Here’s how to score a feature article from freelance journalists
In today’s changing media landscape, freelance journalists are becoming increasingly common. As a result, it is important for PR professionals to actively network and maintain relationships with these journalists to promote their brands. Personalizing your approach to each journalist is key in establishing a connection and ensuring your message gets the coverage it deserves.
Building relationships with freelance journalists
Building a relationship with a freelance journalist can take time and effort, but it is worth it in the long run. After all, these people could be an invaluable addition to any address book. This is because they tend to be more flexible, pitch different publications frequently, and constantly develop their network. They are also available to take on projects they might not have been able to handle if they were working at a publication.
Before diving into how to build better relationships with journalists and freelancers, you need to understand what a typical day in their lives looks like. When it comes to trying to develop a relationship, timing is everything. Journalists monitor global events for big announcements and major news stories on newswires and social media.
Freelance journalists vs. full-time staff
Full-time staff journalists attend editorial meetings and participate in press briefings, events, and conferences. As they do all this, they’re also juggling any number of articles. They can work full or part-time and are paid regularly, just like any other employee. Moreover, they have fixed hours from the publication’s offices and a specific beat they cover.
Freelance journalists are the same except in one respect – they are self-employed and do not work for only one publication. They get many benefits from freelance work, including:
- Choosing who they work for
- What they write about
- How often to write
- Where to work from
- When they write
Working as a freelance journalist has always been popular with people who want to write for a living. The number of people choosing to work as freelance writers has increased dramatically in recent years.
The digital era and freelance journalism
With today’s media extending to websites and social media, skilled journalists are in high demand. A few years ago, writers would have been cooped up in an office, preoccupied with the next issue of their newspaper or magazine.
Journalists no longer need to come into the office to write; they may do so at any time using their computers or mobile phones, sending text and images back to the office. Journalists must now consider the digital realm, how their articles will appear online, and how they disseminate their stories.
Tips for building a better relationship with freelance journalists
1) Engage with their content
When connecting with freelance journalists, start by engaging with their content. Comment on their articles, mentioning what you liked and adding your insights. Use your brand name to make it easy for journalists to find and connect with you.
Since many journalists use social media, interact with them on these platforms. Share or comment on their posts and engage them with content they would find interesting.
How Pressfarm can help
Create content that will capture the attention of media professionals, whether it is a concise and creative email pitch or a professionally written press release. If you need help with PR agencies like Pressfarm can create quality content for your brand.
By partnering with Pressfarm’s PR specialists, expert writers, and certified designers, you can make a splash in your industry with a memorable brand image. Both startups and established companies turn to Pressfarm for professional press releases, engaging guest posts, and eye-catching media kits. You can capture media attention and inspire your target audience with this content.
In addition to helping you create quality content, the team at Pressfarm is skilled at distributing content widely. We can put your brand in front of the right eyes by submitting your content to the right media outlets and startup directories. Our distribution strategy is designed to boost your online visibility and help you feature in relevant search results across different search engines.
Finally, as a client, you get custom media lists and access to a media database of 1 million+ contacts. With these contacts, you can collaborate with journalists, bloggers, and influencers in your industry. Collaborating with these media professionals will help you share your brand story widely for a long time.
With one of Pressfarm’s PR packages, you can put your brand in front of the right people when it matters most.
2) Nurture every single reply
Receiving a rejection can be discouraging, but remember that a response is a sign of openness. A journalist who replies is willing to hear from you again. Use this opportunity to continue building the dialogue.
Regardless of the response, pay attention to the journalist’s tone. It will guide you on whether and when to send a follow-up email.
3) Keep the conversation going with freelance journalists
Once you’ve established a relationship, it is vital to keep the conversation going. Focus your communication on email rather than social media since email is far more personal. Additionally, try to communicate with media professionals about once a month. However, the email should have important information or insights that could be useful for a story the journalist is covering. Finally, it is important to be patient. If you do not receive a reply, do not bombard the journalist with too many follow-up emails. Two follow-up emails are plenty – anything more than that could hurt the relationship. If you send your follow-up emails but hear nothing back, this could be a sign to move on and focus more on building relationships with other journalists.
4) Network at events and host your own
Even in the digital age, nothing beats face-to-face interaction when building a relationship. The best way to do this is through industry events. Before the event, it is beneficial to research the attendee list by name to find freelance journalists relevant to you. It’s also a good idea to get familiar with some of their recent work so that you can drop this into the conversation. Getting a speaking role and being featured on a show can significantly raise your company’s profile and make networking much easier. After all, when you present yourself as a thought leader, people will be only too eager to talk to you.
You can also host events such as workshops, round-table talks, and hackathons. These are excellent ways to create and connect with a vibrant community. You can encourage journalists to attend these events by offering them places on judging panels or speaking opportunities.
5) Keep in touch after the freelance journalists leave
When freelance journalists transition from working a “normal” schedule, they usually worry about maintaining their professional connections. It helps to keep in touch with a transitioning journalist even after they leave a big media outlet.
6) Respect their wishes
Freelance journalists do not have the same luxury of getting a proper paycheck. Time is money, and they do not live with the safety of taking a weekend, a sick day, or a long lunch with a PR pro. Even if they want to attend an event or meet up, it may not be possible due to other priorities. Remember that the relationship may change depending on a freelancer’s deadlines and work patterns evolving.
7) Don’t pile on the pressure
Freelance journalists already face a lot of pressure both personally and professionally. For this reason, it is essential to balance your media outreach and not bombard them with emails. Sending endless emails will only add more stress to their already busy lives.
In addition, avoid sending them random emails that do not add value to the content they are writing. While you might see this as a way to extend an olive branch to a freelancer, it could be misconstrued as needy or bothersome.
8) Timing is everything
Most freelance journalists combine shift work, branded or corporate work, and pitching ideas to publications. So, rather than assume they spend their time just sitting and waiting for a new article to write, you should send your pitches in good time. Don’t pitch for a story you hope they’ll write within a week. Rather, give them enough time to review the story and consider whether they want to take it on.
9) Respect a freelancer’s email
Nowadays, no matter who we are, we get many emails and newsletters that fill our inboxes with things we don’t sign up for. For this reason, it is annoying when a journalist has one positive interaction with you only to find themselves signed up to an email list they’re not interested in. To avoid a potentially awkward situation where a journalist unsubscribes from your mailing list, it is best to ask for their permission first.
10) Make connections
Make connections with the journalists you are interested in working with. To make genuine connections, go beyond simply sending quality pitches about your company. A good PR specialist also goes out of their way to help in different ways. For example, you could introduce a journalist to other thought leaders in your niche. You could also forward them emails about work opportunities and invite them to industry events.
Conclusion
Building mutually beneficial relationships with journalists and media outlets is the key to gaining media coverage and creating brand awareness. Given that a big part of the world is working from home now, it is crucial to understand the shift from traditional journalism. Rather than just focusing on journalists who work with news organizations, hiring freelancers can help you get the word out there about your brand.
