Don't let the C-word appearing in the middle of UK summer send shivers down your spine – pitching in July is a great opportunity for securing coverage in Christmas gift guides.
It’s that time of year again: all old-school product PRs out there will know ‘Christmas in July’ is a landmark moment in the calendar. While gift guide lead times vary, they’re an essential part of most magazine content calendars. Beautiful products look striking on a page while digital roundups boost SEO rankings, traffic and of course, affiliate revenue.
Here we’ve rounded up five top tips for landing coveted placements in Christmas gift guides.
1. Timing is everything
Some titles work six or more months ahead for print, some do three, some go right up to the wire (The Times, we’re looking at you!). Work out what titles you want to pitch to and their relevant timelines.
If it’s a glossy fashion mag, you’re likely to be looking at a three to four-month lead; for a luxe periodical, it might be six or eight months. For the likes of Good Housekeeping where rigorous testing is involved, they practically think about mince pies all year round.
Digital guides can be more straightforward; they’re usually updated on a rolling basis to keep SEO fresh. Editors are often open to new inclusions if you have something relevant to add.
Want to get ahead of that curve? Online Christmas gift guides usually start getting a spruce-up around September/October to ensure good rankings come November/December’s shopping rush.
2. Do your research
Channel your inner Scrooge and flick back to issues of Christmas past. Check out last year’s Christmas gift guides and see how they laid them out on the page.
What categories did they cover? Did they shoot the product themselves or was imagery PR-supplied? What kind of price point did they stick to? Was it luxury or high street or a mix of both?
Looking back to look forward is invaluable. This will help your pitch to stay relevant and save your journo relationships if your product is way off-piste compared to their usual inclusions. Really understand the target title’s reader and why they need your product this Christmas.
The same goes for past digital guides, publications usually refresh the previous year’s roundups so you should be able to tell what guides are getting an update and pitch accordingly.
3. Pitch perfect
Here at Roxhill we consider ourselves experts in the perfect pitch. We’ve interviewed hundreds of journalists and know exactly what makes an email shine in a busy inbox.
A gift guide pitch is no different; journalists don’t have time for back and forth so give them all the key information up front. Include what the product is, why it’s special, links to buy or stockists, prices and if relevant, affiliate link details. Keep it short, sweet and uncomplicated.
Imagine each journalist’s inbox as their own personal Google: if you’re pitching a lipstick, ditch the flowery language and call it a lipstick. When the editor comes to search for what they need, your email will pop right up.
Don’t forget to tailor each email to the journalist (triple check spellings, or you’re at risk of instant-delete) and to the specific Christmas gift guide you’re pitching for. Personalisation goes a long way.
4. Be image conscious
Imagery is quite possibly the most crucial component of your pitch. You can embed some low-res lifestyle shots for storytelling but don’t forget that the journalist – and their picture editor – needs a hi-res, flat product shot on a plain white background.
This may sound boring, but you won’t get the gift guide placement without this key shot. Remember that the product needs to pop on a white page, whether that’s online or in print. If you’re an unfortunate PR with a less-than-cute brand, our recent blog post might help.
Lastly, add those hi-res images into a file sharing link and place it clearly in your email. Spring for the pro version of whatever file sharing tool you use as there’s no bigger journalist pet peeve than an expired WeTransfer.
It’s also very handy to label your imagery with all those key details including brand name, product name, price and stockist. The editorial assistants will thank you.
5. Friendly follow-ups
Last but not least: chase, follow-up, politely nudge. Inboxes overflow in the lead-up to Christmas and journalists are likely to need a small prompt on your pitch.
Don’t pick up the phone or slide into their DMs. Instead, send a quick second email in which you acknowledge how busy the beleaguered editor is and express that you’re just following up in case it’s of interest.
Depending on your pitching timelines, leave around a week between follow-ups and definitely don’t chase more than twice. If they want it, they’ll find your pitch and your unexpired image link easily in their inbox.
Keep in touch after the decorations have come down
Journalists rely on great PR pitches to build their Christmas gift guides. Timing your submission right, then keeping it relevant and concise while adding some beautiful imagery will maximise your chances of standing out in a busy inbox.
Don’t forget to keep the connection going after the holiday season – build on those relationships and show appreciation for the coverage you get.
A journalist friend is for life, not just for Christmas.
Roxhill's exclusive events
As a Roxhill client, you'll get access to our in-person and online events with top journalists, so you can start building rewarding media connections.
Roxhill's exclusive events
As a Roxhill client, you'll get access to our in-person and online events with top journalists so you can start building rewarding connections.