The Pitch that Wouldn’t Die
For almost a year, I’ve been inundated with pitches from one PR “pro” in particular, about the exact same topic. I’ve included the correspondence below for your enjoyment. I’ve not included the young man’s name nor his agency because I’m a true believer in karma, and I don’t make it a habit of outing fellow PR people no matter how much they need a swift kick. But, hopefully this will help drive home the point that people don’t want to be spammed. Targeted pitching produces better results. Lucky for him I don’t write for the Wall Street Journal.
After receiving at least four emails about Internet gaming, I sent the following email:
October 8, 2010
Me: You’ve sent me so many pitches about this gaming company. I don’t cover games at all. Please stop sending these.
PR Pro says he will remove me
November 10, 2010 – Another pitch
Me: I specifically asked you to take me off of this list because I do not cover gaming. You told me you would. What happened?
PR Pro: Hi Rachel, I am so sorry. I used my wrong list. It will not happen again.
October 24, 2011 – Another pitch
Me:
XXX,
I have told you twice to take me off of your list because I don’t cover gaming. Twice you’ve told me you would. Now I’m getting this once again.
I’m a PR person as well so normally I’m sympathetic, but this is getting ridiculous. Your pitch is untargeted spam. One of these days someone is going to get upset with you and call your client.
Rachel Kay
PR Pro:
Rachel,
I’m truly sorry as I used an old list.
If you would like, I can send an email to IT to personally block you from getting any emails from XXX.
Please let me know what is best for you.
Again, I’m sorry about this.
Me: I would like you to stop sending me emails about games. Do not ask me how I would prefer you do that. That is your problem.
July 20, 2011 – Another pitch
Me: I ignored this when it came in yesterday but here you are again. You should look through your in-box and remind yourself how many times I’ve requested to be taken off this list. This is ridiculous.
PR Pro: No response
August 25, 2011 – Another pitch
Me: Why can’t you take me off of your list? Why is this such a challenge? I’ve asked you more than five times?
PR Pro: No response
Readers, please discuss
Photo credit: AJC1
Disappointing to hear — people like this give PR a bad name and, often times, make our jobs even harder. It kind of makes you wonder how many others he’s spamming…
Ugh. This is crazy. That’s why so many editors and reporters throw all pitches away without reading them. This dude deserves to be strung up by his thumbs and flogged in the public square! You could call his supervisor, who should know how unprofessional and dumb he is.
I think you were right to mention contacting their client. If my PR firm were repeatedly spamming someone on my behalf, I would want to know about it.
I would send the emails to the client and if that doesn’t solve anything out the PR Pro, his agency and the client on your blog. You are apparently upset by the spam, but keeping this between yourself and the PR Pro has solved nothing. Time to take this to the next level.
Kevin,
I sent the chain to one of his coworkers who didn’t seem overly concerned (he thought it was funny), but I won’t be going to the client. It’s isn’t really a huge concern to me, and I’m too busy with my own business to worry about the mistakes other people are making. I do also think it’s bad form for PR people to out their own kind, no matter how bad they are. The exchange is entertaining and hopefully he is a little scared to see this post, but that’s as far as it needs to go from my end. The fault here is with his supervisors who have either trained him wrong, or aren’t monitoring. If I were him, I’d be worried about the big media outlets and blogs.
Rachel
The fact his co-worker didn’t seem concerned is troubling (or maybe the guilty party has moved on). But you’re right, you have your own clients to worry about and it is his supervisor’s problem. I understand your reluctance to out a fellow PR person, but it seems reporters are doing it more and more. We have the tools to pinpoint the best media people to target with our releases, but we’re either too lazy to use them properly and check them for accuracy or clients/supervisors have them under the gun to distribute a release to research the distribution list properly and hope wrongly targeted people like yourself will simply delete their release. It wouldn’t surprise me this guy and possibly his agency have been blacklisted by several reporters and bloggers. Block their email and any others coming from that URL.
If your “PR pro” is anything like the ones I deal with, he probably left the position earlier this year and has not replied to your emails because he no longer works there.
In situations like this, I find it easiest to simply add a blocking rule to my email and never think about them again. I assure you that you won’t miss their emails, and you won’t have to drive yourself crazy with irritation because he’s ignoring your requests to limit his information sprays to things that are actually relevant to you.
This is the difference between me and you. I wouldn’t X out the offender.