I get it. It’s a PR’s job to ask questions. But there are a handful that get asked all the time that no journalist wants to hear.
It’s not that we’re being difficult (for the most part, anyway). It’s more that the following questions are really hard to answer, at least in any meaningful way.
Avoid these seven and you’ll be a winner in my inbox, and, I’d wager, far more likely to be on the receiving end of replies from some of the UK’s top editors.
1. Would you like a client list?
Don’t ask for permission to send a client list, always just send it.
And when you do, believe that it is full of absolutely brilliant stories.
I’m rarely interested in a client list for the sake of it. But I am always on the lookout for good stories, so by sending everything you have, I’m more likely to find something I’m into.
Plus, by asking whether I want to see the list, you are opening the window of doubt that I may not want to: if your clients are gold star, surely I’ll want to see all of them?
Send the list and talk up every one on it, making out that each is worth my time.
There is one caveat here: obviously sending totally irrelevant clients is not useful to anyone. For example, no food blogger wants a story about a steel manufacturer. But if a journalist is likely to have any interest, shoot your shot and send it. Don’t wait to be asked.
2. Do you need images?
Same with images: send them in the first email so they’re there without us having to ask for them.
I reckon less than half of emails I receive include images, and we’ll never publish a story without them.
So, every day I’m sending emails requesting images that should have been sent without prompting.
3. Your feeling isn't right – can you change it?
I was once asked to edit a travel piece after one of our writers at City AM said a hotel reminded them of a famous theme park. Their client didn’t feel that the theme park represented the hotel’s brand message. But you can’t argue with how someone feels about a place.
Ask for edits to factual inaccuracies, not feelings.
4. Is this useful for your story?
It’s up to PRs to make journalists believe that their information is useful.
If you genuinely think that your client is going to enhance a story I’m writing, tell me in factual, sharp, information-packed sentences.
Asking introduces a shadow of doubt: if you don’t believe that they are useful, I’m less likely to believe they are as well.
Plus, it saves time to immediately say why the client is so brilliant. If you don’t honestly believe they are, it’s best not to pitch them.
5. Can you send the Zoom link?
I’ve never met a journalist who doesn’t find this question bizarre.
Surely sending the Zoom link for an interview or any type of online meet is the job of the organiser of the meeting, which most often isn’t the journalist.
6. Will it be an honest review?
Yes, it’ll be an honest review. If you’re emailing a national newspaper or any publication worth its salt, you’d hope they’re not going to write puff pieces.
Asking a journalist whether their review will be “honest” – which has happened more than once to me – also suggests that you, as the PR, are willing to discuss the idea of an inauthentic review. And that doesn’t speak volumes for your client or agency.
7. Can we provide insightful data on this trend?
Yes – but like with images and client lists, please just send it. If the data is useful or insightful, believe that we need to see it.
Send everything over and explain why it’s the most crucial line in our piece. As a rule, it’s useful to have more rather than less when it comes to data and insight.
Also, if everything is in one email – images, data, quotes – it’s easy to find and refer back to, making a journalist’s life easier, and minimising the amount of emails that need to be sent.
And the one thing you can do
It’s an impossible task to please every journalist, but ultimately the main thing that makes an impact is authenticity. Believe in your clients and look to form real, honest relationships.
If you want to ask something, in this overly digital day and age, you could be totally radical and say “fancy a call?”
Despite the narrative around journalists not liking phone calls, you’d be surprised how many prefer getting things done quickly on the phone rather than adding another email chain to their to-do list.
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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.