns are something we’re specialists at here at GALA PR. Our unique and creative strategies mean that your pitches can get in front of the right media companies. 

We have a contact list that spans over ten years within the live events and entertainment industry. We utilise these valuable contacts to ensure your event gets the coverage it deserves. 
Contact us today, we’ll listen attentively to your unique situation and design a forward thinking plan that will suit your individual needs.