When I embarked on a daily journalism career with The Tampa Tribune in the early ‘90s, my employer immediately gifted me with something now viewed as an unabashed luxury in the news business—a beat.

I debuted covering a suburban city council before shifting to cops, tourism, and entertainment, then added business, energy, and politics to my repertoire after joining the Associated Press. Today’s continually shrinking media landscape obliges many contemporary journalists to act as generalists, compelling them to quickly master a subject the best they can before moving on to the next.

For its 2024 State of the Media Report, Cision surveyed more than 3,000 media professionals and found that 60 percent cited downsizing and reduced resources as their biggest challenge. And 66 percent of those journalists said public relations professionals can make their jobs easier by understanding journalists’ target audiences and what they find relevant.

Every association professional is in the PR business, regardless of whether they have “communication” in their titles.

My journalism background consistently guides my PR outreach instincts, but a well-worn press pass isn’t required to successfully garner earned media coverage. If you regularly consume news, then you can figure out what makes one story attention-grabbing and the other a snoozer.

What’s the Hook?

Associations are mission driven, but that mission is not a news hook in and of itself. Think about what makes your association remarkable and pitch ideas that demonstrate that exceptionality.

• Monitor and react to the news cycle. Can your association offer any insight on something that’s happening in the news? Offer your board president or another association member as a subject matter expert or help write an op-ed or letter to the editor reacting to the timely topic. Note that national reporters receive a ton of these emails, so if you want to break through, be quick, be relevant, and be available when they respond.
• Share data and research. If your association creates original research reports or conducts scientifically sound surveys, send them to reporters interested in the topic. If you don’t know who to pitch, peruse reporters’ earlier stories to learn what they like to cover.
• Don’t blast everyone with everything. I know from receiving innumerable press releases from countless associations over the years that many well-intentioned people are guilty of sharing announcements unworthy of publication. Don’t burn bridges on a future real story by sending a dud to a major daily newspaper’s managing editor or a TV station’s assignment desk.
• Add the multi to media. Before pitching, gather multimedia resources and make them easily downloadable so reporters can dress up the content. The kit should include high-resolution photos for newspapers, trade magazines, and broadcast websites and b-roll video (4K if possible) for TV stations. And don’t forget radio: A few MP3 audio clips with “natural sound” might help pique the interest of an NPR affiliate.

Send the Release

Nearly three-quarters of the journalists surveyed in Cision’s report say they still want you to send them news announcements and press releases. Here are a few tips:

• Write it as though it will be published verbatim. The news release was invented to provide building blocks for a news story, but if written well, some outlets will simply post it to their websites. Why not take advantage of this instant and unfiltered earned media?
• Top it off with a personalized note. Have you worked with the reporter before? Do you share an alma mater and are excited about the school’s upcoming basketball season? Did you catch a reporter’s recent story and find it compelling? Any added touch that demonstrates your email is not AI-generated or generically blasted to a mass list can help break through the clutter.
• Craft a concise yet compelling subject line. Sure, it’s easy to simply copy and paste the news release headline into the subject line, but this may be your only chance to grab a journalist’s attention. If you’re offering the reporter an exclusive, lead with that. If you’ve gathered a nice photo and b-roll package, note that here. If you’re promoting a timely event, begin your subject line with “Happening tomorrow.”

We’re all drowning in our inboxes, and journalists are no different. When working to place your association in the news, do all you can to make your pitch a straight fastball over the center of the plate. This is the only scenario in which you want your team’s pitch knocked out of the park.