Connecting CPG, Food & Agriculture to the #FutureOfFood, 6 Seeds Communications Strategy + Business Development, WE ARE CRAVE CEO, Boundless Accelerator Mentor, PR + Media Relations Expert, Storyteller, Entrepreneur
Like Taylor Swift, I love cats 😻 so hate to use the proverb, "there's more than one way to skin a cat." But still, it's on-point for pitching the media these days. Here's why. If you're a food business looking to generate news coverage, you might think that pitching a food reporter is a good idea. Think again. I've been pitching media for 20 years. Once upon a time, there was a food reporter at every paper. Even local community papers had a food reporter that covered local food stories, restaurants, recipes and more. Great food writers like the late Judy Creighton at The Canadian Press and the incredible, The Toronto Star's Food-Sleuth Marion Kane and Saucy Lady, Jennifer Bain and of course, the incredible (and if I may say so, Governor General Award-worthy) Rita DeMontis at the Toronto Sun. Not forgetting Lucy Waverman at the Globe and Mail who continues to help Canadians put dinner on the table. I could go on...(and probably should lest I leave out someone, but I've got a point to make here, so moving on...) These prolific food journalists have told many stories about food in Canada and have contributed tremendously to Canadian food culture. But these days, there's no longer a food reporter at every paper (insert sigh emoji) Competition for the attention of those who remain is fierce. One food reporter at a major paper told me that he was receiving 50+ pitches and press releases every day, and said, he rarely considered press releases anyways. Even food bloggers have evolved, with many transforming into social media stars on Instagram and TikTok. But, as we all know, most influencers are monetized, meaning it's more akin to advertising than "earned" media or PR. So then, how do you get earned news coverage these days? Well, one way is to pitch business reporters. After all, food is business. Here's an example of a good local business story that caught my eye today written by the London Free Press' business reporter, Norman De Bono. It's about an app that is aiming to help consumers find better, timely restaurant deals, called appropriately, Dealsy founded by Jordan Brown and Lucas Paulger. According to the story, the app was launched about four weeks ago and has about 25 London-area restaurants registered and more than 800 downloads, and they've raised $250,000 so far to launch the app. I thought it was interesting that the app was trialed in Burlington, ON where I live, and hope it makes a comeback here. 🙏 So if you're a food business looking to tell your story via the media, consider pitching a business reporter. For help on how to pitch the media, get in touch. https://lnkd.in/e275vV8v #pr #earnedmedia #mediarelations #foodandbeverageindustry #journalism
Such an interesting post, Saskia. I once new a woman named Judylaine Fine who was the restaurant reviewer in the Globe & Mail (maybe Toronto Life?) I thought she had the most glamorous job because she would go incognito to restaurants and then write interesting reviews in the paper. She was a Cordon Bleu trained chef in her own right, and the lengths to which she would go to not be recognized was fascinating. But like so much of this kind of journalism, it is long gone. 😢
As a fellow foodie/lifestyle PR vet, couldn’t agree more❤️
This is a great post, thanks for sharing Saskia. Keep an eye out for Dealsy in Burlington very soon 🙂
Thanks for sharing our story Saskia, we appreciate it! We are on a mission to help people save money and bring business back into the restaurants.
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8moThere is more than one way to dress a cat up in a cute little costume