Planning Ahead is an Understatement

It's no secret that reporters always operate in the future -- because they are always planning for the next issue, broadcast, post, etc.

That's why half of the time, I don't know what day it is.

That is also why you have to plan ahead. Way, way ahead. Here are a couple of tips to keep you on track.

1. Look at your own calendar. Think you have something good for Black History Month? Women's History Month? You should already be pitching it...in fact, you should have started last month.
2. It's better to be too early than too late. You would rather have a reporter tell you to call back than to tell you they don't have room for you because you called too late.
3. Have all the details in place. If  a reporter does want to cover your story, you should have all the details that they need ready for them.

The moral of the story? Reporters plan. You should be planning, too.

Bridgette Outten is a journalist and media consultant with The Write Vision Group, Inc. With a background in print media, she has written thousands of articles for newspapers and online publications. At The Write Vision Group, Bridgette consults with nonprofits and small businesses about how to get their programs and efforts in the news. Meanwhile, she blogs on all things journalism.

It's Possible to Get Pushed Out of the News

The story was about greyhounds.

And I was super excited that I was covering it. The focus was a greyhound rescue in Springfield, Ohio and who wouldn't want to play with the dogs and write a cute, cuddly story?

Except. While we were at the rescue, the photog and I noticed the wind was picking up and blowing -- hard. We could barely stand up and some point it hit us that we were in the middle of a windstorm.

By the time we got back to the newsroom, the cute, cuddly greyhounds were no longer the highlight of my day. We quickly learned that the winds had reached up to 80 mph and weren't regular winds; they were remnants of 2008's Hurricane Ike and the storm had downed trees, felled power lines and caused up to $1 million in damage. The power was actually knocked out at our sister offices and instead of several local papers, my newspaper had to produce one big newspaper.

Needless to say, the greyhounds took more than a backseat to this news; poor things were completely kicked out of the car.

The story never ran.

If this should ever happen to you, here are a few follow-up tips to make sure that you get your story when things calm down a bit:

• Call the reporter. Give it about a week before you contact the reporter and tell them, "Hey, I know things got a little crazy, but I was wondering if you were still interested in the story."
• Let them know if you have an update. If anything has changed in your story between the last time you spoke to the reporter, make sure they know there is fresh information to include in the story.
• Offer to recap. You don't know what happened to a reporter's notes, photos or recordings between now and the last time you spoke. Be prepared to go over everything as if you're interviewing for the first time.

The moral of the story? If your story has actually gotten the attention of a reporter, gotten the interview and is *this* close to being published or broadcast but it doesn't happen -- due to some fluke of nature or bigger story -- don't be discouraged. There's always another day.

Bridgette Outten is a journalist and media relations consultant with The Write Vision Group, Inc. With a background in print media, she has written thousands of articles for newspapers and online publications. At The Write Vision Group, Bridgette consults with nonprofits and small businesses about how to get their programs and efforts in the news. Meanwhile, she blogs on all things journalism.

Everything Comes Down to This

All the planning. All the research. All the experience.

It all comes down to this: your pitch -- and ultimately your story.

Have you ever noticed, when someone gets their story in the news, that everything they have done for their whole lives gets included?

That dermatologist interviewed about the new face-eating bacteria? Suddenly, we know everything there is know about where he went to school, what hospitals he worked at and where he interned.

It's research into the background for the story -- and it's very handy information for you to have for the reporter when you contact them.

Consider having the answers ready for background questions the reporter may have such as:

• How long you have been involved in the story;
• What changes you have seen related to your story over some past time period;
• What makes you qualified to be involved in your story.

The moral of the story? Everything comes down to this. Summarize everything that is related to your story in a neat package for reporters, because they will want to know the background.

Bridgette Outten is a journalist and media relations consultant with The Write Vision Group, Inc. With a background in print media, she has written thousands of articles for newspapers and online publications. At The Write Vision Group, Bridgette consults with nonprofits and small businesses about how to get their programs and efforts in the news. Meanwhile, she blogs on all things journalism.

Don't Say Too Much

As a reporter, I've often gone to interviews where I arrived with one story and left with a completely different one.

This wasn't necessarily a bad thing. Usually, this is how it happened: after digging around a little in an interview, I found some tidbit or aspect that was a little more interesting than what I was originally asking about. This made for a better story -- and more attention to that person or organization's cause.

However, if you don't stay on track during your interview, you could end up with a piece you didn't envision. The best ways to make sure that you deliver the message you intended -- and, no, telling the reporters what questions to ask will not help you; it mostly only annoys the reporter --  include:

• Create three bullet points about what you want the reporter to know.
• Expand on those points with anecdotes, facts, figures and statistics.
• Don't be afraid to elaborate, but don't stray too far from the topic at hand, especially into controversial territory or subjects that you don't know much about.

The moral of the story? Reporters are there to dig out what's interesting, fresh and exciting about your story. Make sure you deliver your story in a package that satisfies those elements -- but don't say anything that causes your story to become unrecognizable.

Bridgette Outten is a journalist and media relations consultant with The Write Vision Group, Inc. With a background in print media, she has written thousands of articles for newspapers and online publications. At The Write Vision Group, Bridgette consults with nonprofits and small businesses about how to get their programs and efforts in the news. Meanwhile, she blogs on all things journalism.

It's Not About You

When you want a reporter to cover your story, you have to remember that it's not about you.

Well, wait a minute, you're thinking. It's my story. What do you mean it's not about me?

The story is not about covering you because you're you, though. It's about how you can inform, entertain or educate a reporter's audience. So, in other words, there has to be something about you that appeals to people on a large scale.

Even celebrities get they attention they get because someone cares about reading it. The stories mostly entertain and inform those readers about what the celebrities are doing. And because most of us aren't celebrities, it will take a little effort on your part to convince a reporter that their audience will care about your story.

Questions to ask yourself: How does my story benefit, entertain or inform people? Why would anyone care about this story?

The moral of the story: The more you can show that your story is something that people outside of your own family and friends will care about, the more likely it is that you will get coverage.

Bridgette Outten is a journalist and media relations consultant with The Write Vision Group, Inc. With a background in print media, she has written thousands of articles for newspapers and online publications. At The Write Vision Group, Bridgette consults with nonprofits and small businesses about how to get their programs and efforts in the news. Meanwhile, she blogs on all things journalism.