Even a "Cadillac pitch" the first time around doesn't work in this new changing age of print media. Yes, we all know print media is slowly deteriorating; calls to travel reporters and those assigned to tech beats confirm this. Perhaps a business reporter will have some decency and open up your e-mail, but you might want to think about using a pitch as a follow-up to an introduction.Reporters have about five seconds to open an e-mail and decide from the lead if it's worth a read:
- Your subject line is the first thing a reporter will see (unless of course you decided to bcc those 500 people on your pitch list the same one-size-fits-all message that ends up in SPAM), so make it a praise to their most recent article. It's as simple as "Your CNN.com article, from XXX." Why does this work? Reporters love to hear about how great their stories are.
- There you have it--- that's your pitch. Next time, they will recognize you as someone who knows them, especially if you end your initial contact with "I'll keep an eye on your byline."