Pitching Pitfalls And Editor Pet Peeves
In July of 2009 Michelle Tennant Nicholson of Wasabi Publicity
, Inc., sat down to speak with Gracey Hitchcock, editor of DolceDolce.com, a magazine for women.
In this call Michelle discussed pitching pitfalls and editor pet peeves with Gracey, who was one of the founding editors of Russian Vogue and the first English feature writer for Russian Elle.
Heres the transcript:
Michelle Tennant:Hi Gracey. This is Michelle Tennant.
Gracey Hitchcock:Hello.
Michelle Tennant:How are you?
Gracey Hitchcock:Im good. How are you?
Michelle Tennant:Just great. So weve got the recording already started and so Im just gonna go ahead and dive right in, if thats okay with you?
Gracey Hitchcock:Thats absolutely fine. Go right ahead.
Michelle Tennant:Great. So what were talking about is how to get publicity results and how to pitch editors effectively. And Im Michelle Tennant Nicholson and Ive been doing PR for 20 years. And if you want to read all about me and my accolades you can go to storytellertothemedia.com. But without further adieux let me introduce you to Gracey Hitchcock, the editor of Dolcedolce.com, a weekly online newsletter for women and she is the founding editor of Russian Vogue and the first English feature writer for Russian El. And she was a columnist for the Womens Post and has appeared in many national publications. I am thrilled to talk to you today, Gracey, about the pitfalls of pitching editors. Thanks so much for being here with me.
Gracey Hitchcock:Okay, Michelle. Just one little correction: I was one of the founding editors of Russian Vogue. There were a few of us because you know, a magazine takes a few people, but it was great fun to do that project.
Michelle Tennant:Well great. Okay well thanks for that.
Gracey Hitchcock:I think theyd come and tell me because it was really, it was a great project but it was really challenging and it took every one of us because we launched it in fewer months than you would normally launch it and in a language that was none of our own for the English side and with a really talented Russian team, but most of them had not worked in glossy magazines before. It was challenging.
Michelle Tennant:And lets just dive into that experience right there. What were the main pitfalls of people pitching you as an editor of some of these really high level magazines and then your current magazine? Whats your biggest pet peeve, Gracey?
Gracey Hitchcock:Well actually, I would say over there we really didnt have a lot of problems because it was something that people really didnt pitch us, per se, so that was really pretty fabulous. And I have a terrific, incredibly amazing assistant who was a very young intern and she really ran the most incredible interference when anything did come up, so it was really on that level, fabulous. And we really did not get pitched in the same way because it was so new and so different and it just worked so differently that its probably not a useful counterpart. I would say that I do have a list of pet peeves and you picked a very good time to speak to me because -.
Michelle Tennant:Oh, good. Did one of them just happen to you?
Gracey Hitchcock:Well I was just recently at a very nice luncheon where I was sitting with a couple of very, very seasoned editors, women, and it seemed that they have had, recently, a few experiences with PR people that they were not too pleased about. And I would say not a mean spirited at all, but a professional discussion of what really should not be done, spontaneously broke out. So some of these things are not just my opinion, but the opinion of some of my seasoned colleagues who are not really friends with colleague and it was funny how there was such a meeting minds.
I would say that one thing cause when people pitch you and they have not read, you know, were an online magazine so, we do have a newsletter, youre absolutely right, but we also have an online magazine and people pitch us and they havent read it. So theyre pitching things that we dont cover. They dont fit our demographics. Our readers would not be interested in them.
Michelle Tennant:And I think that thats like what we talked about just recently, one of the reasons why I wanted to interview you, Gracey, is I found it really interesting a lot of people erroneously think that if an editor is preparing material for women, that they automatically are interested in mother topics.
Gracey Hitchcock:This is fascinating to me because even mothers are not always interested in being mothers and this may be a rude shock to some people, but its quite true. And this would be like saying that all men want to read about sports all the time or all men want to read about cars all the time or all men want to read about, I dont know, mercenaries all the time or gardening. Magazines and newspapers and online magazines and blogs, everything has become increasingly more niche.
For online, I think we happen to be a little bit broader than many blogs or online magazines or whatever you wish to call it. We dont really consider ourselves a blog because we have seven people at any given time who work on our staff, but we tend to be a little bit broader. But everything is getting to be so niche now that it makes it even more foolish, but people just waste your time; they waste their time and we cant afford that in this economy. And its all so irksome. Its just irksome cause everything is manners, just plain, ordinary, old fashioned manners.
Michelle Tennant:And so how are people rude with you?
Gracey Hitchcock:Well I dont consider it very good manners when people call up without introducing themselves and say to me, Did you get my email? I get so much email that I almost hesitate to tell people how much email I get because Im well aware of the fact that Im no longer at Vogue Magazine or the New York Times, but even for dolcedolce.com, we get scores of emails a day. We get hundreds some days and how would I know if I got their email, particularly since they have not bothered to tell me who they are?
Michelle Tennant:Thats right. Well I always say -.
Gracey Hitchcock:And what am I gonna do?
Michelle Tennant:Ive been and for years is, what you want to do when you actually follow up is follow up without following up. How can you actually follow up and then give more information like research or just another news tip or Hey, did you know this was breaking in the news?
Gracey Hitchcock:But lets jut address this. Im not even as offended as many people are if someone were to call me on the phone because Im much more open to telephone conversation than the average editor these days, but I think it is incredibly rude to call anyone and not introduce yourself. Hello, I am -.
Michelle Tennant:Well you know, there actually are PR people out there teaching publicists to not introduce themselves, saying that it wastes time?
Gracey Hitchcock:Well it will also get you hung up on by me before (Interviewer laughs) very quickly. Im sorry. I dont speak to people who dont introduce themselves. Have a very nice day. Goodbye. Im sorry, I do not know why anyone in their right mind would have a conversation with someone who does not introduce themselves.
Michelle Tennant:Well theres also some, you know this email pitching technique and I think etiquette and do you like when youre sent an emails -? And I know you prefer the phone, but there are a lot of like -.
Gracey Hitchcock:I dont like, for instance, I prefer email, but Im not offended when someone calls me. There are many people these days are mortally offended with the telephone that much. Im not. I wish youd explain to me who in their right minds would have a conversation with anyone that does not introduce themselves.
Michelle Tennant:Well they say that media Im not teaching it, but Ive heard other people say, Lead with your angle.
Gracey Hitchcock:No, no. May I just abuse you with it? I have been in this business a very long time. I am not going to discuss who Im married to, but I married into this business. All our friends are in this business. My life is ridiculously in this business. I can assure you that nobody I know who works in this business in several countries, would ever entertain a conversation.
Michelle Tennant:Well now you know everyone, okay? So if you had -.
Gracey Hitchcock:I dont know everyone. I know a lot of people.
Michelle Tennant:And hundreds of by name, then you can actually set your media trainer correct about that one. I love this Gracey. This is really good stuff.
Gracey Hitchcock:Nobody _____ anymore. Im sorry, Im sorry. This is just like 14 year old children calling your house and they dont introduce themselves.
Michelle Tennant:Completely.
Gracey Hitchcock:I mean, Im sorry goodbye. You have not -. I mean, if this was a serious news story, whats good is a source that doesnt introduce themselves? I mean, lets face it. The person talking to Deep Throat knew who Deep Throat was. This is ridiculous theyre teaching people this.
Michelle Tennant:What about emails, should we introduce ourselves at the beginning of an email, or like if were from pitchrate.com with you responding?
Gracey Hitchcock:Well thats actually more irrelevant because your name is on your email and so I dont really care. I mean, it takes one second to introduce yourself, Hello. Im Michelle Tennant with Story Teller PR. Id like to speak to you about -. Is this a good time? That is the only thing you should ever say to anyone when you telephone them. Is this a good time?
Michelle Tennant:Yeah, Is this a good time? is something that, I mean, gosh if I dont say that, thats one of the things that for 20 years I make sure that I say. Even as today, I was calling someone unrelated to PR and I just asked them. I agree with you, thats just plain -.
Gracey Hitchcock:I say that to my best friend.
Michelle Tennant:Yeah, do you have time?
Gracey Hitchcock:Dear heavens. Its civilized.
Michelle Tennant:Now what else? What else Gracey?
Gracey Hitchcock:An email, that if I cannot tell in the first paragraph of your email what you are talking about, you are in trouble.
Michelle Tennant:Okay.
Gracey Hitchcock:And I can tell you, Ive had emails Ive read three times and not know what people are talking about, and not one and not two and not three, many emails Ive received from PR people and I do not. On the third read if I dont know what youre talking about, I delete you and I think thats probably two more reads than many people will give you.
Michelle Tennant:I agree.
Gracey Hitchcock:I mean, I dont want a mystery and actually, Im sorry, Im very basic. I want who, what, where and really why in the front, right up front. Secondly, if you send me a pdf, please also send me a word file because if you have a list of names or places, I may well want to cut and paste them for accuracy.
Michelle Tennant:Right, I know. We really dont -. Yeah, the pdf, I think online press kits or Word documents are so much easier for people to cut and paste. We use PressKit247.com and you can just cut and paste it. And I hear that a lot Gracey.
Gracey Hitchcock:People consistently are telling me that people want these fancy schmancy pdfs. Really, why? Because the media, these media professionals think that bloggers are just going to reprint their materials. Well, maybe they will, but nobody that will do you any good will.
Michelle Tennant:Now I heard that links were preferred to attachments of any kind. Do you agree?
Gracey Hitchcock:What are preferred?
Michelle Tennant:Links, like a hyperlink to some place.
Gracey Hitchcock:Oh, I say put it all in. Some people like links. I personally bless the person who is professionally efficient enough they can get it to me on one page in the email.
Michelle Tennant:Yes.
Gracey Hitchcock:Oh, God bless you.
Michelle Tennant:When you interviewed my client, Dr. Jill Murray, about Rihanna and Chris Brown and domestic violence?
Gracey Hitchcock:And didnt that go well?
Michelle Tennant:It did. And I just sent you some links to her online press kit and it was wham bam complete for you and you even commented later like, Thanks for being efficient.
Gracey Hitchcock:Mm-hmm because that was a very specific thing. That was a personality. That was not a product. If it wouldve been a product, it wouldve been very different. Also, I did not need -. I will tell you in that case, I really wouldve preferred a better picture of Dr. Murray, but -.
Michelle Tennant:Yeah, I told her to -.
Gracey Hitchcock:You asked her on that?
Michelle Tennant:Yeah, she finally took our coaching and went out and got a professional shoot and this was after you actually published her, but now shes got some high resolution. I agree with you and I told her that and she took our coaching.
Gracey Hitchcock:And I do believe that the picture should always be available in jpeg and they should always be different sizes. People often send you these ginormous sizes that are wonderful for print.
Michelle Tennant:But you dont really need them for an online -.
Gracey Hitchcock:Well and often theyre not really convenient depending on how youre working, if youre highly mobile.
Michelle Tennant:Thats right.
Gracey Hitchcock:They can jam up laptops. They can jam up different systems and then people will end up not using them and probably something with a bad resolution, which will make your client look old or your pictures look cheap because theyll end up pulling them off the web because they cannot get a better picture in time.
Michelle Tennant:Well and thats one of the reasons why Ive had complaints from editors and journalists. Okay, if you send an attachment via email, then youre gonna jam up my inbox. So I just put everything on their online press kit that has a page with different images that are available and you can just download what you want.
Gracey Hitchcock:Well obviously, common sense rules. You do not send humongous attachments to anybody. Thats just foolishness.
Michelle Tennant:Youd be surprised what people do, right? I mean, I hear it time and time again from professionals that have enough experience to know better and then there they are doing it with someone like you.
Gracey Hitchcock:But you know, people just dont realize that it costs no more for a photographer to get a high res shot, a low res shot. Oh, this is another thing, while on the subject of photographs,
Michelle Tennant:Yes.
Gracey Hitchcock:Common sense and do you think -? People do not close crop the clients head shot.
Michelle Tennant:Whats your preference?
Gracey Hitchcock:Well its not a preference. I dont know why people let anyone have a preference. I dont know why people do not have all their clients head shots close cropped. I dont know why they would ever want to trust an editor to be intelligent enough or spend the time or the money or trust any online people to have the facilities or the sense to edit head shots because a lot of people dont. We edit them if people havent done something funky to them.
Michelle Tennant:Well I think that the idea is from someone in my seat, Gracey, is we want to give you options, but what Im hearing you say is you just want -.
Gracey Hitchcock:Why? Why would you want the option of a bunch of very bizarre space floating around somebodys head? Why would you want the option of letting them plop your client next to God knows who doing God knows what?
Michelle Tennant:Well I think that probably what we need to do is we need to go to dolcedolce.com and actually look at what Graceys talking about as an example of some good photos.
Gracey Hitchcock:Well dont because we cant always control them. Look at mine. We do our best with what they -.
Michelle Tennant:Well I think looking at your photos, cause you know, I -.
Gracey Hitchcock:You can look at what they give us, but we try to do our best for people but I end up sending to my art director and my photography people, which do not count on websites to have peoples head shots. And Im always having to have them close cropped so that the people are not floating in this space.
Michelle Tennant:Well I think that you have a beautiful photo of yourself, if people just Google Gracey -.
Gracey Hitchcock:I have professional photos done by very top notch photographers that if anybodys clients nearby I highly recommend they use. But this is a different issue. Im talking about cropping, having the photographs cropped so that theres not huge space floating around them because people will not do it for you.
Michelle Tennant:Your image, so for people to find out what a good example of what Gracey is talking about, find her photo and her first name is G-R-A-C-E-Y and then Hitchcock. And I saw a beautiful shot of you on your Mothers Day Sex in the City article from last yeah, actually.
Gracey Hitchcock:Well thank you and its there every week, actually, we crop, we have pictures of me there every week because this is another thing which is I have a pet peeve, which is that people constantly write about beauty and you never see them.
Michelle Tennant:(Laughs) Good point.
Gracey Hitchcock:But I will say that I really recommend cropping pictures because you cannot see the people. And it all looks like high school graduation when you have like all these curtains and space behind people and Ive seen some very, very prominent, lovely clients and the pictures just do not look great because of the cropping and the cropping is so easy to do. Any photographer will do it for you.
Michelle Tennant:Well and so weve got those: research, have manners when you call, first paragraph dont use -.
Gracey Hitchcock:Do not have these mystery press releases. Dont be cute, yeah.
Michelle Tennant:And then what else?
Gracey Hitchcock:Heres a great one. This one incensed every woman at the table.
Michelle Tennant:Okay.
Gracey Hitchcock:Were not very interested in pictures of events that no one from our magazine attended. Now I cant say this holds true for certain websites that may cover rock stars or gossip or Perez Hilton type wannabes. I dont know. I have, its the old New England expression goes, no truck with that. But, if you want to deal with legitimate journalists in print, online, they dont need photogr
by: Michelle Tennant
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