All PR professionals will have experienced the frustration of sending what feels like a strong story idea to a target journalist, only to hear nothing back.
The reality is that reporters are busy people, juggling deadlines, commissions, interviews and overflowing inboxes. Understanding what they are looking for – and what puts them off – can make a significant difference to the success of your law firm’s media relations activity.
With that in mind, we spoke to freelance journalist Maria Shahid, who writes for a range of legal, property and national titles, including the Daily Telegraph and iPaper. We asked her about everything from subject lines and follow-ups to AI-generated pitches and building long-term relationships with journalists.
Here’s what Maria had to say.
- Approximately how many emails do you receive from PRs and/or experts a day?
I get about 10 a day, more if it’s a big news day, so less than a staff journo.
- What makes a good subject line?
I think it’s really important to research what I have written and who for. That should be your starting point, which is why mass mailouts don’t work. Check what I have written about in the last six months. For the Gazette, I usually write on property, planning and the built environment in general. For others, I am really following the market, so at the moment I am particularly interested in leasehold stuff, baby bust, midlife divorce, Neets etc. Journalists follow the market, so do make sure you are too!
Once you have a better idea of what I write about, try and make the headline in your pitch relevant. Mention some key phrases that are likely to pique my interest. For example, midlife, divorce, leasehold, service charges etc. Being emotive always helps.
- How long should an email pitch be?
I’d follow the same rule as I do when pitching as a freelancer. A short, pithy intro followed by about 5-8 bullet points. Include some data. A credible, verfiable case study who is happy to be named and pictured will also make you stand out for the nationals.
- Do you open/respond to emails from people you don’t know
Yes, definitely. An introduction if we haven’t spoken before always helps. I’ve done PR myself and I know a response is important. I do try and make the time in my day to respond, unless it’s a mass mailout.
- Is it easy to spot a blanket pitch? Does this matter?
Yes. I don’t always mind them. The thing to remember is that as a freelancer I write mainly features, so won’t always pick up on really newsy stuff, which is best left for news desks. A case in point is house price indexes or interest rate changes. I can’t get a commission on stuff like that, unless you can relate it to a longer-term trend that’s happening.
- What are the most common mistakes PRs make when pitching stories?
Sending me stuff that is completely irrelevant to what I write about and not realising I freelance and mainly write features.
- What makes a genuinely good pitch?
See above. But also, you don’t need to have a perfect pitch. Sometimes the best thing you can do is just a friendly email saying: “I really liked that piece you wrote, and do let me know if you need anyone similar in the future, as I work with X”. I can’t overemphasise the importance of making it emotive. A lot of the case studies that get commissioned have a really strong emotive story to tell. For example, the service charge piece for the Telegraph: “I was making barely £5 profit a month”.
- Do you prefer to receive pitches from PRs or directly from experts?
It is definitely easier to work with experts directly, but only those who are media savvy. If they aren’t, the PR is really important in chasing things, and making sure deadlines are met, and dealing with admin like photos, explaining that quotes can’t be checked etc.
- What should PRs do if they haven’t heard back? Is it acceptable to follow up and, if so, when?
One chase is fine. I honestly do try and make the time to respond and give some feedback, but some pitches are just so off topic that I have nothing useful to say.
- Are phone calls still useful or do you prefer email?
In my case, the answer is no. I freelance, so am not always ‘on call’. An email is definitely better.
- Has AI made any difference to the quality of pitches you receive? Is it easy to spot AI-generated pitches?
Some pitches are way too long, and although they look interesting, I’d need to find the time in my day to read them. See above, keep pitches short and pithy. It’s possible that some of those have been AI-generated.
- What advice would you give PR professionals trying to build long-term relationships with journalists?
Be helpful, friendly. Interact with me on socials. I am on LinkedIn, Instagram, BlueSky and X, and it’s actually one of the easiest ways of connecting with me. I regularly do call outs for case studies on LinkedIn etc so do keep a look out.
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