PITCH TIPS-

KNOW YOUR SHOW

Listen to the show online. Know the lengths of pieces they carry. Know how you fit into the whole.

Editors are making quick decisions about whether it works for them. You have to pitch what makes it a good story for this show.

Search the program's archive on your topic. If they've done something already, make sure yours is different.

Talk to a colleague who's been on that show.

Know how your story might come to life on the web. Be as concrete as possible.

Look for other resources that might help. (www.paulingles.com/producers.shtml)

KNOW YOUR STORY / TROUBLESHOOT AND BUILD YOUR PITCH

How you present your pitch says a lot about how you think as a reporter. Is it clearly presented, elegantly written, does it have pizazz? If your pitch does, the editor can presume that your story will too.

Pitch a story not a topic. Rather than something "about green building standards," "about fair trade gold," "about the South by Southwest Festival." Pitch a story under that umbrella.

Quiz yourself vigorously before you pitch. Anticipate your editor's questions.

You must distill it already. Don't say you will distill it, have it distilled. Many editor's want to hear "What's the story in one sentence?" Who is doing what - for what reason?

Where's the juice? Get it up front in the pitch even if it won't lead the final story.

What's utterly unknown about your topic that you'll shed light on? Have you noticed something about the world that virtually no one else has stopped to look at.

Why should someone care? Presume they won't. How are you going to get them to care? Why do you care?

What will be the take-away for the listener? What's the discovery for the audience? What difference will it make for them?

Have a good sense who the characters and spokespersons will be - via pre-interviews or research. Who are your compelling characters?

Is there a strong narrative arc - a beginning, middle and end that listeners can follow?

How is it going to sound on the radio and how will you gather that audio? Expressive characters and scenes.

What do your characters learn?

If you have compelling tape or quotes from a pre-interview, put one or two in the pitch.

How are you going to do this in 5 minutes or less?

ENGAGE YOUR EDITOR

Have compassion for what your editor is going through. Dozens of pitches, lack of time. Be super-ready.

Be concise. Give your editor an engaging, two-sentence synopsis. An easy way for them to pitch it up the ladder to their show's exec producer. That's about how much time they have. It's the anchor lead - plus a couple of your key tent poles in the piece.

BRIEFLY Introduce yourself in your pitch. What's your experience level? Link them to one or two of your stories that help them understand that you can do the story you propose.

Be persistent in getting a response. Don't be shy about nudging to make sure the pitch is getting a look. Follow-up email/phone call about 3 days after a pitch if you haven't heard back.