Information for Public Relations Professionals
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How To Give Your Pitch a Chance
Before you contact me: Take the trouble to read my blog posts or columns. If you don't, there's a good chance you'll be wasting your time, my time, and your client's money. It's not hard to figure out the sorts of things that interest me and my readers and that I am likely to write about. I take a rather expansive view of personal technology and I'm very open to new coverage areas, but my view of personal technology would never stretch to cover customer management relations software, high-end databases, gigabit switches, or anything else of the sort. I also write about technologies, products, and services, not companies. To be really blunt about it, if you can't take the time to read what I write, I'm not likely to take the time to listen to what you pitch.
How to contact me: The best way to make an initial contact is through email. The phone is a second choice. Use one or the other.Don't call me to find out if I got your fax or your email. I guess they teach you in flack school to begin every conversation by asking "Is this is a good time?" or "Are you on deadline?" It's just annoying. If I don't have time to talk to you, I'll tell you.
If you send email, please keep your message relatively brief. Do not send pictures or product images, especially high-resolution ones, PowerPoint presentations, or big PDF files without checking first. I spend a lot of time on the road and few things are more infuriating than downloading a picture you have no use for on a 14.4 modem connection in a hotel room.
Product reviews: It's generally best to check before sending me product. Although I return hardware after evaluation, I cannot take responsibility for unsolicited products. Also, it's important to remember that many are called, but few are chosen. I look at a lot more products than I can possibly write about, so please do not assume that because I agree to look at your product that I am necessarily going to write about it. And a weekly call to check on where my "review" stands is not a good idea. An occasional gentle reminder is OK, but do it by e-mail and not too often.