4 tips for scoring coverage in holiday gift guides
Print magazine deadlines might have passed, but that doesn’t mean you can’t send a pitch to a newspaper or website and score coverage this December. Here’s how.
As co-owner of a retail business, and as a PR pro with retail and consumer product clients on the roster, I spend a fair amount of time each fall trying to score placements in those “gift guide” features that all media seem to publish in December. Most of the time, my work involves pitching products. On occasion, I try to get businesses some ink.
The “gift guide” comes in many forms. A media outlet might run a series of so-called listicles— “5 great gift ideas for the foodie in your life,” for instance—in an existing, regular section.
Other times, an outlet may publish an insert that is, in effect, a standalone section. For example, Montreal newspaper La Presse—the largest French-language daily outside France—is famous for its giant gift guide.
Bloggers, meanwhile, may run a series of posts on their favorite things.
You get the point.
Regardless of format, generating placements during the busiest retail season can move the needle in terms of sales.
Here are a few tips to help you score coverage in holiday gift-guide features:
1. Start early.
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