With the holiday season upon us, it's a busy time for everyone – and journalists are no exception. There's often a scramble to source holiday-related stories, and if you act quickly, this demand for content can bring about some great publicity opportunities.
If you're able to get your story out there, you can get valuable exposure at one of the most lucrative times of the year. Whether it's by replying to a call out for a holiday-themed story related to your business, or by proactively pitching your story to the media, now is the time to reach out to publications or respond to festive call outs.
A successful media pitch during the holidays can bring great rewards but it's important to make sure that what you're pitching is relevant and contains the main features most journalists are looking for in stories at this time of year.
Rather than send out generic content, pitches that actually focus on seasonal holiday content are likely to bring the best results. Popular holiday content often includes gift-buying guides, tips for surviving holiday events, and ideas for making the holiday season run more smoothly.
Think about the difficulties your customers or clients face during the holidays. This could be around sourcing the perfect gift, decorating, entertaining, staying healthy or anything else that is likely to crop up at this time. Many people find the holiday season stressful, so any content that features things that are likely to alleviate their stress will usually be very welcome.
The perfect holiday pitch needs to provide value, and it needs to be appealing to a publication's target audience. Journalists are looking for stories that will be popular among their readers, so it’s important to make sure your pitch is relevant to their specific audience's interests and needs.
This is a great time of year to pitch, but it may mean that you'll be up against some fairly stiff competition. Creating an effective pitch is essential if you want to be successful and stand out from the crowd of other holiday stories.
Remember, when you're creating the pitch that you're pitching the story, NOT your business. Don't be too general or turn your media pitch into an ad for your products or services. Journalists sniff out self-promotion a mile away.
While you may receive fewer call outs during this quieter period, when you do see a request that your business can help with, you will need to jump on it quickly. Many journalists will be inundated with responses to call outs, and chances are they won't have time to read them all through. By getting in early, you'll have the best chance of being noticed and getting picked for the story.
If the media call out is in a niche area that your business serves, you're definitely going to have an advantage. Specialist topics usually have far less competition than more general topics, so it's a good idea to be on high alert for those.
Holiday content may be seasonal but it often brings rewards loooong after the festivities have ended. The exposure you get as a result of a mention or story in a popular publication over the holiday season may result in a boost in sales not just during the silly season, but well into the New Year.
So brush up on your pitching skills this holiday season and make the most of the opportunities that always come around via SourceBottle. By responding quickly to call outs AND reaching out to the media with your seasonal ideas, you can get fantastic exposure that will keep benefiting you long after the holiday season is over.