5 rules for pitching your content to editors – Info PR

Before you can start building relationships with editors at your favorite
online publications, it's important to learn how to pitch your content—and
yourself.

Here are a few key elements of effective email pitches that will start you
off on the right foot:

1. Use a descriptive subject line.

If a publication accepts guest posts, its editor probably receives hundreds
of pitches each week, and the first part of the pitch she sees is the
subject line. So keep it short, compelling and accurate. An email with a
subject line that tells the editor what to expect and gives her an idea of
the article's content is one she'll want to open.

[RELATED: Overcome your biggest challenges in internal comms, PR and social media]

2. Start with a friendly, personal introduction.

Addressing the editor by name shows that you care enough about the
relationship to take the time to research her and get her name right. Feel
free to get personable and ask how her week is going or throw in a friendly
greeting. After addressing the editor, briefly introduce yourself,
your company, and why you're contacting her

I emphasize “briefly” here because you don't want to dive right into your
article without introducing yourself, but you also don't want the bulk of
the email to be all about you, either. Keeping your introduction genuine
and to the point creates a great opportunity to start building trust with
the editor.

3. Include a (brief) article summary.

In the body of your email, provide a concise summary of the article you're
pitching. In it, be sure to include the key takeaways and something that
will pique the editor's interest. By doing this, your email will be easy to
read, will save the editor time and will enable her to quickly assess
whether your article will truly serve the publication's readers.

4. Offer exclusive, nonpromotional content.

Editors don't want content that's being published by competing
publications; they want readers coming to their publication for content
that can only be found there. It's important for you not to pitch multiple
editors the same content and to make it crystal clear to the editor you're
pitching that the content you're sending is exclusive to her publication.

You also want to ensure that your content

isn't too promotional. According to “The State of Digital Media 2018,” 79 percent of editors say
that overly promotional content is one of the biggest problems with the
guest content pitches they receive. Remember, these editors want content
that educates their readers and gives them a new perspective, not sales
pitches for your service or product.

5. Show respect for the editor's schedule and preferences.

Your email should acknowledge the editor's busy schedule, illustrate your
willingness to cooperate with the other items on her agenda and propose a
date by which you'll follow up. This will deepen the trust you began
building with your personal introduction and exclusive content, and it
signals your accountability for the content you pitch.

An example of a poor pitch

Every editorial relationship has to start somewhere. Below is an example of
the kind of email that would fail to set you up for a mutually
beneficial relationship with an online publication editor:

Subject Line: Article

Hello,

I have attached an article submission for you to publish on your site.
Please respond before 5 p.m. tomorrow. My article is attached.

Meagan

What's wrong with this email? Let me count the ways.

• The subject line isn't enticing.
  Editors receive hundreds of pitches every day. A generic subject line
  doesn't give an editor any reason to even open the email, let alone
  encourage him to accept your pitch for a guest post.

• The introduction is impersonal.
  In your research, you should be able to find the name of the section
  editor to whom you're pitching your content. If you can find it, use
  it. Failing to include the editor's name is impolite, and it signals
  that might be blindly sending this email to any editor or publication.

• The body of the email is vague.
  If you don't offer any summary of the article, the editor has no way of
  quickly assessing whether this content will be a good fit for his
  publication and be valuable to its readers. He is likely to move on to
  the next pitch in his inbox for someone who did.

• The deadline is unreasonable.
  Requesting a review that soon after you pitch your content is
  disrespectful because it implies that you think this article is more
  important than anything else the editor is doing.

A better option

Here is an example of the kind of email that will show a publication editor
you're a thoughtful, respectful and knowledgeable contributor:

Subject Line: Exclusive Contributed Article Submission: Reaching Out to
Editors

Hi Natalie,

I hope you've had a great start to your week! My name is Meagan Nolte,
and I'm a publication strategist at Influence & Co. I have written
an exclusive, non-promotional article for The Knowledge Bank.

In my article, I offer advice for how content marketers can reach out
to editors to get their content published online. I've included
actionable tips about how to write the email so it's more appealing for
a busy editor to read, and I've provided examples of both good and bad
emails.

I think this article would fit perfectly on your site. It helps further
the conversation presented in another article published a few months
ago and will help provide your readers with a more well-rounded
knowledge of this topic.

My article and headshot are attached for you to review. Feel free to
make any editorial changes that you see fit, or let me know if there is
anything else you need from me. I understand that you're busy, so I'll
touch base with you on Monday if I don't hear back from you by then.

Looking forward to hearing from you!

Meagan Nolte

Meagan Nolte is a Publication Strategist at Influence & Co. Follow
her on Twitter

@MeaganNolte. A version of this article originally appeared on the
Influence & Co. blog.

(Image via)