Today anything can be “newsworthy” but what the Oregon Business magazine values is — how you can tie in your news peg to illustrate a larger trend, what is the big picture here? As the magazine’s editor, Linda Baker, stated “journalism is in a state of flux — it is the best of times and worst of times because in some ways anything goes.”
I recently attended a PRSA function featuring Oregon Business editor (Linda Baker) and associate publisher (Betsy Hand). The biggest take away was the importance of PR pitches alluding to what is relevant now and how this will continually be relevant to businesses in the future. The publication’s stories must also connect with its readers, specifically targeting C-level executives.
Examining Oregon Business’ various sections offers insight into where PR ideas might fit in:
- Start-up companies — new companies are featured here
- Reboot (new products, services or initiatives are covered here) — long standing companies are featured here
- Feature stories (three per issue, this includes a personal and business profile)
- Tactics and Strategy (company feature)
- Downtime (lifestyle interview focusing on the C-level executive’s life, work and play style)
Oregon Business magazine’s focus for this year:
- 2013 Trends
- Manufacturing — bringing this back from overseas
- Crafting and building
- Technology startups
- Food and restaurants
- Food processors
- Natural resources — green business perspective
Editorial Opportunities and Strategies:
- Daily eNewsletter (85-90% of this material is curated content only available on the web)
- Online business opportunity editorial column — great way to pitch stories on clients that are business owners/leaders (e.g., personal stories , recommendations, unique approaches to solving challenges)
- Email pitches — utilize BIG picture tie ins!
- Social media pitches — utilize this tool to push out stories via twitter
- Quick social media tip: Oregon Business magazine follows real time tweets of conferences and this could lead to a story about our local leaders
To sum things up, always keep the key news pegs in mind, focusing on the “big picture” trends and the C-level executives — all of this will help you formulate a pitch worth writing that will connect with the audience and magazine.
