The Artful Pitch
Written by Kimberly MacArthur Graham on April 11, 2013
We recently earned a great media placement for a client, a front-page story on a development project, written by the architecture critic. But it didn’t come easy. Yes, we wrote a smart news release, and yes, we carefully distributed it, along with a tailored introduction, to a select list of reporters – and yes, we got a good amount of play. But, by thinking creatively and pitching quickly when the opportunity presented itself, we added the best placement of all. Here’s how. I woke up on a Saturday morning to a news brief about an upcoming lecture by our (out-of-town) project architect. It did not mention our project, however, which was my opening. I sent a friendly, direct response that included a “news tip” about the architect’s next project (which had not been publicly announced). Nearly immediately, I had confirmation of interest, and the real fun began of setting interviews, etc. In PR, you can never assume that the insanely overworked reporters received the release or had time to read it, much less connect it to other events. That’s our job! In this case, I took advantage of concurrent events and a solid pre-existing relationship (of sending relevant, interesting leads) to make something spark. Check out this specific coverage here.
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Layer Cake Creative is a strategic marketing agency specializing in communications, design, and strategic marketing that enrich your brand and support your strategic and sales goals. This Denver marketing firm specializes in promoting professional services such as architecture, construction, engineering, law, finance, and real estate.
Kimberly MacArthur Graham, founder of Layer Cake Creative, is an expert in professional services marketing with 20+ years in the design and building industry. She’s especially proficient in marketing communications including technical or creative writing and editing, articles submitted for publication, and brand messaging.