How can you start pitching like a PR Pro in 2024? As we begin the year anew, producers, editors, and reporters are pursuing stories that will empower audiences to stick to their resolutions surrounding health and fitness, business growth, financial success, parenting, and many other areas.
PR Pro Tips for Pitching a Story Idea Using the New Year’s Resolution Angle
In a New Year pitch, skip the mundane details. Use succinct adjectives that will create an immediate visual in a producer’s mind’s eye. As a PR Pro, help the producer see their audience responding to the content. Highlight convincing before-and-after visuals — especially if your client is in fitness, weight loss, or beauty product spaces. Then have your client provide detailed tips and ideas that will motivate people to accomplish their New Year goals using their products/services.
As a PR Pro, position your client as an expert in their business or service and have them disseminate advice for easily accomplished New Year goals. This is highly effective with clients who offer information for the following:
Fitness
Weight loss
Organization
Travel
Financial advice
Nutrition/healthy eating
As people retain and implement your client’s advice, pitch an on-going monthly segment to have your client check in with audiences to offer encouragement on how to sustain New Year habits/goals throughout the year.
Keep Your Pitch Simple and Succinct
A pitch should begin with a bold statement that’s impossible to ignore. So ask a question, share a personal story, or throw in an unbelievable statistic to get their attention. Then after the attention-grabbing start, follow it up with a quick explanation. Follow PR best practices for success. After all, producers and editors are eager and willing to book a guest who engages an audience with valuable information that will help them achieve their New Year goals.
Ah, reflecting on 2023. It always amazes me this team finds commonality in their reflections each year despite not seeing each other’s until this blog is published. This year is no exception.
2022 was all about rocking steady in the calm of a year which allowed us to catch our breath a bit following several years of big events, big changes and big milestones both individually and in the world.
Boy, are we grateful for that quiet(ish) 2022. 2023 was a year full of learning to embrace change, accept challenges, give ourselves (and others) grace, honor the lessons we learn in difficulty and to find light in the darkness. Reflecting on 2023 brought some tears, some smiles and big hugs all around.
Julie Porter – Chief Rocker
Reminiscing on a year of learning, leadership and service, I am reminded of the old saying, “you don’t know what you don’t know.”
On the Porch, we operated with the same great gang of seasoned professionals and added six interns throughout the year. Interns always make us better.
My daughter and I continue to find joy in volunteering together at Dallas Animal Services (DAS). I was honored to continue my Volunteer Chair gig for the 30th Annual JWA Christmas Bazaar, board work with Faith Family Education Foundation, and host committee duties for the Grant Halliburton Foundation. There is no better challenge to accept than being able to serve others.
Proud of my boy who finished his undergrad degree in December and started his master’s program this month. He had quite a year and met it head on.
Reflecting on 2023 and looking forward for this year, I will continue to lean into difficulty. I’ll take calculated risks, focus on my own well-being and understand that growth can’t happen without resistance. All the while, celebrating working with this rockin’ team and our amazing clients.
Lillian Cloud – Intern
In 2023, I’ve experienced significant change. I completed my undergraduate education, relocated to a different city, started graduate school, and began a new job. This year has instilled in me the importance of embracing change and finding solace in the unknown. I’ve learned not to compare my post-graduation journey with that of others.
My internship has reinforced the need to trust myself and my decisions. The team I have the privilege to work with has been exceptionally supportive, and I relish the opportunity to learn from each of them. I often wonder, “Why should I be trusted with this responsibility?” or “how could my work be good enough?” This experience has shown me I’ve earned these chances to believe in myself, and has taught me to take pride in my work.
Christine Finnegan – Media Rocker
This past year, I aspired to live a more purposeful life by discovering my passions and values and using them to create a fulfilling and meaningful existence. I did this by implementing the following:
Continual Learning: Embracing a Lifetime of Growth. …
After reflecting on 2023, and as we are at the dawn of a new year I will continue to live in the moment, marvel at the world around me, and nurture the relationships that define who I am.
Alison Moreno – Rock Collector
2023 was filled with its ups and downs. My husband unexpectedly lost his job in August, and even though I was still working, I wasn’t working enough to provide much for our family. That pushed me out of my comfort zone and made me realize there is much more I can do while still being the best wife and mother I can be.
There were many rough days, but we were able to recognize the good things we had and to stay positive until he ultimately found an amazing job. The downs in 2023 sparked my ambition and brought to life many hopes and plans. Moving into 2024 I’m excited to set my goals in motion and to see what the new year has in store for me professionally, and for my family.
Natalie Rosga – Rock Enthusiast
2023 has been a year of change. My littles are officially kindergarteners. While it is exciting to watch them grow and learn, my momma heart is a little sad as they start to gain more independence. It has also meant more “me” time during the week for work or the personal things that bring me joy. <Insert happy dance.>
It’s also been a year of becoming more faithful including finding a new church home that has welcomed my family with open arms. In 2024, I am excited to continue making the conscious effort to be joyful and find the positive in each and every situation.
Lea Ann Allen – Swiss Army Rock
2023 snuck in softly and then caused a loud ruckus! My youngest kid is finishing high school and furiously applying for colleges while playing in umpteen golf tournaments that I spent much of the year driving him to. I’m grateful he passed the test and now has his license! The brutal summer that cooked my tomato plants is making me rethink gardening. A couple rounds of COVID at my house brought everything to a grinding halt. And the birth of our first grandbaby made me feel very mortal. I felt I could never catch my breath so if I am being honest, reflecting on 2023, I am grateful that it is over. Whew! But, through it all, my sweet supportive friends and teammates at Front Porch helped me persevere.
Vicky Gouge – Design Rockczar
This year was a series of highs and lows. I turned 50 in August, had a 4th grader with a recent ADHD diagnosis (not surprised) and dyslexia (very surprised) and was finding a new norm post-divorce. I thought everything was moving in the usual ups and downs of life; until it wasn’t. I suffered a heart attack in early October. Suddenly I wasn’t invincible. Coming to terms with having a heart attack at age 50 has been heartbreaking, enlightening, eye-opening, depressing … all the above and much more. I’m still coming to terms with it. But the people I choose to surround myself with keep me focused, engaged and happy.
I appreciate the engagement, the knowledge I gain and continue to pursue, and the support of this team. Julie has been a quiet, supportive and thoughtful ear and a steadfast leader of our team. There’s a reason we accept people to come into our lives at certain times, and I’m thankful for my “givers gain” Front Porch family. I, Charlie and family are doing well thanks to the continued love and outreach of our friends and family. Here’s to a fabulous 2024 and much success to all. With many, we can succeed.
Reflecting on 2023 to build a better 2024
From all of us on the Porch, may 2024 be filled with health, happiness, love and learning for you and yours. Cherish working with people who make you better. Celebrate wins along the way. Find the light, be there for others and rock challenges with grit and grace. Happy New Year!
Happy New Year, friends! Yes, it’s officially THAT time of year … the holidays are over, the kids are back to school, and we take a look around at the carnage and decide that things have to change. And THIS is the year we are going to resolve to make those changes.
So we make some resolutions. We’re going to lose weight! Get in fabulous shape! Get fabulously organized! Become the best mother/wife/friend/person EVER! We google “how to make changes.” We examine our motivations, set realistic goals, plan our rewards, and set out on our course to become a newer, better, version of ourselves.
Blah, blah, blah.
Um, no offense to anyone who truly commits to change in the new year and follows through with it (there may be one or two of you out there), but let’s face it, most of us get busy and forget our New Year’s Resolutions five minutes after we make them.
Listen, I’m all for self-improvement. But I wholly believe that the greatest improvement any of us can make to our lives, and the lives of everyone around us, is to resolve to do something simple … BE HAPPY. Find your happiness. Create happy moments. Do happy things. Big things. Little things. Anything that lightens your load and makes you smile.
How about these things?
Take a spur of the moment trip
Have dinner with someone who makes you laugh
Write someone you love a letter
Eat something you’ve never tried
Take a long walk
Find a place to dance
Stop doing something you do only out of obligation
Binge watch a new show
Treat yourself to something big
Spend a day volunteering
Call an old friend
Read the paper on Sunday
Tell your kids a story about your younger self
Cook a special meal for no reason
Forgive someone
Forgive yourself
Life is short, friends, and we only have this one. Our time here is precious. Enjoy it. Smile broadly. Breathe deeply. Laugh loudly. Love the people that love you (and forget the ones that don’t). Be happy.
So, it’s February. Perhaps you are finding it hard to stay committed to your New Years resolutions. Or your year-end business goals are proving harder to accomplish than you anticipated. Or you have put off making that change in your personal life that you know you have to make. Let’s face it, change is hard.
“Any change, even a change for the better, is always accompanied by drawbacks and discomforts.” Arnold Bennett
The process of change can cause disruption in your life. This disruption can hit close to home and play with your emotions, bringing about feelings of doubt, uncertainty, and lack of control. It’s natural to want to maintain the status quo, it feels safer. But is it better?
It is often said that change is the only constant in life. Yet we are evolutionarily predisposed to resist change because of the risk associated with it. Leadership today is all about managing disruption, and disruption is an hourly occurrence. Organizations and people that don’t embrace change are bound to lose ground and stagnate. Change is natural. Embrace it. Welcome it as an opportunity.
“Change is hard because people over-estimate the value of what they have – and underestimate the value of what they may gain by giving that up.” James Belasco and Ralph Staye
Whether you are undergoing change in the workplace or in your personal life, there are a few constants to bear in mind as you transition:
Nothing happens without a readiness to change. You and everyone around you must buy in to the change and the reasons for walking the path.
A support infrastructure is integral. Peer support and pressure drive change, and the emotional and logistical support will keep you afloat.
Replace old habits with new ones. Replace negative situations with positive ones.
Continuous introspection is key. Are you on the right path? Change is fluid, be willing to adjust.
The goal is progress, not perfection. Overcome any setbacks you encounter and re-focus.
“Life does not get better by chance. It gets better by change.” Jim Rohm
It is often said that change is the only constant in life. Yet we are evolutionarily predisposed to resist change because of the risk associated with it. Leadership today is all about managing disruption, and disruption is an hourly occurrence. Organizations and people that don’t embrace change are bound to lose ground and stagnate. Change is natural. Embrace it. Welcome it as an opportunity.