How to offer yourself as an expert to get your pitch across

You want your pitch to not just get heard, but to also generate interest. Being an expert is huge. If a reporter considers you an expert in a particular field, they will use you more, listen to your pitches, and come back to you. So, how do you offer yourself as an expert so you can get your pitch across?

First and foremost, you really should be an expert. If you aren't, and you say you are, you will be discredited to all media, and your chances of getting a pitch listened to are almost non existent. Media talk to each other, even if they do compete, so no one will pick up your story if you lie about your expertise. You don't have to be the world's leading expert, but you do need to know what you're talking about, and in real depth. So, do not ever make untrue claims. You have to back up what you say, or at least be able to know or connect the reporter with a real expert. However, if you are, the first thing to do is when making your pitch, say you are an expert. You need to say something like, "I am an expert in this or that, and would love to offer you my expertise."

The next thing you should do to offer yourself as an expert in order to get your pitch across is to also offer other experts. Although we have covered this, it is worth repeating. There are plenty of experts out there, but most want to play the selfish game, and in doing so, lose the opportunity to get their pitch across. Reporters like to make sure they have multiple sources, their bosses require it, and it make their stories more credible. If you can offer them the ability to have multiple sources with little work, by giving them contact information for these multiple sources, they are much more likely to use your pitch. Why? Because it is a lot less work. You will not just want to offer other experts that agree with you, or take the same side of the issue, but also those who are in opposition to you as well. Both sides of the story is going to be very appealing to a reporter, so give them the chance to get that by providing them on a silver platter names, contact information, etc, of experts who can back you up, and some that take the opposite position from you.

You would be wise to also not just say you are an expert in order to get your pitch across, but also show your expertise. Once they have some interest in you, and more time to listen to you, you may want to show them your expertise through other publications of yours, contacts you have, etc. If you can show you are an expert, they are safer using you, and will be much more likely to have accurate information. They need to protect themselves, so they want to be sure to only use true experts.

If you keep these tips in mind as you pitch, and if you set yourself as an expert, you will likely get a positive response from the reporter.

You now know who to pitch to, how to pitch, how to build rapport, what to avoid, how to be an expert, and much, much more, so it is now time to get out there and make your pitch. There is of course even more to learn, so for more in-depth information, and other valuable tips on how to pitch to a reporter.