Here's what to pitch just before Christmas

As we gear up for Christmas and considering the theme of the emails over the last couple of weeks, I thought it would be a good time to address pitching just before Christmas.

Here are some thoughts on the topic:

Much like at weekends, journalists and editors are looking for stories

At Christmas, magazines and newspapers are working with a reduced staff, meaning that they’re desperately trying to put together enough stories that they can schedule to go out over the holiday period so it looks like they’re all still happily typing away at their desks, even on Christmas day (how do I know this? That used to be me!). That means there’s plenty of appetite for stories from wonderful business owners, experts and PRs just like you! Hurrah!

Holiday related or evergreen is your best bet

Because so many journalists and editors are taking holiday at this time of year (obvs) they’re typically looking for stories they can write, edit and schedule ahead of time, which means that pieces with news hooks that might go out of date quickly probably won’t be picked. Evergreen stories - ones that don’t have a short shelf life - are typically your best bet, along with ideas related to Christmas. Examples? As an entrepreneur, you might pitch an idea to a business title around the automations you create to keep your business ticking over without you over the festive period. If you’re a coach, it might be a piece advising people on journal prompts they can use to assess how the year has gone for them and what they hope to achieve in the next.

It’s not too late for some gift guides

We all know someone who leaves their Christmas shopping to the very last. minute. Well, so do the people who write for major media websites. Though a lot of gift guides are put together in the Autumn (and for print monthly magazines, some are put together as early as June or July!) there are usually a few last minute ones published in the week or two before Christmas, so if your business is product based, it can’t hurt to send out an email to Shopping journalists.