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Monthly Luncheon Report

(Nov. 10, 2004 PCC Monthly Luncheon)

Don’t Overlook Freelance Writers in Pitching Stories

By Sue Masaracchia-Roberts

Moderated by Community Media Workshop co-founder and president Thom Clark, the November Publicity Club of Chicago luncheon hosted five freelance journalists discussing an under-utilized approach to placing stories by pitching directly to the writers.

Standing: Charisse Witherspoon, PCC President; and Thom Clark, program moderator. Seated, from left: Sheree Geyer, Elaine Glusac, Michael Krauss, Annie Logue, Jeff Steele.

Moderator

Thom Clark
Co-Founder/President, Community Media Workshop

PANELISTS

Sherree Geyer
Healthcare
(Trustee, Materials Management in Healthcare, others)

Elaine Glusac
Food and Travel
(American Way, Travel + Leisure, Bon Appetit, In Style, Health)

Michael C. Krauss
Technology Columnist ("Tech Matters," Chicago Sun-Times; Marketing News)

Ann C. Logue
Business/Finance
(Barron's, The New York Times, San Francisco Chronicle)

Jeffrey Steele
Real Estate/Homes, Seniors, Careers
(Chicago Tribune, LA Times, Your Money, other large newspapers)

PRORAM SUMMARY

The featured panelists were freelance writers Jeff Steele, Sherree Geyer, Annie Logue, Michael Krauss and Elaine Glusac.

Clark, who operates an extensive website for journalists and community activists, www.newstips.com, and teaches in the graduate journalism program at Columbia College in Chicago, urged the large audience to respect the responsibilities and only contact the assembled writers if they have solid story leads.. As freelancers, their time is money and they don’t get paid when they don’t produce copy. In that vein, he led the questioning.

Clark also noted that faxes are no longer the optimum contact method for media and suggested that PR professionals tailor their pitches to the contact method preferred by the journalist.

With more than 15 years writing about medical and healthcare interests, occupational safety, high tech and food communications experience, Sherree Geyer currently writes for several healthcare trade publications and provides ongoing public relations services and counsel to healthcare associations and organizations.

Geyer became a freelancer in college, where, serving as public information officer, she met a freelance writer. Realizing she wanted to work independently, her work evolved into a profession focused on healthcare.

Her editors frequently provide sources, however there have been times that PR people have saved the story. If a publicity person wants to ingratiate him or herself to her, provide her "with the right resources to meet and respect my deadlines so I can get my job done. It’s great if I can get someone in the trenches to help me out! Without four or five sources to quote," she said, "it could become a puff piece. The PR person who helped earned respect from my editor as well as from me by helping me germinate the story. That person developed a relationship with the editor also."

She urges PR people not to "try to draw me into a web" that features only one client. Her editors trust and pay her to present a balanced feature and that can only be done with multiple sources.

As a PR person herself in the health care industry, she writes mainly for trade publications. There is a crossover in content between her services, however she uses a wider variety and different sources when she writes, and the information she presents is more flushed out.

For technical subjects, the magazines will only accept stories if they are letter perfect and accurate. Geyer will copy her editors when sending a proof of the story to her contacts to ensure accuracy. Not something she does frequently, but when she does have the contact proof for accuracy, "the editor then knows that when she gets it it will be letter perfect and factually accurate."

Geyer likes to receive releases on occasion but, mostly, she receives assignments; they are the bread and butter of her business. For more information on Geyer, check out her website at www.geyercommunications.com. She can be contacted by e-mail at sherree@geyercommunications.com.

An independent writer in Chicago since 1989, Jeff Steele has researched and written more then 1,500 articles, which have appeared in newspapers nationally. He covers a wide range of topics including real estate, health care, employment trends, education, investing/personal finance, transportation, consumer issues and history. He worked as a copywriter and worked in advertising for 10 years.

When Steele works on a story, like a recent Los Angeles Times special section story about new hybrid cars for Fall, he put out an appeal to public relations people he knows in the industry to gain access to the top people. When he submitted the idea, it was "on a wing and a prayer. Their sources were so good, I wound up shining. They set up everything for me – including four or five interviews per article. It couldn’t have worked better!"

Steele works with a small number of PR people who know his working method, and appreciates those who are helpful and reduce the amount of time he needs to invest in a story. He also appreciates PR professionals who understand how to contact him and the types of stories he works on. He did indicate that, in his experience, good PR people outweigh the bad. Calls that interrupt reporters like him, however, take time away from meetings and deadlines. "We don’t need the extra call!"

When writing for the Tribune, contractually, no gratuities of any kind can be accepted from any PR person or firm – not even dinner. When offered a chance for a dinner at the University of Chicago and a seat at the Hawks game, always ethical, Steele checked with his editor and was given a choice – either don’t go or the story won’t run; he didn’t attend the dinner or the game.

If you have a real estate, health care, employment trends, education, investing/personal finance, transportation or consumer issues story appropriate for Steele, contact him by phone at 773-481-0010; as much as he prefers not to be contacted by e-mail, his address is scribsteel@ameritech.net.

Anne Logue thinks that the business beat is not just interesting, but actually fun. After 12 years as an investment analyst with a Chartered Financial Analyst designation, she turned to freelancing in 1999.

Logue mostly writes for trade publications and rarely receives PR pitches. Her editor may discuss ideas from readers, but she normally finds her own stories. A small number of high-end publications are nervous about being pitched and don’t use freelancers; she writes mainly for Barron’s, The New York Times, the San Francisco Chronicle and companies like Oracle and Webmergers.com.

Since Logue does editorial and corporate work, there are some sources she cannot use because she is writing for their publications. She must remain objective and, like Steele, keep the editor apprised of what is going on. "Trade editors will actually make calls if they perceive a potential conflict of interest," she added. "It is important to let people know where you stand."

Also, Logue counts on publicity people to be honest and be able to deliver on their promises. She recently was promised access to a CEO at a Fortune 500 company by a company PR person, who ultimately, could not deliver the interview. " I was angry and so was my editor since I had done the research and did a lot of work on this story before I was to talk to the CEO. I didn’t get paid for what I did and everyone is upset." The lesson for PR people is: please make sure you have access to the [necessary, appropriate] sources when you pitch your story!"

PR people should supply only facts. According to Logue, "Facts make for a good story. Do your research and know the industry segment! Don’t give me a spin – just the facts!"

To contact Logue, check her website, www.annielogue.com. If you feel your story meets her beat, phone her at 773-665-1059 or e-mail her at annlogue@earthlink.net .

Elaine Glusac has made her passions into her work. Glusac, who now specializes in food and travel, said her accountant told her that because of her writing assignments, all her hobbies are considered tax deductible. Her major client, American Way, has designated her a contributing editor.

Elaine pitches the stories she wants to write almost on a daily basis. "I work with publicists who know what I like to do and who I write for." Discuss your ideas with her. She works on four or five stories at a time and about half are her ideas. She finds that many of the pitches she receives are too generic and too frequently pitched simultaneously to others.

Access is a necessity! Good timing helps.

Glusac can be reached by fax, phone, or e-mail with pitches for a hot story appropriate for American Way or other food and travel venues. She prefers e-mail pitches and follow-up by phone, however she warns callers not to leave a message but to call back if she does not answer. Her e-mail address is eglu@aol.com and her phone number is 773-528-6351.

The "Tech Matters" columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times, Michael Krauss focuses on people and events that shape Chicago’s growing technology community. However, he started as a CPA and an account executive and then a supervisor at Foote, Cone & Belding in Chicago before becoming a global marketing executive. He lays claim to introducing Keebler’s Chips Deluxe cookies, as well as serving as product manager for Butterball poultry plants. It was his move to Arthur Anderson that got him into the tech business.

He got to do his favorite interview – one with Bill Gates – when fellow Sun- Times writer could not, and asked if he would be interested in doing it. He got another favorite interview based on a contact at Hill Knowlton, which had the account. Good connections and access are vitally important.

Freelance writing, according to Krauss, offers minimal pay, but he enjoys having the ability to have a "voice" and reach thousands of readers.

About 95 percent of his content is his own. Krauss finds working with publicists and public relations professionals helpful, however, having started out as a public relations person, Krauss urges PR professionals, "Don’t follow up on every detail! It takes up valuable time and gets annoying."

Krauss offered excellent advice to PR practitioners in general, "Observe the range of techniques and get a range of best practices in the profession. Observe different behaviors and styles and optimize them."

"Tech Matters" appears in the Chicago Sun-Times on Mondays; he is also the Interactive Marketing Columnist for Marketing News. He can be reached by calling 847-814-3801, or by e-mailing hot tech story leads to him at Michael.Krauss@Marionpartners.com..

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