5 Steps to Pitch Your Press Release for FinTech to News Media
The reach of a company can expand exponentially through media coverage. Landing the right PR for your business can increase your visibility and positively affect clientele and revenue.
Through technology, fintechs and their PR reps now have access to an exceptional selection of tools to guide them towards effectively pitching their companies to news media.
However, because each media outlet employs different preferences and methods, there is no universal approach to ensure your pitch gets to the right people and is duly considered. But before pitching, you’ll need to consider some ideas to help you show your company’s best side in good faith.
Importance of PR to Fintech Companies
There is ever-increasing competition in the fintech space for customer acquisition and media attention. As experienced fintech journalists and trade publications continue to dwindle, fintechs now require a combination of savvy, creativity, and a great story to develop pitches worthy of media coverage.
Unfortunately, many fintech companies still do not understand this. As a result, they and their PR representatives continue to push ineffective pitches on weak topics with little or no viewpoint. Among other things, a robust PR program must include frequent, quality interaction with your target media.
With fintech PR firms, you’ll be able to create unique messaging that speaks to your target audiences and get it across much faster. They also help you identify what makes your fintech company unique and then communicate it to the right people in the right way.
How to Hire a Fintech PR Firm
[forminator_form id="101630"]New and emerging fintech companies create many stories waiting for news coverage. To do so effectively, you’ll need to hire the right PR firm for your fintech. Firstly, you’ll need to define your PR goals so you can look for firms that specialize in achieving your set goals.
Then, you’ll need to research the firms you think are achieving similar fintech PR goals. Search online directories and find the firm’s press releases to see if a contact is listed for the firm. Also, you can get referrals from trusted sources.
After finding a few PR firms you may be interested in, you’ll need to narrow it down based on your niche and coverage requirements. You may also want to consider the size of the PR firm. Once you have decided on a firm, you’ll need to contact them via email and follow up with a phone call.
Best Practices for Fintech PR
[forminator_form id="101900"]Although every media outlet has different methods, some general guidelines can serve as best practices for pitching your fintech PR publications.
Use an email to deliver your initial pitch
It is usually best to begin conversations about your fintech publications through email. This enables PR firms to represent their client’s interests directly and professionally. Email pitching is considered the industry standard for communication and is an effective way to get your pitch across.
Avoid sending direct messages to reporters
If you get no response from your initial emails, it’s best to follow up with a phone call after some time rather than sending a direct message. Remember that following up on an email immediately with a phone call can be overbearing and aggressive, so you’ll need to give it some time.
Ensure your pitch is tailored to the publication
Before developing your pitch, research the reporter’s previous work to ensure you appeal to the direct interests of the publication. Journalists receive tons of emails daily, so you can be sure that only strong pitches are likely to be considered.
Avoid sending mass emails to irrelevant publications
When you email a publication, check that your pitch is notable. Fintech pitches are best focused on financial publications. Ensure your emails are personalized to catch the journalist’s attention and avoid flooding their inbox with irrelevant pitches.
Build real connections with journalists
Forming meaningful connections between your fintech PR firm and the publications you work with is essential. Journalists are more likely to receive pitches from known senders with whom they have established a relationship.
Remember to collaborate
PR experts and journalists should have a mutually beneficial relationship, and not a one-sided one. As mentioned, your pitch will stand a better chance of success when there is a strong connection between the PR team and the journalist.
Steps to Pitch Your Fintech to News Media
- Identify your target audience.
It would help if you always consider your audience when creating your story. This will also depend on your expected business outcome from the media coverage. If you’re going for a press release, who will be reading it, and what actions should they take? Be specific.
- Develop a good press story.
Media outlets need to understand your relevance and what’s unique about your fintech company. Consider what will be interesting enough to reporters and a story that’s convincing enough for your audience.
- Set up an email sequence and a process to communicate with the right team.
Setting up an email sequence can help ensure that you are on track with your PR goals. Establishing a communication process between you and your fintech PR firm is also important so everyone is always on the same page.
- Choose a platform to find your exact publishers by industry.
Platforms like SEMrush and SimilarWeb are great for helping you find your preferred fintech publishers. They do this by performing meaningful analysis on your publishers’ platforms to provide you with valuable traffic that can inform you which fintech publishers have the most audiences.
- Finalize your stories to create a message.
You should prepare at least 4 to 5 topics to form the story ideas for your message. Run A/B tests on your story ideas to find your top message. You should also develop several pitch headlines and A/B-test them to determine which performs best.
- Adjust the pitch time to reach each journalist precisely.
Bad timing is one of the biggest reasons reporters may not consider your pitch. Unless your story is related, it is not advisable to pitch your story to journalists during or right before a holiday or major industry conference.
- Connect real-time PR measurement to core business objectives
You can measure your PR success in real time using some tools to ensure they meet the core business objectives. When this is done right, it can inform your decision-making and optimize your PR strategy.
Writing a Good Email Pitch
To increase the chances that journalists will consider your email pitch, you should consider the following tips:
- Have a clear subject line
- Research journalists to know the type of publications they engage in and refer to it in your email
- State your requests nicely
- If you had built some connection with the journalist in the past, you could refer to it
- Close your email in a friendly and professional manner
- Remember to follow up after a while
Tips to Avoid Wasting Time and Momentum for Your PR Strategy
Find Public relations experts who have the contacts, relationships, and experience so that they can help you avoid making the little mistakes where your business mostly relies on you.
Trying to pitch PR to editorials can be very time-consuming. However, you can connect with experts with proven track records, like LeadAdvisors, who has managed 22m in organic traffic for its clients and published over 6,000 articles, for their experience, case studies, and expertise to help. Learn more about branded content guide to find strategies that may work for you!
What Type of Story should Fintechs Be Pitching the Media?
Client success stories and case studies
Client success stories are a great way for fintechs to show their strengths. These are some of the best stories to pitch to the media. You don’t necessarily have to do a collective pitch, as you can still create a good story for the media.
Where your tech aligns with a megatrend
It’s easier to get reporters to look at your pitch if you have the technology to back it up. Journalists will always scrutinize your pitches to find the facts, so it’s interesting to find tried and tested technologies that benefit certain aspects of financial business.
Product launches and updates
Product announcements can be quite useful. But, unless they’re related to a megatrend, don’t expect them to make headlines. However, you can effectively inform your audience about your product by posting on your website and using social media and other channels.
Conclusion
The thing is, journalists are always in search of content. They want to hear about your company and achievements, but they’re also very busy going to lots of these “great” content. To get your pitch through, you should write your email in a way that sparks their interest.
Consider your audience while developing your story, and don’t forget to follow up with a phone call after some time. Also, optimize your PR strategy and measure your performance to meet your goals.
Having a close relationship with your PR firm can make all the difference. The best firms know your business and the fintech industry and support your marketing team. Finding the right story while relying on a firm like LeadAdvisors to lead you to success is important. Download the LeadAdvisors media kit and get started today!
Read more:
Invoice Generator: Best for Contractors and Designers
Audio Advertising: How It Can Elevate Your Brand Awareness
