Hot Take: In defense of “spray and pray” PR
Hot Take: In defense of “spray and pray” PR
Emilie Gerber on how startup PR is a numbers game
CHERRY ON TOP 🍒 is our monthly newsletter exploring the ins and outs of everything that modern businesses need to truly shine. We dive into topics that live at the intersection of our two companies – ORCHARD STREET, a seed fund & DALY, a comms+ agency – as both help founders get the best ideas out into the world, through outstanding operations, comms, and culture-building.Alex here! PR has become an industry that is ever-changing — with some of the most dramatic changes having unfolded since 2020. The most effective approach nowadays requires nimble, creative, media-obsessed comms folks who can think outside the box. That’s where our September hot take contributor, Emilie Gerber, comes in.
I first found Emilie through her newsletter, On Background — which is packed with super fresh, curated, and useful PR intel. It’s clear that Emilie gets the dynamic world of PR, so when she delivered her somewhat controversial topic idea for Cherry on Top, I was skeptical. When I read her first draft, I was sold.
This letter breaks down helpful PR tips for the exact type of demo our new fund is aiming to support — ambitious, early-stage, startup founders. But Emilie’s wisdom reaches far beyond that special community. Her insider info is applicable to any other founder, company, or agency who is trying to break through the media noise today. Over to Emilie!
Emilie: Two years into my first PR gig, I landed my first big feature — a milestone every PR person remembers. It was a piece in The Atlantic: “Your Sushi May Be Getting Smarter” for my client Thinfilm. The company was early in its journey building electronic sensors as thin as a label, but I pushed the limits of what could be possible with their technology.
I painstakingly crafted the pitch and sent it to Adrienne LaFrance, who had just moved to a new role covering science and technology (and this story was both). With a combination of the right story and a bit of timing luck, she bit. The client was thrilled.
Fast forward a decade, and we still don’t have real-time temperature monitoring food labels. Alas, this is no longer my concern. The bigger takeaway is that this approach to PR now almost never works. Sending the perfect note to the perfect reporter isn’t how startups get coverage.
The term "spray and pray" — sending the same pitch to a wide list of reporters — is often used in our industry with disdain. PR people unanimously agree it’s a horrible practice. It conjures up images of lazy, unstrategic PR interns firing off the same generic pitch to a thousand journalists from a static list and “praying” one of them bites.
In theory, it sounds like everything a good PR approach shouldn’t be. But let’s step back and consider the reality of today’s media landscape: it’s brutally competitive, increasingly understaffed, and flooded with story ideas — there’s simply no time to cover it all. Journalists are inundated with pitches, many irrelevant or poorly crafted, and more companies are vying for their attention.
It’s no longer an even playing field.
The truth is, a well-written, compelling pitch is rarely relevant to just one or two journalists. If you’ve done your homework, you’ve created a narrative that’s interesting, newsworthy, and tailored to a broader theme or topic. Chances are, that pitch could resonate with several reporters (even within the same publication!) So, why limit yourself?
How to successfully “go broad” and get results
Instead of sending that “perfect pitch” to one or two reporters, why not send it to everyone for whom it could genuinely be relevant? Sometimes that means 10-20 reporters; sometimes it’s 30-40. Not all at once, of course — spread it out, stagger your outreach, and be smart about targeting. I like to follow up two times with each reporter, and wait 48 hours between my follow ups. No dice? Try new reporters and repeat.
Find the right reporters as you go
Don’t just go off of a static “master media list.” Those aren’t going to be the right reporters. Pay attention to what reporters are covering on any given day, or what they’re tweeting about, and constantly act on it. A media list only works for the day it was created. Things change fast, and research must be iterative and continuous.
Customize in a way that can scale
When you’re sending a strong, broadly relevant pitch to multiple journalists, make slight yet meaningful customizations to stand out. Avoid the overused tactic of commenting on their latest article (“Great article on that thing you just wrote about! Now here’s my thing!”) Take 30 seconds — that’s all it needs to be — to find something unique to say. Form an opinion on something they’ve covered, add commentary, or find a commonality (“Woah, we just bought the same sofa — do you also find it too soft?”) Anything to help make a quick connection. This small effort can make all the difference in getting a response.
Avoid pissing off reporters
Apart from the misconception that “spray and pray” doesn’t work, let’s address the other elephant in the room: pissing off reporters. There’s always the potential for two reporters to agree to the same exclusive (and you should probably be pitching most things as an exclusive, but that’s a topic for another post). It can happen, but it’s exceedingly rare. And when it does, it’s manageable. Be honest, be human — most reporters appreciate transparency. It’s as simple as, “Hey, I’d sent a note to another reporter before I heard back from you, but they just got back to me and accepted the story! Sorry about that; I’d love to work with you on their next announcement.” Done.
Think outside of traditional media, too
I’d be remiss not to mention that “spray and pray” also works exceedingly well for locking in podcast appearances, where exclusivity is never an issue and there are likely hundreds that could be relevant for any given spokesperson. Send out a direct, concise LinkedIn message —"Hey, are you open to guest ideas for your show?" over-and-over again to every host you can find. If they’re interested, you can customize from there. Why put all your energy into a thoughtful pitch they may never see, when you could send out 40 quick feelers to see what sticks?
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It’s time to realize that the PR agencies and consultants that get the best results for their clients probably rely on “spray and pray.” Even the best stories get lost everyday in overflowing inboxes.
It’s not about being selective — it’s about being effective. Why give yourself a 1% chance of success when you could have a 5% chance? Or 10%? Done right, this approach is not about praying for luck — it’s about maximizing your opportunities.
The Cherry on Top: Let’s focus on what actually works in today’s crowded media environment and not pretend a quality pitch is all it takes. “Spray and pray” might just be the most effective strategy we have left.
Emilie Gerber is the founder of Six Eastern, a PR agency that works with startups at every stage, with a heavy focus on AI. She's also the author of her own PR newsletter (very meta) On Background, which shares specific and timely intel on opportunities for PR people to pitch.