--- title: PR agency pitch mentality image: https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/hs-fs/file-1604445972-jpg/blog-files/6a00d83451f23a69e201538e141ac5970b-250wi.jpg --- [Skip to main content](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/2011/04/pr-agency-pitch-mentality.html#maincontent) [ «  View All Posts ](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog) # PR agency pitch mentality April 25th, 2011 2 min read By [David Meerman Scott](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/author/david-meerman-scott) ![](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/hs-fs/file-1604445972-jpg/blog-files/6a00d83451f23a69e201538e141ac5970b-250wi.jpg?width=250&height=303&name=6a00d83451f23a69e201538e141ac5970b-250wi.jpg) Late last week I wrote a post called [Advertising agency campaign mentality](https://www.webinknow.com/2011/04/advertising-agency-campaign-mentality.html). It got some attention with, as of this writing, a few hundred tweets, a bunch of Facebook likes, and 24 comments. Some people – including [Chris Brogan](http://twitter.com/#!/chrisbrogan) and [Dominic Litten](http://twitter.com/#!/djlitten) called me out in this post because they saw it as a collection of clichés. *Yep.* Guilty. While I stand by what I say and I certainly have seen a large number of ad agencies talking up their social media campaigns in the way that I talked about in my post --check out [this one](https://www.webinknow.com/2011/03/creating-a-social-media-monster.html) for example -- I will admit that my personal experience hiring agencies is from a decade ago. Sure, I did go a bit into the zone of cliché. But sometimes that's a great way to learn, right? Every agency touts their expertise in social media. It doesn't matter if they are a PR agency, ad agency, design agency, or interactive agency—they’ve got you covered for that social media stuff. *"What's your budget again?"* **So to be fair, I want to talk about the typical PR approach to social media too.** [![Shutterstock_baseball](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/hs-fs/file-1604445972-jpg/blog-files/6a00d83451f23a69e201538e141ac5970b-250wi.jpg "Shutterstock_baseball")](http://freshspot.typepad.com/.a/6a00d83451f23a69e201538e141ac5970b-pi) PR agencies are skilled at "pitching" reporters and editors in the hopes of getting a "hit" that they can add to their clip book. (Interesting that the ad people use war metaphors but the PR people prefer baseball.) So in my experience, their preferred approach to "that social media stuff" is to pitch bloggers too. I get more than 100 of these pitches a week: "Your blog readers will find our clients' stuff interesting! Oh, and we built them a Facebook page!" **PR APPROACH TO SOCIAL MEDIA - PITCH** - Relies on getting others to talk up clients. *(We know all the key mommy bloggers!)* - The pitch is dripping with gobbledygook. *(Our client has innovative, cutting-edge, mission-critical applications to improve business process!)* - The pitch prattles on about the client’s product or service. *(Features! Benefits!)* - The pitch includes superlative laden quotes from third parties, such as customers, analysts, and experts. *(Hey, don’t take our word for it – check this out.)* - The pitch usually includes "an invitation to speak with the CEO." *(I always find it weird that only the CEO talks. What about offering up a customer of the client to talk about how they use the company's products or services?)* - Big budget.* (Hey, we’re an expensive agency. You want the best, right? Want to see our Gold Quills and Silver Anvils?)* Just like when I talked about ad agencies, I know there are PR agencies out there who totally understand other ways to get their clients "some of that social media stuff" than just pitching bloggers and getting a few clips. There are some excellent agencies that combine traditional media relations with content creation and social media. I think the excellent PR agencies understand that they have a role in helping their clients to create original content that gets them noticed. That valuable online information -- YouTube videos, blogs, photographs, ebooks, Twitter feeds, Webinars, and the like – is a better approach in the long run than generating a handful of clips from bloggers. **What do you think?** *Image: Shutterstock / Mark Herreid* [ David Meerman Scott ](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/author/david-meerman-scott) David Meerman Scott is a business growth strategist, advisor to clever entrepreneurs who are building emerging companies, and the international bestselling author of a dozen books published in 30 languages. David’s high-energy keynote presentations, masterclasses, and virtual events educate, energize, and inspire. Connect: [mailto:david@freshspot.com](mailto:david@freshspot.com) Topics: [ Social Media ](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/topic/social-media) [ Worst Practices ](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/topic/worst-practices) [ Public Relations ](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/topic/public-relations) [ Brand Journalism ](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/topic/brand-journalism) Don't forget to share this post: ## Related Articles [![](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Artemis%20earthset.jpg?width=5568&height=3712&name=Artemis%20earthset.jpg) ### Nasa’s Artemis II Lunar Mission: A PR Triumph for the USA April 11th, 2026|2 min read ](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/nasas-artemis-ii-lunar-mission-a-pr-triumph-for-the-usa) [![](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Moltbook.jpg?width=1536&height=1024&name=Moltbook.jpg) ### Moltbook: A Social Network for AI Agents Where Humans Can Only Watch February 3rd, 2026|2 min read ](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/moltbook-a-social-network-for-ai-agents-where-humans-can-only-watch) [![](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Screenshot%202025-10-29%20at%2010.27.19%20AM.png?width=835&height=466&name=Screenshot%202025-10-29%20at%2010.27.19%20AM.png) ### Don’t Fly Wizzness Class Video from Dave Carroll October 29th, 2025|2 min read ](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/dont-fly-wizzness-class-video-from-dave-carroll) [![](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Chef%20Todd%20Edwards.jpg?width=1500&height=1010&name=Chef%20Todd%20Edwards.jpg) ### Pulling Back the Curtain to Show What Happens Behind-the-Scenes October 15th, 2025|2 min read ](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/pulling-back-the-curtain-to-show-what-happens-behind-the-scenes) [![](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/hs-fs/hubfs/DMS%20BM%20hybrid%202004.jpg?width=1432&height=966&name=DMS%20BM%20hybrid%202004.jpg) ### The Fandom Playbook: My New Book and Companion AI Chatbot September 24th, 2025|2 min read ](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/the-fandom-playbook-my-new-book-and-companion-ai-chatbot) [![](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Stefano%20Paciotti.jpg?width=1500&height=1084&name=Stefano%20Paciotti.jpg) ### The Ham Whisperer of Rome: How Stefano’s Honest Videos Won the World’s Heart June 24th, 2025|2 min read ](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/the-ham-whisperer-of-rome-how-stefanos-honest-videos-won-the-worlds-heart) [![](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/hs-fs/hubfs/LinkedIn%20comments.jpg?width=1114&height=737&name=LinkedIn%20comments.jpg) ### Comments Are the Key to LinkedIn Engagement January 29th, 2025|2 min read ](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/comments-are-the-key-to-linkedin-engagement) [![](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Kolkata%20Chai%20Ani%20and%20Ayan.jpg?width=1236&height=858&name=Kolkata%20Chai%20Ani%20and%20Ayan.jpg) ### Brewing Authenticity: How Kolkata Chai Co. Uses Instagram to Reach Interested Buyers November 21st, 2024|2 min read ](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/brewing-authenticity-how-kolkata-chai-co.-uses-instagram-to-reach-interested-buyers) [![](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/hs-fs/hubfs/boring%20robots.png?width=1432&height=899&name=boring%20robots.png) ### Your Original Content Plus AI Equals Sparkle-Darkle August 13th, 2024|2 min read ](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/your-original-content-plus-ai-equals-sparkle-darkle) [![](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Jesse%20at%20Fenway.jpg?width=1256&height=843&name=Jesse%20at%20Fenway.jpg) ### Fans First Banana Ball Delights at Sold Out Fenway Park Game June 10th, 2024|2 min read ](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/fans-first-banana-ball-delights-at-sold-out-fenway-park) [![](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/hs-fs/hubfs/blog.jpg?width=1193&height=792&name=blog.jpg) ### Why You Need a Blog in the Age of AI and Social Networking September 5th, 2023|2 min read ](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/why-you-need-a-blog-in-the-age-of-ai-and-social-networking) [![](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Threads.jpg?width=2350&height=1574&name=Threads.jpg) ### Meta's Threads Social Text App Unlikely to Topple Twitter's Dominance July 14th, 2023|2 min read ](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/metas-threads-social-text-app-unlikely-to-topple-twitters-dominance) [![](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/hs-fs/hubfs/DMS%20and%20YWS%20in%20Scotland.jpg?width=1500&height=1125&name=DMS%20and%20YWS%20in%20Scotland.jpg) ### How Instagram Got Us to the Castles of Scotland May 24th, 2023|2 min read ](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/how-instagram-got-us-to-the-castles-of-scotland) [![](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Stoned%20Immaculate.jpg?width=1259&height=827&name=Stoned%20Immaculate.jpg) ### Modern-Day Hippies! Meet Stoned Immaculate’s Unique Buyer Persona March 14th, 2023|2 min read ](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/modern-day-hippies-meet-stoned-immaculates-unique-buyer-persona) [![](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Scotus.jpg?width=1070&height=715&name=Scotus.jpg) ### Important Artificial Intelligence Case to be Argued in the US Supreme Court Today February 21st, 2023|2 min read ](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/important-artificial-intelligence-case-to-be-argued-in-the-us-supreme-court-today) [![](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/hs-fs/hubfs/man%20with%20typewriter.jpg?width=1189&height=788&name=man%20with%20typewriter.jpg) ### Unlocking the Potential of AI for Use with Your Own Content February 8th, 2023|2 min read ](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/unlocking-the-potential-of-ai-for-use-with-your-own-content) [![Aaron Silidker showing people how to use ](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/hs-fs/hubfs/RoamRig%20van%20conversions.jpg?width=2566&height=1556&name=RoamRig%20van%20conversions.jpg) ### How RoamRig Built A Successful Business With Facebook Groups January 10th, 2023|2 min read ](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/how-roamrig-built-a-successful-business-with-facebook-groups) [![](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/hs-fs/hubfs/free%20speech.jpg?width=2210&height=1404&name=free%20speech.jpg) ### Free Speech November 29th, 2022|2 min read ](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/free-speech) [![Twitter and Mastodon logos](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Mastodon%20will%20not%20replace%20Twitter.jpg?width=1002&height=520&name=Mastodon%20will%20not%20replace%20Twitter.jpg) ### No Way Mastodon Will Kill Twitter November 10th, 2022|2 min read ](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/no-way-mastodon-will-kill-twitter) [![](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/hs-fs/hubfs/dance.png?width=2048&height=1366&name=dance.png) ### Baseball That Puts Fans First! Banana Ball from The Savannah Bananas August 31st, 2022|2 min read ](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/baseball-that-puts-fans-first-banana-ball-from-the-savanah-bananas) [![](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Twitter%20Blue.jpg?width=2160&height=1301&name=Twitter%20Blue.jpg) ### Twitter Blue Subscription Service June 29th, 2022|2 min read ](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/twitter-blue-subscription-service-now-available-in-usa) [![](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/hs-fs/hubfs/DMS%20metaverse%202.jpg?width=1500&height=1009&name=DMS%20metaverse%202.jpg) ### What the Heck is the Metaverse? And Should You Care? June 1st, 2022|2 min read ](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/what-is-the-metaverse) [![](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/hs-fs/hubfs/2017-Silver-Oak-Napa-Valley-Cabernet-72.jpg?width=2160&height=1440&name=2017-Silver-Oak-Napa-Valley-Cabernet-72.jpg) ### How Silver Oak Cellars Created Passionate Fans Over Fifty Years May 18th, 2022|2 min read ](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/how-silver-oak-cellars-created-passionate-fans-over-fifty-years) [![](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/hs-fs/hubfs/SCOTT_pb_3D_rev.png?width=1293&height=2430&name=SCOTT_pb_3D_rev.png) ### 8th Edition of The New Rules of Marketing & PR Publishes Today May 3rd, 2022|2 min read ](https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/8th-edition-of-the-new-rules-of-marketing-pr-publishes-today) ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "David Meerman Scott", "url" : "https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/author/david-meerman-scott" }, "datePublished" : "2011-04-25T11:32:04.000Z", "headline" : "PR agency pitch mentality", "image" : [ "https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/hs-fs/file-1604445972-jpg/blog-files/6a00d83451f23a69e201538e141ac5970b-250wi.jpg" ], "mainEntityOfPage" : { "@id" : "https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/2011/04/pr-agency-pitch-mentality.html", "@type" : "WebPage" }, "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "url" : "https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/hubfs/_Assets/Logo/david-meerman-scott.png" }, "name" : "David Meerman Scott" } } ``` ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@id" : "https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/#person", "@type" : "Person", "description" : "Marketing and sales visionary, international bestselling author of 12 books, keynote speaker in 47 countries, and advisor to emerging companies.", "email" : "mailto:David@DavidMeermanScott.com", "image" : "https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/hubfs/DMS-Homepage-Featured.jpg", "jobTitle" : [ "Keynote Speaker", "Author", "Business Growth Strategist", "Marketing Advisor" ], "knowsAbout" : [ "Content Marketing", "Fandom Marketing", "Newsjacking", "Real-Time Marketing", "Public Relations", "Sales Strategy", "Business Growth" ], "name" : "David Meerman Scott", "sameAs" : [ "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Meerman_Scott", "https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidmeermanscott", "https://x.com/dmscott", "https://www.instagram.com/dmscott/" ], "url" : "https://www.davidmeermanscott.com" } ``` ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@id" : "https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/#website", "@type" : "WebSite", "author" : { "@id" : "https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/#person" }, "name" : "David Meerman Scott", "potentialAction" : { "@type" : "SearchAction", "query-input" : "required name=search_term_string", "target" : { "@type" : "EntryPoint", "urlTemplate" : "https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/search?q={search_term_string}" } }, "url" : "https://www.davidmeermanscott.com" } ``` ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "David Meerman Scott", "url" : "https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/author/david-meerman-scott" }, "dateCreated" : "2014-09-10T23:16:53", "datePublished" : "2011-04-25T07:32:04-0400", "description" : "", "headline" : "PR agency pitch mentality", "image" : [ "http://cdn2.hubspot.net/hub/413105/file-1604445972-jpg/blog-files/6a00d83451f23a69e201538e141ac5970b-250wi.jpg" ], "inLanguage" : "en-us", "keywords" : [ "Social Media", "Worst Practices", "Public Relations", "Brand Journalism" ], "learningResourceType" : "article", "name" : "PR agency pitch mentality", "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "url" : "https://413105.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hubfs/413105/_Assets/Logo/david-meerman-scott.png" }, "name" : "Freshspot Marketing LLC" }, "timeRequired" : "2 minutes", "url" : "https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/2011/04/pr-agency-pitch-mentality.html" } ```