PR & Earned Media
Press, Podcasts, Underground & Guerrilla Media
Earn It, Don't Buy It
You can't buy credibility. You earn it by building something worth talking about, then making it easy for people to talk about it. The best PR we ever got at Quad Lock came from people who used the product, loved it, and told their audience without being asked. Charley Boorman was using Quad Lock on his adventures before we had any relationship with him. No retainer fee, no press release, no agency. Just a great product and a story people wanted to share. That's always the starting point.
Key topics covered
- What Makes a Story (The Angle Framework)Most brands get ignored because they pitch "we launched a product." Journalists need a story.
- How to PitchTiming: Tuesday/Wednesday mornings. 6-8 weeks ahead for magazines, 1-2 weeks for online, same day for news. Follow up once, 5-7 days later. No response after that? Move on.
- Podcast StrategyPodcasts compound. One appearance is a conversation. Ten over five years is an authority position. Treat it like a channel, not a one-off.
- Underground & Guerrilla MediaCommunity-native media: Subreddits, Facebook groups, Discord servers are media. A genuine, helpful post in r/cycling reaches 50,000 engaged cyclists. Be a real participant first. Don't astroturf.
- Baseline vs Spikes: What to Optimise ForMost brands chase PR spikes: a big feature, a viral moment, a news cycle mention. Spikes feel great, but like a sugar high, they fade fast.
- Crisis CommunicationsEvery brand will face a crisis eventually. A product recall, a viral complaint, a supply chain failure, a social media pile-on.
- Measuring PRDon't try to directly attribute revenue to PR. Measure it like brand awareness, not like a Meta campaign.
- Product Seeding & Review StrategyFor most DTC brands, product seeding drives more long-term value than traditional PR pitching. A journalist might write one story.
- Media MappingTreating "media" as one category is a common mistake. Each type of outlet reaches different audiences, serves different purposes, and requires a different approach.
- The PR Operating SystemPR without a system is just occasional hustle. A repeatable operating rhythm turns PR from sporadic to compounding.
Why PR Is Different From Everything Else in This Playbook
Earned media means someone else decided your brand was worth covering. That third-party endorsement carries weight no ad dollar can replicate.
What Makes a Story (The Angle Framework)
Most brands get ignored because they pitch "we launched a product." Journalists need a story.
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How to Pitch
Timing: Tuesday/Wednesday mornings. 6-8 weeks ahead for magazines, 1-2 weeks for online, same day for news. Follow up once, 5-7 days later. No response after that? Move on.
For the full pitch structure, templates, and sample pitches, see The PR Operating System later in this section.
Podcast Strategy
Podcasts compound. One appearance is a conversation. Ten over five years is an authority position. Treat it like a channel, not a one-off.
Selection: Relevance over reach. A 2,000-listener podcast in your niche outperforms a 100,000-listener general show. Survey customers: "What podcasts do you listen to?"
On the show: Prepare 3-4 memorable takeaways. Stories outperform advice. Mention product naturally. Direct listeners to one URL with a specific offer.
Underground & Guerrilla Media
Community-native media: Subreddits, Facebook groups, Discord servers are media. A genuine, helpful post in r/cycling reaches 50,000 engaged cyclists. Be a real participant first. Don't astroturf.
Keep reading in the full playbook.
All 30 sections, the diagnostic Health Check, 400+ checklist items, and 8 tools. Free and always will be.
Open the full playbookWhat you'll walk away with
- Media list built: 20-30 journalists covering your category, tracked in a spreadsheet
- Press kit ready: hi-res product images, lifestyle images, founder headshot, brand overview, key facts sheet
- Founder story written: specific, emotional, with a clear hook (not generic entrepreneurship narrative)
- PR landing page built: capture emails from any coverage with a clear offer
- Podcast targets identified: 10-15 relevant shows, pitches drafted with 3 topic angles each
- Crisis communications plan drafted: acknowledgement template, contact list, escalation process
- Angle framework applied: identified 2-3 story angles from the six-angle framework
- Baseline coverage targets identified: which evergreen publications matter most for your category?
- Product seeding list built: 20-30 niche reviewers, YouTubers, podcast hosts (tracked in spreadsheet)
- Community-native media identified: relevant subreddits, Facebook groups, Discord servers, niche newsletters