I haven't worked directly with any of the people you mentioned, but with a background in PR I'll give you some general info.
They're not dealing with 100s of pitches per day, they're dealing with 1000s. (That may or may not be completely accurate, but it's true in spirit.) And these publications are not there to serve the world of tech, they're there to serve the relatively small ecosystem of people that they're a part of. Most of the stories they publish will come to them via established channels (a particularly capable PR person, a friend, a fellow journalist).
For the most part, I would say your pitch isn't really even considered. It's not considered because it's not part of a small group of pitches that have to be considered (because of previous ties). To put it another way, there's already enough on the table and ignoring you isn't a political risk.
So, what you're asking for is almost impossible. But so is starting a startup and finding customers, so you're getting used to it.
My advice:
1. Figure out if you really, really need coverage. Ask yourself if it's worth the energy (most of which will be wasted). If you are finding paying customers, personally I would focus all of my attention on that. In my market and because of my previous work, we can get published more or less when we decide to. But we don't. We focus on product and customers (we're currently stealth-mode on something).
2. If it truly is strategically imperative (and not just an ego milestone) you need to track down individual humans at each of the publications and get them on the phone, whatever that takes. Don't be afraid to start at the top.
3. When you get someone on the phone be short, professional and polite. You're not calling to establish how mind blowing/game changing your product is. You're calling to make an impression as someone that needs to be watched. Have a less than 30 second pitch worked out (and practiced).
Thanks for your advice! Yes, I was guessing that, just like with VCs, pitches to major bloggers must come from a known reference to be even considers. Random emails to tips@insert-blog-name-here.com probably doesn't even get read by them?
Comments
I haven't worked directly with any of the people you mentioned, but with a background in PR I'll give you some general info.
They're not dealing with 100s of pitches per day, they're dealing with 1000s. (That may or may not be completely accurate, but it's true in spirit.) And these publications are not there to serve the world of tech, they're there to serve the relatively small ecosystem of people that they're a part of. Most of the stories they publish will come to them via established channels (a particularly capable PR person, a friend, a fellow journalist).
For the most part, I would say your pitch isn't really even considered. It's not considered because it's not part of a small group of pitches that have to be considered (because of previous ties). To put it another way, there's already enough on the table and ignoring you isn't a political risk.
So, what you're asking for is almost impossible. But so is starting a startup and finding customers, so you're getting used to it.
My advice:
1. Figure out if you really, really need coverage. Ask yourself if it's worth the energy (most of which will be wasted). If you are finding paying customers, personally I would focus all of my attention on that. In my market and because of my previous work, we can get published more or less when we decide to. But we don't. We focus on product and customers (we're currently stealth-mode on something).
2. If it truly is strategically imperative (and not just an ego milestone) you need to track down individual humans at each of the publications and get them on the phone, whatever that takes. Don't be afraid to start at the top.
3. When you get someone on the phone be short, professional and polite. You're not calling to establish how mind blowing/game changing your product is. You're calling to make an impression as someone that needs to be watched. Have a less than 30 second pitch worked out (and practiced).
Good luck.
Thanks for your advice! Yes, I was guessing that, just like with VCs, pitches to major bloggers must come from a known reference to be even considers. Random emails to tips@insert-blog-name-here.com probably doesn't even get read by them?