8 Tips for Increasing E-Mail Pitch Open Rates Among Journalists

Posted: December 08, 2012

[caption id="attachment_11030" align="alignright" width="400"]image from prnewsonline.com[/caption]Sure, social media has become one of the main ways to reach journalists, but don't think that emailing press releases is dead. The trick to making an emailed press release successful is to make sure the journalists that you're sending it to actually open it. Use your subject line wisely to ensure your release is among those opened.

Despite the growing popularity of social media as a media relations tool, the e-mailing of press releases is not abating. More than 90% of respondents in an April 2012 PR News/Cision survey said they planned to either hold steady or distribute more press releases via e-mail in 2012.

Journalists, however, may sift through the literally hundreds of press releases, media alerts and e-mail pitches every day (I just deleted a handful as I typed this paragraph). Since you only have a handful of words to persuade the reader to continue reading, it's important that your press materials start with compelling, informative subject lines. Here's eight tips for nailing the e-mail subject line:

Be concise. Subject lines need to convey as much essential information in as few words as possible, so avoid unnecessary fluff or padding. The journalist should know just enough from reading the subject line to determine if the story might be of interest to them and their readers.
Point out the benefits. Whether you're promising an inside scoop, a follow-up to a journalist's recent story or a trend that impacts their readers, make sure your subject line indicates that the e-mail is of value to the recipient, and that it's not just part of a wide shotgun blast of company information you're sending to all your contacts.

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Biz Tip Provided by Tony Bynum, Owner: Tony Bynum Photography