Let's Talk About: Why Your Client Was Removed From an Article They Were Once Featured In
Uh oh, where'd your awesome coverage go? Here's why that product or source disappeared and how to mitigate this risk!
Happy Monday, subscribers!
Made my 22-hour journey home from Finland yesterday (more on that amazing trip later) and now I’m back to reality! My poor inbox is a mess, so don’t be worried if you responded to my calls for pitches last week and I haven’t responded yet!
Side note: Nicole and I hope to see you this Thursday at our small group pitch perfecting workshop … there’s 1 seat left and it’s got your name on it!
A publicist I’ve worked with quite a bit (and love!) sent this email my way a while back and I realized it would make for a good discussion here:
“Hi Jill. I received this email last night from my client who was on mat leave. Have yet to respond as I don’t know how to answer her question or where to begin. Is there any advice you can offer? I will compensate you for your time. Much appreciated, Terri”
Her client’s email was:
“Hi Terri, I’m back! Hope you are doing well! I was looking through past articles we’ve been featured in and I noticed in at least 3 that I clicked on we were no longer featured in them. It looks like the articles were edited recently and we were deleted from the list. Do you know anything about this?”
(Spoiler: I didn’t charge her for my answer since we have a long-standing relationship, which is why I’m OK sharing this info with you months later, but her offer certainly made me feel like a valued professional!)
Now, there are many reasons why your clients may have lost their coverage, so let’s dive into those reasons … once you understand why, you can proactively warn your clients that this could happen (don’t worry, there are some steps they can take to minimize the risk of this happening) and easily answer their questions when it does happen (when, not if, because it’s only a matter of time).
First, know that this happens all the time when articles are updated — oftentimes, this happens in product-related pieces (gift guides, roundups, etc.) but sometimes even the sources/experts are replaced and your clients’ quotes disappear.
And hey, if it makes you feel better, this happens to writers too … a rewrite/update gets assigned to another writer and we lose our entire byline even though we did the bulk of the work! So yeah, we understand just how painful this is, trust me!
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