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Members of the LawMarketing Listserv were discussing how best to pitch a news story to an editor.  That's when the redoubtable Monica Bay, Editor-in-Chief, Law Technology News, chimed in with 20+ mistakes to avoid:  (See below for info on joining the LawMarketing Listserv).

Monica Bay wrote Re: pitching (and delivering) stories, here are some of my pet peeves:

1. Being pitched by someone who obviously has not read my magazine — and pitches me for the type of article we don’t run. (e.g., profiles of CEOs). Don’t pitch a story unless you KNOW it’s a fit for the publication.
2. Firms that put me on their mailing list for every single thing that happens at their firm when 95% of the releases have nothing to do with legal technology.
3. Flaks that flag their routine email as high priority.
4. Sending a copy of a press release to everybody on my staff including the last 12 associate editors who have been gone for more than 5 years.
5. Not reading our guidelines before pitching us.
6. The PR person who earnestly tells me that they know what I need because they are a former journalist, or worked on their college newspaper. (This one is REALLY annoying)
7. Vendor flaks who cannot control their clients
8. Calling my private line 5 minutes after they emailed a pitch asking if I received it and if I’m interested and want to run the story. This is why I try not to publish my private line.
9. Callers who do not identify who they are and who they represent and expect me to know or remember.
10. Marketing folks who don’t identify themselves as such.

To read the additional 13 mistakes to avoid, visit the LawMarketing Portal.

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