Recently I posed this question to one of my mailing lists:
What’s keeping you from pitching the press?
So many makers know they should be pitching the press, but something is holding them back.
While many people site lack of knowledge* as a primary reason, another one that I hear frequently is the fear of rejection.
Whether it’s pitching the press, approaching stores, or applying to shows, fear of rejection holds a lot of people back. But here’s the problem with fearing rejection – rejection is part of the process.
A 100% success rate is pretty much unheard of regardless of what you are doing. You might pitch 20 media outlets just to have one pick up your story. Before any major tradeshow, I send out at least 500 postcards to stores and galleries. If I hear back from a dozen, I’m happy.
The problem is that we tend to look at rejection as personal. As if it’s somehow tied to our own self-worth. But rejection just means that your product isn’t the right fit for that particular publication/store/show at that particular time.
And it’s nothing to fear.
Instead of fearing rejection, how about embracing it as a natural part of the process? Think of rejection as weeding out opportunities that wouldn’t have been a good fit for you anyway. Let rejection help you hone in on what’s really right for your business.
What have you been putting off because you fear rejection?
*If knowledge on pitching the press, contacting stores, and other marketing efforts is what’s holding you back, I’ll be launching a home study version of my Marketing for Makers course sometime this summer. To make sure you’re the first to know (and to grab a really great discount) sign up for the mailing list below:
I have made a conscious effort this year to challenge myself. To savor the experience in the process and not let the fear of failure get me down. Life gets pretty boring if you stick with what you know and play it safe all the time. I’ve been having a blast and I’ve succeeded far more than often I ever expected. Yesterday I went down with a group of friends to NYC to answer the casting call for Project Accessory. We had a ball! However I have not mastered getting press. Yes, my name is Lisa and I’m afraid to contact the press. Maybe that’ll be one of my next challenges for myself.
Great post, Megan! I’m preparing just now for my first trade event in August and this is just what I needed to hear this week!
Thanks!
Vari @ Buttercup Ink xx
Great advice. Years spent as a writer mostly cured me of my fear of rejection, but every now and then it still rears its ugly head, and I have to beat it back down. LOL What I learned from all those years in a very competitive fiction market is that sometimes it is a matter of improving your craft and getting better, constantly challenging yourself and growing, but sometimes it is just the fact that your product, whether it’s a piece of jewelry or a novel, just isn’t right for that particular marketplace or publishing house at that point in time.
To be honest, I’ve had a lot less rejection since switching from writing to making jewelry, but rejection does still happen. I was recently turned down by two juries for two shows I wanted to participate in, but I have been juried into many others, so it has balanced out. There always seems to be so much jewelry at arts & crafts shows, but I don’t let that stop me.
Another positive from all those years of writing is that people can tell me to my face that they don’t like one of my pieces, or they prefer one over the other, and I’m a lot less likely to be offended. After all, taste in jewelry, like preference in fiction genres, is subjective.
As a former journalist my advice is to just go for it! Like Megan said, you have to send 500 to get just a little interest.
Half the time the reason the reporter (or whoever) doesn’t pick up your story isn’t because they don’t like your art. So much goes into what will get carried and what won’t – editorial calendars, target audience, having just done something too similar…and about an million other reasons.
Don’t take it personal and keep moving forward. Sooner or later the stars will align and you’ll get it right and you’ll get picked up!
I cite lack of knowledge coupled with perfection paralysis. For instance, if you don’t already have a list of contacts and you’re looking at the staff listing in any given magazine, to whom do you send your press kit/release? I would love to have a basic, step-by-step guide; a ‘pitching to the press for dummies’. I look forward to more on this topic – keep up the great work!