Summarize your idea

Here is an example of a pitch I sent to a known editor I had already pitched to.

The pitch was accepted. You can view my published story here. 

Let’s break down why this summary worked and make one of your own.

An editor should be able to get the point in 15 seconds

The overview

When pitching an idea to an editor or a business manager it’s important to be clear and concise. Describe your pitch in a few sentences that provide a brief overview of your topic and why you think it would make a great article. 

In my pitch, this was: “I’m wondering if you would be interested in a story about Arab artists and entrepreneurs who are selling NFTs. I can start the piece by explaining what NFTs are, then interview those in the Arab world who are actively working in this field.”

Now, for your pitch, write a 1-2 sentence overview of your idea.

I’m contacting you to see if you’re interested in the following story for [name of their blog or their newsletter]: [title of piece].

In the story, I will highlight [describe story idea here].

Cite special knowledge, expertise, or sources

Include any special knowledge or expertise you may have on the subject and any sources or research that support your argument. Editors and managers are busy, so focus on making your message as compelling as possible.

In my pitch, I detailed access to four specific sources I could interview.

• Nabil Al Sayed, CEO of NIFTY Souq, an NFT marketplace in MENA.

• Kristel Bechara, the first Arab female from the UAE and the Middle East to launch an NFT-tokenized art series.

• Lebanese fashion designer Nour Hage.

• Salwa Radwi, founder of the first Saudi NFT marketplace Nutah.

Now, for your pitch, add your special knowledge, expertise, or sources. Here’s a connecting sentence I like to use:

Among the people I can talk to are [Includes sources here].

Include relevant keywords

Make sure you include relevant keywords that relate to your story—this will help draw attention from editors who may be searching for content related to those topics. 

In my pitch, I included key terms like Arab artists, NFTs, Lebanese, Souq, Nuqtah.

Do a read-through of your pitch and adjust or add any keywords you want to make sure shine through. 

Pro tip: Sometimes, it helps to pitch ideas with the potential to become a series or multiple articles within the same topic. Editors will be more likely to take on such projects as they can yield more content for their publications.