BuzzStream

Guy Kawasaki advises entrepreneurs to use the 10/20/30 rule in creating Powerpoint stacks to pitch VC’s: 10 slides, 20 minutes, 30 pt font.  Here’s my 30/20/10/5 rule for companies that do their own PR pitches:

• 30 minutes per day. Spend 30 minutes a day reading Google Alerts, Reader, and bookmarking relevant coverage in your space.  Use this process to build your media list (keep it in Excel or Access or whatever works for you).
• 20 seconds. When you create a pitch, use this test: ask a non-tech spouse or friend to read it.  Count to 20, then take it away.  Ask them what they can remember.  Did they understand the hook?   If not, revise.
• 10 journalists per segment.  When I did PR outreach for ApartmentRatings, I often had 50+ journalists I was planning to contact.  But I would always break my lists down into interest groups of no more than 10 each, based on stated interests or coverage memes.  This kind of granularity allows you to more effectively address their interests and, if all goes well, get their attention.
• 5 days.  Brian Solis says, “Allowing journalists and bloggers adequate time to prepare advance is critical. Determine…who should be part of the initial news discussions…find the people that would be interested…as determined by their previous work and coverage.“, in a great post about relationship building in blogger outreach. I’d advise that you start reaching out to key bloggers five days before you release news on your blog.  You can’t expect them to cover your story the same day it starts hitting the general news.