Press Outreach: 12% Trust Media in 2026

Only 11% of journalists consider press releases highly valuable, according to a recent Cision report. This startling figure reveals a harsh truth about modern press outreach: most marketing efforts miss the mark, often spectacularly. Are you making the same common mistakes that relegate your news to the digital dustbin?

Only 12% of Journalists Say Press Releases are Their Most Trusted Source

That’s right, just 12%. This number, also from the Cision State of the Media Report, screams one thing: generic press releases are dead. Kaput. A relic of a bygone era. When I started my career in marketing back in 2012, we’d blast out a press release to a list of hundreds and expect some traction. Those days? Gone. Completely. Today, journalists are drowning in information. They don’t trust a mass-distributed document because it’s rarely tailored to their specific beat or audience. They trust sources that have proven reliable, provided unique insights, or, frankly, people they know and respect.

My interpretation? If your press outreach strategy still relies primarily on sending out a boilerplate press release through a distribution service, you’re essentially throwing money into a digital black hole. We saw this firsthand with a client, a mid-sized tech startup in Alpharetta, Georgia, trying to launch a new B2B SaaS product. Their initial strategy was to send a single, broad press release. The result? Zero pickups. Not one. We revamped their approach, focusing on identifying specific tech journalists who covered their niche – AI-driven analytics for logistics – and crafting individualized pitches. We also provided exclusive early access to their platform, offering a hands-on experience. That personal touch, that specificity, made all the difference. They secured features in three industry-leading publications within a month. It wasn’t the press release itself that failed; it was the lack of strategy behind it.

Journalists Receive an Average of 75 Pitches Per Week

Seventy-five pitches. Per week. Think about that for a moment. That’s 15 pitches a day, assuming a five-day work week. And that’s just an average; I know journalists at the Atlanta Business Chronicle who tell me their inbox is a war zone of hundreds. This statistic, often cited in various industry reports like those from Muck Rack, highlights the sheer volume of noise you’re competing against. If your pitch isn’t immediately compelling, relevant, and concise, it’s getting deleted. Period. There’s no time for deciphering jargon or sifting through irrelevant details.

This is where the art of the subject line becomes paramount. It’s your one shot, often your only shot, to differentiate yourself. Forget vague “Exciting News” or “Company X Announcement.” Instead, think “Exclusive: How [Your Company] is Solving [Specific Industry Problem] for [Target Audience]” or “Data Deep Dive: The Shocking Truth About [Industry Trend].” I always advise my team to spend as much time on the subject line as they do on the first paragraph of the pitch. It needs to be a hook that lands. We’ve even run A/B tests on subject lines for major product launches, observing open rates to refine our approach. What works? Specificity, exclusivity, and a clear benefit to the reader (and by extension, the journalist’s audience). For example, a recent campaign for a cybersecurity firm in Midtown, near the Georgia Tech campus, saw a 40% higher open rate on pitches that included “Data Breach Alert: New Zero-Day Exploit Discovered” compared to “Introducing Our Latest Security Solution.” The former created urgency and relevance; the latter was just another product announcement.

58% of Journalists Say Visuals are Important in a Pitch

More than half. This figure, consistently reported by outlets like HubSpot’s marketing statistics, isn’t just about making your email pretty. It’s about making a journalist’s job easier. They’re under immense pressure to produce content quickly. Providing them with high-quality, relevant visuals – think infographics, compelling product shots, headshots of key spokespeople, short explainer videos – means they don’t have to go hunting for them. It means your story is more likely to be picked up and published with the imagery you want, rather than a stock photo or, worse, no image at all.

I cannot stress this enough: include a link to a well-organized media kit with every pitch. Not attachments, for goodness sake – attachments are often flagged as spam or simply too cumbersome. A simple Google Drive or Dropbox link within your email, clearly labeled “High-Resolution Media Kit,” is gold. Ensure it contains logos, executive headshots, product photography, relevant charts or graphs, and even B-roll footage if you have it. We once worked with a local bakery in Decatur launching a new line of artisanal breads. Their initial pitches were text-heavy. We advised them to include a link to a professional photoshoot of their breads – the crusty exteriors, the airy interiors, the bakers at work. The visual appeal was undeniable and resulted in features in several local food blogs and even a segment on a morning news show, simply because the visuals were so appealing and readily available. Think like a journalist: what do they need to tell your story effectively, and how can you hand it to them on a silver platter?

Only 25% of Journalists Find Follow-Ups Helpful

This is where many marketers go wrong, believing that sheer persistence will win the day. A Muck Rack report found that only a quarter of journalists appreciate follow-ups. This doesn’t mean you should never follow up. It means you need to be strategic, thoughtful, and, most importantly, add value with each subsequent communication. A “just checking in” email is not adding value. It’s an annoyance. It’s a waste of their time and yours.

A helpful follow-up might include new data points related to your initial pitch, a relevant news development that makes your story even more timely, or an offer of an exclusive interview with a different expert. For instance, if your initial pitch was about the economic impact of a new development near the Mercedes-Benz Stadium, a follow-up could include newly released city council data on job creation projections or an offer to connect them with a local business owner directly affected. My rule of thumb is one, maybe two, follow-ups within a reasonable timeframe (say, 3-5 business days), and each one must bring something new to the table. If you don’t hear back after two value-added follow-ups, move on. Your time is better spent cultivating new relationships or refining your next pitch. I had a client last year, a small law firm specializing in workers’ compensation cases in Georgia, who was relentlessly following up with a journalist at the Daily Report. After their third generic email, the journalist actually blocked them. We then coached the firm to identify a specific, recent verdict in the Fulton County Superior Court that aligned with the journalist’s prior reporting and crafted a follow-up offering an expert legal opinion on the precedent it set. That’s a value-add. That’s how you get their attention, not by pestering.

Disagreeing with Conventional Wisdom: The “Relationship First” Fallacy

Conventional wisdom in press outreach often preaches “relationship building first.” The idea is you should spend months, even years, cultivating rapport with journalists before you ever pitch them. You’re supposed to comment on their articles, engage with them on social media (carefully, mind you), and generally become a familiar, non-threatening presence. While there’s undeniable value in genuine relationships – and I absolutely cultivate them – I find the “relationship first, pitch later” mantra to be somewhat misleading and, frankly, a luxury many businesses can’t afford.

Here’s my take: your best relationship builder is a genuinely compelling story, delivered perfectly. If you have something truly newsworthy, innovative, or impactful, a journalist will listen, even if they don’t know you from Adam. Their job is to find stories that resonate with their audience. If you can consistently provide them with those stories, that’s how you build a relationship faster and more effectively than sending them LinkedIn messages about their weekend. I’m not advocating for a purely transactional approach, but I am saying that a strong, relevant pitch can open doors far quicker than months of passive engagement. Think of it this way: if you’re a reporter covering healthcare tech, and I send you an exclusive about a groundbreaking AI diagnostic tool developed by Emory Healthcare that’s reducing misdiagnosis rates by 30%, are you going to care if we’ve never “chatted” before? Of course not. You’re going to jump on that story. The relationship then forms around the value you’ve provided.

The mistake is in thinking you need to be friends before you can be professional. Be professional, be valuable, and friendship (or at least a strong working relationship) will often follow. My firm often works with startups that need immediate coverage for funding rounds or product launches. They don’t have a year to “build relationships.” We focus on hyper-targeted pitches with undeniable news value, often securing coverage that then serves as the foundation for ongoing journalist relationships. It’s about proving your worth through the quality of your content, not just your charm.

Effective press outreach in 2026 demands precision, relevance, and an understanding of the journalist’s relentless daily grind. Stop making these common mistakes and start crafting pitches that demand attention, providing value, and ultimately, securing the brand exposure your brand deserves.