Journalists and PR professionals might seem like they’re in two totally different worlds, but the two blend together more seamlessly than you might think, especially in the modern PR landscape. At Little Leaf, we have multiple team members with journalistic experience. This behind-the-scenes knowledge can contribute to PR success and help you determine any weak spots, whether it’s in press releases, pitches, or anything copy-related. Here are all the reasons why you should work with former journalists and media members.

They can help solidify your pitches

Journalists can receive hundreds of pitches and press releases daily. They scroll past many of them, so having their insight on making your pitches more engaging is invaluable. After all – we’re always looking for new ways to reach people on the receiving end of the pitch, and this is the best way to do that! Journalists can help determine whether a pitch is too long or too short and spot any grammar issues that might look unprofessional. They can also identify hooks that aren’t strong enough or need a more powerful narrative. This insight is vital for a public relations agency’s long-term strategy and success, and we’ve seen the positive results it can bring firsthand. 

Journalists also have an eagle-eyed perspective for any upcoming holidays or trends that can organically tie into a story that an agency pitches. In PR, it’s vital to view things through both a macro lens for more evergreen content and a micro lens to focus on any trending or topical stories. One of the most important aspects of our work is taking advantage of cultural moments, identifying what’s newsworthy, and seeing how that relates to our clients. All of these factors contribute to keeping a brand consistently visible in the eyes of consumers.

Storytelling is also integral to pitches, and journalists are well-versed in crafting a captivating story that can cut through the noise. Their skillset is perfect for creating the necessary collage of quotes, stats, and headlines and making them digestible for readers. Humanizing a story beyond numbers and facts can make the difference between having a pitch sitting in a journalist’s inbox and converting it into a story at a top-tier publication.

They have strong networks

Whether you’re a journalist or work at a public relations agency, that little black book of contacts is essential to ensuring your clients get the visibility they need. Many writers have their own networks of editors and fellow journalists. Along with having these relationships, contacts with colleagues can provide insights into how to deliver for the demographics that your clients are looking to target. Having these insider relationships also makes our outreach as a PR agency more trustworthy than sending cold emails. The world of sexual wellness is a lucrative but niche industry, and journalists can help you cement a credible reputation as an agency. 

Journalists who have experience writing articles about sexual wellness also know how to strengthen those relationships. Responding promptly and getting expert quotes in on time or even ahead of the deadline solidify our reputation as reliable. When journalists request insight from our sex experts at clients like Babeland and Good Vibes, we always go above and beyond to ensure the answers are submitted on time. Having journalists on our team means that we can anticipate the needs of the media more effectively.

The media landscape is constantly shifting, and journalists can help

From digital formats taking over to social media leading the charge and shifting consumer behavior, today’s journalists have worked through all these changes and are used to being on their toes. Working with people who “speak journalist” can help add insight to our strategy since these individuals know how to adapt across various formats, understand how editors think, and know how to pitch stories without having them come across as sensationalist clickbait. They can navigate creating stories that aren’t just impactful but as publishable as possible.

They can help us use SEO for stories that stick

SEO is a major part of journalists landing a story, and it also gets our clients more visibility. As PR professionals, our mission is to make their work as easy as possible. To help make their articles more visible online and save them research time, we work with our team members, who are former journalists, to provide valuable SEO keywords and angles that allow journalists to pitch to editors with ease. It also allows us to reach out to editors more effectively, as they can assign these stories to writers on their teams.

Getting creative this way wouldn’t be possible without people with journalistic insight and experience. A jazzed-up pitch is great, but we want to do everything we can to ensure not only that a story gets picked up but that people know to click open on our emails and rely on us as a helpful and proactive source of inspiration.

Former journalists on your team can maximize efficiency

Some might think that the main highlight of working with freelance or former journalists is about expanding media access, but it’s so much more than that. It’s about cleverly revamping your PR strategy from all angles and strengthening it via team members with diverse skill sets. This strategy becomes even more foolproof when you get the opinion of someone who is (or has been) directly in the demographic we’re looking to target. For a sexual wellness PR agency or sex toy PR agency that wants to drive powerful results, build long-term relationships, and ultimately remain successful through the years, having journalists on your side is one of the smartest ways to do so.