The Good Pitch Blog

In the Meantime

2006-04-10T01:35:00.000-07:00

Yes, it's slow going, here at the Good Pitch Blog. The PR world is - as usual - too busy to toot its own horn. "Cobbler's children have no shoes," etc. And, that is fine with me.

This site was only ever intended as a resource for PR newbies to get some ideas, and to counteract some of the negative backwash that occasionally gurgles against the PR world. Whenever I have the time, inclination or (gasp!) a new Good Pitch submission, I will continue to post to this blog. (Meanwhile I hope you'll pay a visit to the site that takes up most of my brain juice.)

There are, of course, plenty of great spots to "git edjumicated" about how-to be a great PR person:

First off, I'd suggest a visit to our inspiration, the BadPitch Blog. When it started, I was afraid it was going to be wholly negative (and so I started up this site) ... but actually the BadPitch Blog evolved quickly to offer the best of ALL worlds: bad pitches and good pitches, and plenty of good advice all around, too. Bookmark it.
I'd also suggest frequent visits to WetFeet PR, Blake Barbera's site for discussing day-in-the-life episodes of a PR exec's agency life.
Lastly, a terrific new entry in the PR blogosphere is the Forward blog, from a group of all-star contributors, brought together by some of the smartest smartie s at Auburn University.
(And if you have 1,370 hours to kill, click every link in the blogroll at PR Squared. Go on, I dare ya.)

As I toddle off into my semi-retirement, I want to thank the many supporters who sent along their pitches (the good and not-so-good) and their best wishes. I'll continue to throw things up here as appropriate, and I hope you'll stop by now and again.

Evolution of TWO Lovely Pitches

2006-03-23T05:59:00.000-08:00

Team/Agency: Not disclosed

Significance: Got a twofer for yaz. The PR team in question first went out with a generic holiday-themed pitch, but due to a diligent watch on industry news they were able to scramble out a brand-new pitch. All of the ideas are the same, but this approach shows the importance of keeping your ears to the ground. The 1st pitch was just fine but the 2nd pitch got the lion's share of the resulting ink.

Pitch #1:

Subject: The Way to a Woman’s Heart…is Through a Web Site?

Hi (Editor),

Flowers. Chocolates. Perfume. Jewelry. They’re the standard Valentine’s Day gifts from men to women every February 14—often purchased last-minute.

But this year is a little different—instead of rushing into a store on February 13, many guys will turn to the Web to do their last-minute shopping (and hopefully get a little more creative with their gift-giving). In fact, Valentine’s Day is rapidly becoming the second-largest retail holiday. V-Day 2006 is also seeing a surge in the purchase of search terms that will drive shoppers to retail Web sites and, hopefully, that perfect gift.

(CLIENT) is available to speak with you about the love in the air—and the traffic across the Web—this Valentine’s Day, and how retailers are able to control their own holiday business booms by having the right strategy in place to service customers, no matter how many last-minute orders come in.

Would you like to speak with (CLIENT)?

Pitch #2:

Subject: Covering Valentine’s Day Site Crashes?

Hi (Editor),

I’m writing to check in and see if you are covering the greeting-card site crashes that occurred yesterday due to Valentine’s Day traffic. Hallmark.com and Bluemountain.com were both down several times yesterday due to traffic overload, according to the Washington Post.

This outage not only affected lovers trying to send greeting cards via the Web, it also affected would-be recipients. In fact, a woman I work with got a call from her mom last night, who thought she had been forgotten on Valentine’s Day. My colleague actually sent an e-card at 8:30 that morning—but it didn’t arrive until today.

(CLIENT) is available to comment on the havoc that poor planning has wreaked on these well-known sites, on one of the busiest e-card days of the year. (CLIENT) can also address how these sites could have strategized to handle this traffic, and what they can do differently to ensure success during the next big e-card rush.

Would you like to speak with (CLIENT)?

What's To Like About This Pitch: As noted above, the PR team was able to leverage current events to further their client's relevant perspectives. The lesson here is to never rest on your laurels. You can't blast out 50 pitches and cross your fingers. Instead, you ought to consider an approach in which you blast out 10 pitches, then check Google News and Technorati to see if anything's changed in the world that might make the next 10 pitches more timely and relevant.

Naked "Charticles"

2006-03-13T07:51:00.000-08:00

If your client has little to say, say it with a "charticle."

A "charticle" is a made-up word (thus the quotation marks) for MSM articles that rely completely on the results of client-sponsored surveys. Reporters seem to love surveys and factoids; they can use these data-bytes to tell a quick, compelling tale, and better yet, they can usually include a pie chart or picture (which counts for another 1,000 words).

Here's a tidbit from SonicWALL's latest survey:

About 39 percent of (telecommuters) of both sexes said they wear sweats while working from home, but 12 percent of males and 7 percent of females wear nothing at all, according to a survey of 941 remote and mobile workers worldwide conducted by Insight Express and SonicWALL, a provider of integrated network security and productivity solutions.

Yes, I am sure that people who buy "integrated network security and productivity solutions" truly care about naked telecommuters. NOT.

The survey did go on to tell a good story to tell about the less-than-rigorous standards of network security among telecommuters, but, clearly this point wasn't as - well, sexy - as the naked telecommuter tidbit.

Say you're the PR pro who pitched this story. Would you be proud of the resulting ink? Will SonicWALL's CEO or Boardmembers be excited by the "naked charticles"?

The lesson? "Charticles" are good, if the coverage that results is of-interest to your client's prospective buyers. "Naked charticles" are not so good, unless you run a porn site.

Disclaimer: SonicWALL was a client of ours, years ago - and for what it's worth, I hold a high regard for their current agency. (Doesn't mean this particular initiative panned out, though.)

Reading Is Fundamental

2006-03-09T10:00:00.000-08:00

In the post-Bubble days, R.I.F. meant "Reduction In Forces" - an Orwellian euphemism for lay-offs. But when I was a kid, R.I.F. stood for "READING IS FUNDAMENTAL." As I recall, the R.I.F. program was a "library on wheels," a literacy program for kids that advertised during the Saturday morning cartoon hours. Apparently they are still around, god bless 'em.

I miss those simpler days.

If you never return to the Good Pitch Blog, remember this lesson (which we touched on in the last post): in order to be a good pitcher, you must be a good communicator; in order to be a good communicator, you must be a good reader.

A quick lesson that newbies learn at our shop is that "reading is part of the job." No one is ever made to feel weird about reading a newspaper at their desk (in print or online). Hell, read War & Peace for all we care, as long as you are reading. We even encourage folks to peruse "trash" like People, the National Enquirer, etc. - it's all about finding connections to the past and staying on top of the present, popular culture.

If you read a lot you will know a lot. You will be able to add color and context to your pitches.

Straight From The Horse's Mouth

2006-03-07T08:45:00.000-08:00

Guy Kawasaki posted an interview he conducted with Adam Lashinsky of FORTUNE.

Guy sure gets around. Venture Capitalist. Entrepreneur. Marketing guru. Blogger. And now, Good Pitch evangelist! (Funnily enough, his blog description says something about how blogs are written by people with nothing to do for people who have nothing to do. Ironic, in his case.)

The Lashinsky interview contains a few gems for our purposes:

Q. How would you describe the perfect pitch?
A. The perfect pitch would involve a major corporation with a great, tension-filled story with the offer of an exclusive opportunity to interview all the relevant people at the corporation. Short of this, a pitch that would work would involve high-level access and a story line that is relevant to my readers, not just the PR firm’s client.

Q. What's the most common mistake that companies and their PR firms make when they pitch you?
A. The most common mistake is not having a knowledge of Fortune. You've got to know what I'm interested in and cold calling to ask me isn't the way to find out. You would think that these companies and PR firms would at least read my last few articles. Is that too much to ask?

Nope, not too much. Especially in a world of RSS, et al. Thou Shalt Read Before Thou Shalt Pitch.

Humanize The Stats

2006-03-06T10:37:00.000-08:00

Team/Agency: Michael Sommermeyer of Clark County's Eighth Judicial District Court, Las Vegas, Nevada, Court Information Office. See his blog at wordymouth.com

Significance: After two child deaths involving child abuse and neglect in Las Vegas, the Court Information Office saw an opportunity to identify current trends in the Eighth Judicial District Court pointing to an alarming increase in the number of Child Abuse and Neglect cases being filed and adjudicated in Clark County. Recent statistics compiled for the court for 2005 and the first months of 2006 showed a marked increase in child abuse filings. The Court Information Office pitched this story as a criminal justice problem that was receiving little attention.

The Pitch:

Subject: (subject line not submitted)

Editor,

I know you're not interested in our current case activity numbers; I know they're boring and hard to understand, however, I think you'll want to see a couple numbers that indicate a societal problem, and perhaps, an area of community neglect.

As you're well aware, the community's been reeling from the tragic death of baby Jane "Cordova" Doe, and last week's death of the Ayala baby. The Coroner believes both deaths resulted from Child Abuse and Neglect.

While we always point to our record criminal case filing numbers, which are approaching an increase of 10 percent again this year, alarmingly the case filings for abuse and neglect are up nearly 30 percent from January 2005 to January 2006.

I'd like to bring you these numbers and connect you with Judge ABC, to provide some context and make these numbers come to life. In addition, I can help you connect with the people on the front lines, to develop this piece. From what they tell me, the increase can be attributed to population growth, an increase in drug use and the initiative to place more cops in the community. Could it be said that we're spending too much effort of building a city and not enough effort on building a functional society?

Think about this and let me know if you want to pursue the story. As always, we're ready to help you do the research and connect the dots.

What's To Like About The Pitch: Tearjerker, first of all. Who doesn't want to help those poor children? In this pitch, Michael and his team are trying to put a human face on scary statistics that might be boring on their face, but, the pitch acknowledges the dry stats and goes on to tell a darker story about the city's meteoric rise in population. They are empowering the reporter access to experts, like a local judge, who can tell the official tale. Lastly, this is a story with national significance but, it's being pitched with specific, local details to a local cadre of reporters.

The Swift & Sure Suck-Up Strategy

2006-03-02T05:35:00.000-08:00

As you saw if you followed the linkstream in the post below, there's been a li'l maelstrom in the PR blogosphere about the future of the press release. Our team took a stab at re-formatting an existing release based on the specific requests of journo-blogger Tom Foremski, and sent it his way with a pitch. Lo' and behold, he used the pitch and the document as an examplar of how (he thinks) press releases ought to look.

I am not using this space to promote the press release version, but the PITCH.

Hi Tom: We took a whack at re-formatting a release that's already gone out, to comply with some of the ideas from your blog. We've also attached the original. Is this "Foremski-style" version close to what you had in mind? (Please keep in mind that we were constrained to quotes that had already been approved by client and analysts, and, that this is a privately-held company, so the financial data is as robust as we could reasonably make it.)
What do you think? Feedback welcome.

What's To Like About The Pitch: This was a good example of jumping on a timely, controversial event (Foremski had grumbled about the archaic press release format less than 24 hours earlier), and, customizing a pitch to suit the interests of a specific reporter.

Yeah, this is a self-serving example but, the tenets are sound and usable for any client situation. The lesson? Monitor the wires, the blogosphere, news alerts, competitive websites, etc., every-single-day, for the tempests-in-a-teapot that affect your clients. Institute a Rapid Reaction process that empowers you to proactively pitch your clients' spin on each of these news bits, and watch the ink flow.

And lest you think we were sucking up to Tom: well, duh - we were. But that's not always been the case. Not by a long shot. We just happen to agree with him this time.

Quick, Dirty - But COMPLETE

2006-03-01T08:45:00.000-08:00

Agency: bite communications

Significance: Profnet is a terric service from PR NEWSWIRE that enables journalists to solicit input from the PR community. A significant chunk of coverage results each year through tracking down relevant Profnet opportunities.

The problem is, for every Profnet, there are 101 responses. How do you cut thru the clutter?

Pitch:

Subject: Young 20-something entrepreneurs

Dear (Editor),

I'm writing in regards to your ProfNet on young 20-something entrepreneurs.

I represent XXX, a Palo Alto-based start-up that has developed a free Internet service that allows people to share personal media (video, music, photos, etc.) using instant messaging, social networking and peer-to-peer services. The company was co-founded by YYY, a young, twenty-something entrepreneur and Stanford graduate.

I think YYY would make for a solid candidate for your column. He studied Human Computer Interaction and Psychology at Stanford, and certainly doesn't enjoy a 9-5 job (his typical work hours are more along the lines of 11am - 11pm). XXX has been venture funded by ZZZZ (I also work with them, so if you'd like additional perspective on XXX, I could arrange that as well).

What do you think? Can we set up a time to talk to YYY?

What's To Like About The Pitch: "I am responding to your (specific) Profnet" (the PR pro has remembered that the reporter may have more than one Profnet hangin' out there). Then, the pitch follows up with concise, interesting points re: the company and the quirks of a young, hard-driving founder. Best of all, the PR pro is able to offer up a COMPLETE story, via the offer to speak not only to the young turk, but to the VCs who took a gamble on him and now work with him to fulfill his dream. Did this pitch cut thru the clutter? Hell, yea.

(I only hope that this story turns out better than the Surfbuzz saga!)

The Future Of The Press Release

2006-02-28T12:19:00.000-08:00

Check out this post, and the associated links.

It's YOUR future, people. Pay attention. ;)

Fire In The Belly

2006-02-28T08:38:00.000-08:00

Got this in my inbox the other day.

A Response from a Newbie:

I was reading your good pitch blog this morning and the below excerpt got me thinking.

Maybe it's because PR people are people, too. Maybe they don't "feel important" in a role that, on bad days, feels like a telemarketing gig? I wonder: do some PR pitch pros aspire to management roles as much to shield their egos from further damage, as for any other reason?

As I’d still be coined a newbie, I started questioning why I aspire to a management position. Is it to be finished with much of the tactical tasks that fill my role? In part. But what you asked was, is it to shield our egos from further damage?

It made me wonder if anyone can be truly successful in PR with an ego. You spend your days pitching a million different clients, stroking the egos of big-headed editors and writing in-depth, creative articles—with someone else’s name on it. To me, PR is certainly an industry where you need to check your ego at the door.

I think, as a newbie who wants nothing more than to rise through the ranks and one day sit on the other side of the desk, it’s not an ego question. It’s about taking what ever crap reporters give me, and using that to put a little fire in my belly. That’s why I think the true stars aspire for management. To be the best.

Sure, some people may want to achieve management status to shield their egos. But are these the people we want running our agencies?

Anyway, just thought I would share my thoughts because it really made me question why I want to rise through the ranks so badly. I wondered if the editors I speak to are taking a toll on my ego, and then I realized, all they do is make me what to prove them wrong that much more.

"Kids" like this give me hope for our industry's future.

Super Bowl PitchDay

2006-02-27T08:49:00.000-08:00

Agency: Pavone

Significance: One of the efforts that worked well for communications consultancy Pavone during Super Bowl season was to work with newspaper entertainment guides and drive time radio to promote an online poll about SuperBowl Sunday commercials. It's a fun story, so Pavone’s people even went as far as to modify their titles in their email signature!

Pitch:

Subject: 5 Ways to Turn Your SuperBowl Party Into a Commercial-Watching Celebration

Hi (Editor),

Thought your weekend guide readers might be interested in a fun angle devoted to something we spend most of our TV-viewing time trying to avoid!

When it comes to the Super Bowl, parties that revolve around the game are OUT. Parties that celebrate the big-budget commercials, however, are IN. After all, as many as 50 percent of the 130 million people who watch the Super Bowl say they tune in just for the commercials. The tip sheet below offers a few pointers for ad fans who might want to throw their own advertising extravaganza on February 5. (We're also hosting a) commercial poll, SPOTBOWL (www.spotbowl.com). Either the tips or our press release might make a fun addition to an upcoming story about the Super Bowl.

Let me know if you need more information (photos, logos, graphics) or a media kit packed with Super Bowl commercial facts and figures. Since we're also an advertising agency, if you'd like to get some inside perspectives on Super Bowl advertising and what to expect from this year's ad competition, we've got some people who would be more than happy to talk to you about which ads to watch for (and which ones to avoid).

Let the (real) games begin!

TIP SHEET

5 WAYS TO TURN YOUR SUPER BOWL PARTY INTO A COMMERCIAL-WATCHING CELEBRATION

According to some estimates, as many as 50 percent of the 130 million viewers of this year’s Super Bowl will be tuning in simply for the ads, and they’re not afraid to admit their love of big-budget commercialism.

In an increasingly popular spin-off of the traditional Super Bowl party, ad fans have begun planning their own get-togethers — paying no attention to touchdowns and heroic quarterbacks and cheering instead for catch phrases and celebrity spokespersons. For those planning their own commercial celebrations, the creators of the Super Bowl ad poll offer these tips:

1. The Guest List – The more, the merrier, but make sure you’ve got enough room, chairs, and food for everyone. And, since this is an ode to the ads, remind your football-loving friends that the commercials come first and the game a distant second.

2. Setting the Mood – A few well-placed decorations will help create the proper party atmosphere, but instead of footballs and team colors, consider displaying the logos of popular Super Bowl advertisers.

3. Food and Drink – With all those commercials for snack foods and soda, your guests are bound to get hungry. Have fun with the menu, and consider stocking the snack table with products that have bought airtime in recent Super Bowls.

4. Sound Off! – Go to WEBSITE.com and print out ballots to help your friends keep track of their favorite commercials. After the game, or during half time, they can visit the website to enter their votes and see how they stacked up against the rest of the nation.

5. Fun and Games – During the game, gather your guests and play a variety of commercial-related games. Suggestions include or “Commercial Charades” or “Commercial Trivia” (see WEBSITE.com for a few questions to get you started).

What's To Like About The Pitch: I hesitated for a second on this one, since it is kind of long for my taste and is not as customized as I'd normally like to see. But there are some gems here. It's a neat idea, first of all. Even the hardcore football fans I know kinda dig the ads - and this might make the day more fun for less-enthused family members. So, I buy the concept, especially because Pavone's people give me some relevant statistics that a journalist would use to sell the idea upstream. Also, this pitch is meant to be "dropped in" - and to drive traffic to the online poll: no one's seeking an interview here, though Pavone is ready for that. Lastly, the 5 tips are generic - and significantly lengthen the pitch - but most media loooove this sidebar fodder. (Which reminds me: watch for a post on "CHARTICLES" in future days.)

Basically, a reporter who is hoping to take off early to watch the game could cut-n-paste most of this pitch into a Super Bowl themed puff piece that will satisfy the editor. ;)

"Make Me Feel Important"

2006-02-24T07:15:00.000-08:00

A-lister Tom Foremski over at SiliconValleyWatcher (with whom I've disagreed from time to time) was kind - and clever - enough to paste my own pitch for this site, word for word, in his blog.

Hopefully ya'll agree that it's at least a half-way decent pitch in its own right! We got some ink, eh?

Anyway, Tom raised some interesting points in his commentary:

Todd, good luck but I wonder how useful this will be... A good pitch is not something that can be written down and read out of context because the best pitch is tailored to the individual and the publication. That's the secret to a good pitch :-)
Sshsh, don't tell anyone, especially all those agencies that use their most junior people to pitch journalists--their most important interface (more important than client because of churn.) But those are the clueless ones. And the clueless ones won't understand this anyway, and continue (and defend) business as usual.

I won't get into Tom's issues with "clueless" PR firms, since this site is supposed to be a cheerleading section for the PR industry. But, it's worth addressing his other thoughts: namely, the need to CUSTOMIZE each pitch, and, the (overly) fundamental role that "newbies" play in PR outreach.

For the record, as you'll see in what I sent off to Tom, there was a bit of customization in my pitch. Tom and I have had a teensy bit of correspondence in 2006, partly via email and partly via my comments on his blog. He might remember that I've disagreed with him (even uber-blogger Steve Rubel took note of that, god bless him - thanks for the traffic spike, Steve!), and I wanted to acknowledge that small patch of dialogue.

Customization does not have to take a long time or a lot of effort. It's ABOUT the effort. Journalists are people. Every person on the planet, including journalists, wears an invisible sign around their neck that reads, "Make me feel important." Nobody feels important when they are 1 of 100 people on the receiving end (via BCC) of a form letter.

Every email must be sent individually. Every email must have a snippet of personal relevance. Anything less is anonymous crud; anything less is PR spam.

... Which leads us to PR newbies who make these kind of rookie mistakes. They should be trained by their agency management how-to not piss off the media, but most of 'em at some point or another learn the hard way.

Tom makes a good point that media relationships trump client relationships: employees and accounts come and go but the agency's reputation with journalists can ensure success (or failure) for all future employees and clients. So why do agencies put newbies out front like that?

Maybe it's because PR people are people, too. Maybe they don't "feel important" in a role that, on bad days, feels like a telemarketing gig? I wonder: do some PR pitch pros aspire to management roles as much to shield their egos from further damage, as for any other reason?

In other news: some good pitches comin' out next week. Now, where is YOUR good pitch?

Send it in!

Safe Zone

2006-02-23T09:45:00.000-08:00

One of the questions I recently received about this blog has been, "Why won't you allow comments?" I may allow it in the future, but, frankly, I'd like this to be a SAFE ZONE for agency pitch pros.

Who is going to want to submit their best work, knowing that some jerk might cut it to ribbons in the Comments section?

I actually have received some negative, but thoughtful and well-reasoned, feedback to some of the pitches already posted here. I respect those comments and welcome them, but I would also hate for the folks who submitted their work to waste cycles defending their approach to their peers, when they ought to be hitting the phones for their clients! Certainly, even if they succesfully defended their pitch, the time and angst involved would likely deter them from submitting ever again!

When I do receive challenges to these selections that are truly worth discussing publicly, I will figure out a way to post about the "lessons learned" from that feedback. That's what this blog is about, right? Learning from our peers.

CALL TO ACTION: If you've visited this blog, if you believe in its purpose, send me ONE good pitch. It doesn't have to be spectacular. Just pretty good!

"Paging Dr. Goodpitch"

2006-02-23T09:25:00.000-08:00

Team/Agency: Withheld by request.

Significance: After scouring ProfNet queries, the agency team identified an opportunity for CLIENT with BIZPRESS OUTLET. They quickly crafted and sent a pitch that effectively positioned CLIENT as an innovator at the forefront of an industry trend. The reporter liked the pitch so much that he literally cut and pasted it word for word directly into his story!

The Pitch:

Hi (Editor),

I wanted to offer you a source in response to your ProfNet request.

CLIENT helps connect doctors' offices with health insurers. The Company sells its Web transaction platform to major healthcare insurers, who in turn require the physicians they work with to use the CLIENT's network to process claims and other basic transactions.

One of the best parts for the docs is that they get to use the system for FREE. That is a huge hot button in the industry now - many health plans are now "sponsoring" a technology, spurring physicians into the PC and Internet era, where they might not otherwise have gone by themselves.

I'd like to offer you an interview with CLIENT and/or one of the many doctor's offices they work with to speak about this network for your piece. One customer that comes to mind is XYZ.

XYZ (with 35,000 patients) uses CLIENT to connect with one of its health plans to execute processes such as billing, referrals, claim investigation, eligibility and benefits verification and recredentialing. Before CLIENT, the practice often didn’t have the time for claim investigation. Now, they investigate every claim, every time — resulting in an annual increase of $120,000 in revenue and collections for claim investigation alone.

I have several other case studies - would be happy to find one that best fits your article's needs.

Would you be interested in speaking with CLIENT and one of their customers? It sounds as if you're on a tight deadline, so do let me know how I can help. My contact info is below.

What's To Like About The Pitch: It's a tad long but this pitch hits all the high notes. First, the pitch artist lets the reporter know "I'm here to help" by mentioning the ProfNet inquiry, i.e., this is not a blind pitch on a random topic. Next, they mention an interesting trend (docs being pulled into the 21st century by automation-minded HMOs), and, best of all, offer up compelling statistics from a reference-ready customer.

Mac Attack!

2006-02-22T13:34:00.000-08:00

Agency: Horn Group

Significance: Whenever there is a new virus to hit the Windows world, every anti-virus vendor floods the media with offers for commentary. The Macintosh world has been blessedly untouched by computer viruses, until just recently.

The Pitch:

Subject: CLIENT Discovers First Ever Virus for Mac OS X

Experts at CLIENT Labs, CLIENT's global network of security research and analysis centers, have discovered the first virus for the Apple Mac OS X platform. Named Leap-A (also known as Oompa-A), the virus spreads via the iChat instant messaging system, forwarding itself as a file called latestpics.tgz to contacts on the infected users' buddy list.

When the latestpics.tgz file is opened on a computer it disguises itself with a JPEG graphic icon in an attempt to fool people into thinking it is harmless. The worm uses the text "oompa" as an infection marker in the resource forks of infected programs to prevent it from re-infecting the same files.

"Some owners of Mac computers have held the belief that Mac OS X is incapable of harboring computer viruses, but Leap-A will leave them shell-shocked, as it shows that the malware threat on Mac OS X is real," said NAME, senior technology consultant for CLIENT. "Mac users shouldn't think it's okay to lie back and not worry about viruses."

Experts at CLIENT are continuing to examine Leap-A and will issue further information shortly. CLIENT's customers have been automatically protected against the worm since 12:25 GMT.

"This is the first real virus for the Mac OS X platform," continued NAME. "Apple Mac users need to be just as careful running unknown or unsolicited code on their computers as their friends and colleagues running Windows."

More information about this virus can be found at: http://www.CLIENTNAME.com...

Meanwhile, NAME is available for comment at XXX-XXX-XXXX. Can we arrange a time to chat?

What's To Like About The Pitch: This one has a number of key elements. The subjectline is brief and to the point, it is very timely (issued within hours of the detection), and is a genuine and interesting "first." The pitch is written to both pique interest and provide "drop in" convenience quotes for pubs/portals with few staff - and, the quotes are pretty juicy, i.e., the client contact will clearly not be a boring interview. Lastly, more in-depth info was provided at the URL, for reporters who needed more background before committing to an interview.

According to the folks at Horn Group, this pitch went out, one-to-one, on Thursday last week. Their client has since been a key resource in nearly 100 stories thus far, and the news has sparked heated debate within the Mac community. Great job, guys!

Kind Words

2006-02-22T06:49:00.000-08:00

I have received more support than I expected, both privately and publicly, about this "Good Pitch" effort. Site traffic has been surprisingly robust, too. Thanks, all!

I have even received a smattering of good pitches - but to sustain the effort, we'll need MORE.

There must be a zillion pitches flooding the journosphere each day. If you wrote a good one today, folks, hey, just "bcc" me before you hit SEND. I promise not to "reply all!"

I hope you will also take a minute to scour your SENT folder for those great pitches that led to big ink. Although it's not a primary objective, I will happily point out specifics of how successful your pitch was in gaining media attention.

One more point: strangely, everyone who has submitted so far has requested anonymity. I did not realize PR pros were so shy! No worries, if you want to be anonymous that is cool with me.

Thanks again to all Good Pitch Blog supporters. Now, what're ya waiting for? Just send me ONE GOOD PITCH. Everlasting fame & glory await!

Inaugural "Good Pitch"

2006-02-20T12:44:00.000-08:00

To get the ball rolling, I'll present an example of a good pitch from our agency. It's from 2005.

Please note the format, because it's what I'll be looking for in your own submissions.

Ideally you'll name yourself and your team-mates, and/or your agency, give us a sense of the background and context of your pitch, followed by the pitch itself. Unless I hear a lot of requests for it, I will not include data on the success of the pitches (although this one fared well). This is the "Good Pitch Blog" not the "PR Results Blog."

Team/Agency: SHIFT Communications

Significance: After learning that Paris Hilton’s racy new ad for Carl’s Jr. crashed the fast food company's dedicated Web site due to traffic overload, SHIFT recommended a rapid-response pitch offering CLIENT'S CTO as an expert to discuss the importance of strategic planning to handle this kind of site traffic, and how network outsourcing is the key to avoiding such outages.

The pitch:

Subject: That’s Hot! Paris Hilton Brings Down Carl’s Jr.

Hi (Editor's name),

If you follow pop culture at all, you’re probably aware of Paris Hilton’s racy commercial for hamburger chain Carl’s Jr. The ad launched yesterday on a dedicated site — www.spicyparis.com — and was immediately overwhelmed with users dying to get a glimpse of Paris in a bathing suit. Not surprisingly, the site crashed and was down for 4 hours.

Carl’s Jr. did everything right until the launch. Hot spokeswoman? Check. Media buzz? Check. Dedicated website with a sexy name? Check.

An effective plan for the site to handle an unprecedented amount of traffic? Nope.

It’s a common mistake, but one that is too costly to make twice. The CTO of CLIENT is available to discuss with you the strategic planning necessary to handle this volume of site traffic. He can also address how companies whose sites draw large numbers of visitors, whether constantly or seasonally, develop strategies to outsource network capacity to guarantee an “always-on” experience for users.

When might you be available to speak with CLIENT?

What's To Like About The Pitch: At the time, this pitch was very timely; the Paris Hilton/Carl's Jr. outage was in the news and reporters in the tech media were happy to be able to put a techie spin on a "hot" pop culture event. Also, the pitch was relatively short, the language was casual. A sense of humor was evident, too.

The Good Pitch Blog - Mission & Guidelines

2006-02-20T10:46:00.000-08:00

Welcome to the Good Pitch Blog.

This blog was inspired by the work of Richard Laermer and Kevin Dugan, at the Bad Pitch Blog. You are free to suggest that the idea was "ripped off" from those guys, but if things go as I intend, our paths will diverge soon enough. Anyway, this is a true case of "imitation being the sincerest form of flattery" because I applaud what's going on at the Bad Pitch Blog, and hope that Richard and Kevin see this as an homage to their efforts.

I'll tell ya right now: the Bad Pitch Blog will always be more interesting and entertaining than the Good Pitch Blog, just as a car crash is always more interesting than a smooth flow of traffic.

This site is dedicated to PR that WORKS, specifically, good pitches. Here are some guidelines:

If you are a PR pro or agency principal: feel free to email me your best pitches. Hit me up as often and as many times as you like, regardless of whether the pitch "got ink." If I agree that it's a mighty-fine example of "what works," I will post it.
I will not disclose your clients' names, even if you ask me to: this blog won't be about getting more link traffic for your clients. (Having said that, I am not going to go out of my way to disguise their identity beyond X'ing out the name.)
I will disclose your name, and your agency affiliation, unless you ask me NOT to do so: I think great PR people deserve a l'il credit. Maybe someday you'll be able to put "Published in the Good Pitch Blog" on your resume? Or maybe a prospective employer will recognize your talent, and try to recruit you?
If you are a journalist: please, give your favorite PR pros some love. Contributions from journalists and pro bloggers will receive special attention.
Please read a few blog entries before submitting. Ideally your submission will be something I can cut&paste into a new post, if it makes the grade. I'll post a few examples soon, to give you an idea of what I am looking for in a quality submission. (I am kinda busy with work and, well, more work, so if you can make management of this blog easier for me, I'll appreciate it!)

There is no shortage of negativity about the PR game. Some influential journo-bloggers have even questioned our long-term viability. But I don't buy it. I see bright, creative, thoughtful people hard at work at our shop each day. I am sure that the same is true in all quality PR firms. So my gut tells me that our brightest era lies ahead.

There are greenhorns and bad apples in every profession. The mistakes of PR newbies get more attention because their errors are made in front of an audience with the tools and influence to call them out in a very public way.

Ideally, if this blog picks up some momentum, we can view it as an industry resource for best practices. Like the Bad Pitch Blog, we can be part of the solution.

Stay tuned

2006-02-20T08:05:00.001-08:00

Watch this space.