Episode #53: Refine Your Best Practices with Elizabeth O'Brien
“People speak in a more interesting way than they write, most of the time. So, you’ll get something that’s more colorful. And, when we want direct quotes, we want lively quotes, and you’re going to get that over the phone in a way that you don’t with email.”
-Elizabeth O’brien, on phone interviews vs. email interviews
Do you ever email the same contact monthly or even weekly and wonder if it’s ever just, too much? Have you ever wondered if it’s ok to ask for interview questions in advance? Has a “Dear PR people” tweet from a journalist ever made you wince? If you’ve answered yes to any of those questions, then this is the episode for you! We’re going “old school cool” with our roots and analyzing a winning pitch to start. With some new tips we hadn’t heard, you’ll want to tune in and add to your own, personalized ‘best practices’ library.
In this episode, you’ll learn best practices for…
Pitching the same contact consistently
Preparing experts for media interviews
Providing value beyond a story pitch
Our guest is:
Elizabeth O’Brien, a senior finance reporter for Barron’s, with a special focus on retirement. Before Barron's, she was the deputy editor of Money.com, formerly Money magazine. She lives in Brooklyn with her husband and two sons. In her spare time, she enjoys roller skating and reading fiction.
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Show Notes:
:00– Britt introduces our guest.
1:05– Britt asks Elizabeth for an overview of her story for Barron’s which stemmed from a PR pitch.
2:00– Britt asks Elizabeth what stood out about the subject line of the pitch.
2:55– Britt asks Elizabeth if she recognized the source.
3:35– Britt goes on to describe the pitch and content piece.
5:33– Britt asked if the added commentary was an incentive to write the piece.
6:40– Britt mentioned a tweet by Elizabeth about publicists and a discussion about interview preparations is sparked.
13:45– Elizabeth mentions preferring phone interviews, but asks Britt and Jackie what they have experienced in terms of other journalists’ preferences.
16:40– Britt and Jackie ask if Elizabeth has encountered a publicist in the background of a phone interview.
18:56– Britt wraps up the pitch.
19:17– Britt asks Elizabeth if she receives a lot of pitches and a discussion is sparked about regular pitches from the same company/publicist.
23:30– Britt asks Elizabeth if she appreciates publicists interacting with her on social.
24:45– Britt gives a tip about building karma as a relationship-building technique. Elizabeth and Jackie agree.
26:50– Britt asks Elizabeth how she feels about follow-ups.
27:39– Britt asks Elizabeth what assets are most helpful for her.
31:04– Jackie mentions wanting to pitch Elizabeth. She enthusiastically describes topics that she’s covered that are tangentially related to personal finance.
33:10– Britt asks Elizabeth what we missed and asks her to give her shoutouts. Elizabeth gives a shoutout to Terry Rooney (RooneyPartners), Gregory FCA, and Sunstar.
Things we talked about
Connect with Elizabeth O’Brien
Connect with Jackie & Britt
