THE PERFECT PITCH: WHAT MILLIONS OF EMAILS TAUGHT US ABOUT PITCHING JOURNALISTS

Summary from the TLDR Marketing newsletter

Short email pitches drive the best journalist engagement. Emails with 100 to 300 word bodies get the highest open rates and reply rates, while emails under 300 words earn the most replies. About 50% of pitches paste a full press release into the email body, which is mainly a UK practice, while US pitches more often use short plain text. Personalization varies in depth, as 83% use the journalist's name but only 57% reference past articles, and shallow flattery often fails. Relevant connections to prior coverage work better. Strong pitches usually start with a timely stat or trend hook, give a clear headline takeaway, include about four bolded bullet points, and add expert quotes that explain why the findings matter instead of repeating the data.