Creative Ways to Connect with The Media
Initiating and building a relationship with the media is part of a media outreach strategy and campaign. Generally speaking there are a few key ways to initiate a relationship. They include sending an email, connecting on social media, or picking up the telephone and introducing yourself.
However, it takes time to build a relationship with media representatives. It takes time to create a connection where they pay attention to you, your company and your news – where they’re interested in covering your press release. Consider stepping outside of the box a bit and deviating from the traditional way of connecting with journalists and try one of these five creative ways to connect with the media
Send them information they need.
Send information to a journalist on your media outreach list that you know they will find valuable and useful. This information needs to be relevant to their audience and to the types of stories that they like to cover. You can send them this information via email, through social media, or you might use snail mail. If they’re local, you consider dropping it off in person.
Connect with people who they know.
Leverage your media contacts database. Spend some time researching the media representatives on your list.It’s very likely that you know somebody that they know, and you can leverage that connection when you introduce yourself or in your communications. If you don’t have a mutual connection, consider creating one.
Engage with their connections. For example, you might find that they have a connection on LinkedIn that’s relevant to your industry. You might reach out to that connection, introduce yourself, and find ways to partner work together. You can then leverage that connection with the media representatives.
Embrace the hashtags they use.
Journalists and bloggers search the Internet and social media based on keywords and hashtags. Embrace those same keywords and hashtags in your own content. When a media representative comes across your content again and again, you’ll start to become a recognizable name. Their awareness of you will grow and your connection will become stronger.
Use Twitter.
Twitter is heavily used by journalists and reporters. If you’re not on Twitter you’re missing out on a prime opportunity. Set up notifications so that each time a reporter tweets something you get real-time updates and you can respond in real time. Relationship building with the media is about being consistently valuable and engaging. Twitter makes it pretty easy to become a recognizable name.
Finally, create and share newsworthy content. Being recognizable to journalists is only the first step. They also have to believe that the information you’re sharing is valuable.
By consistently sharing and creating newsworthy content you position yourself as a credible and trustworthy source.
Learn more about our Media Outreach Suite which will provide you with all the tools you need to build relationships with the media.
