UPitch the "Tinder" of Media Relations: Changing the Way Journalists and PR Professionals
As an owner of a Public Relations agency, I'm always looking for new ways to share content and get story ideas to journalists. During my search for the perfect public relations app, I came across one in particular that really help make the task of pitching stories easier. UPitch, often times referred to as the Tinder of media relations, is changing the way millennials are pitching and finding stories.
The free app allows public relations professionals to upload stories then pitch them quickly and easily without having to hassle busy reporters. UPitch then also allows journalist to browse and discover story ideas on their own time and select only those that interest them. I had the opportunity to download UPitch and give it a test run, here's what I thought:
What I Liked
If you’re a PR professional in this day in age, this is defiantly an app you want to download. As journalists grow busier, it can be hard to catch their attention. UPitch allows busy reporters to select stories in specific categories and set geographical filters for ideas they want to cover that are in a specific area. If a reporter selects your pitch you will receive a match.
Once a match is established PR pros and journalists can connect and chat live. This is great for PR pros because you can either pitch story ideas to local reporters or journalist on a national or international level real-time.
One feature I like is it allows you to add photos to your pitch. The visual element can really help catch the reporter’s eye.
The app was self-explanatory and quite easy to use. If you do get stuck there is a tutorial available to walk you through the steps. UPitch is available in the App Store and not only worked great on my iPod touch, it also works perfect on my iPhone. There is also a version available in the Google Play store for Android users.
While I didn't have any pitches get picked up when testing the app, I can see how it will become more useful with both PR professionals and journalists alike as it gains more traction. I can see it really becoming useful as more people in the industry start to use it. A good idea may be to share the app with other PR pros and journalist in hopes of growing a larger network therefore increasing your changes of you pitch being picked up or finding a story.
What I Would Change
While I think the app is great, one thing I would consider upgrading would be allowing users to upload more than one pitch without having to be approved as a large PR firm. I would also consider adding some additional tools for the PR pros like a friends list and direct message options. That way you can contact reporters directly that you have in your network. I think it would also be cool to have a profile link so PR pros can promote their account to journalists that may not know about the app.
Another upgrade I would suggest is to allow videos. Photos are great but a video option world be very useful. Giving the reporter a chance to see elements of the story in action can be a real selling point.
Wishful Thinking
Researching this app and others like it got me thinking about what I really look for in an app as a PR professional. My ultimate PR app would be called PR HUB. It would be a one stop PR shop that allows you to create a press releases, video or media kit in the field quickly and easily, then pitch them it the story via email, text or social media channel. It will come complete with a number of tools like phone conversation recorder, voice recognition to transcribe interviews and a video ad photo editor. It will also collaborate with other apps like Drop Box and Google Docs to allow easy access of documents, photo and video files. The app will allow a PR specialist to find a story in the field and put together a media package without stepping foot in the office.