You send a pitch to a producer, editor, writer, or podcast host, and then comes the reply you have been hoping for: “Please send me more information.”
That is exciting, and it should be. You got their attention after all, but authors and experts sometimes read that response as, “They love the idea. I’m practically booked!”
Well, not quite. While something might look and feel like a yes, it isn’t a real yes until it is absolutely confirmed.
“Send me more information” means they are interested enough to keep looking, which is a very good thing. But now you have entered another stage of the decision-making process, and this is where understanding what is happening behind the scenes can make a big difference.
The media person may now be asking themselves whether you are really the right expert for the story. Do your credentials fit what they need? Is the angle strong enough, can you explain the idea clearly, do you have useful talking points, are you experienced at doing interviews? And are there clips they can watch or listen to in order to see how you come across on camera and if you can speak your ideas clearly and succinctly. No one really has to take a chance on someone anymore. And finally, they may also be considering several other people at the same time.
In other words, interest is important, but interest is not the same thing as a solid booking.
As both a publicist and a podcast producer, I was on the receiving end of many pitches every day, and I often needed more before I could make a decision. A pitch might catch my attention, but I still needed to know whether the person behind it would actually make a good guest.
Media people are not just choosing great show ideas. They are choosing reliable and interesting guests to tell the stories.
That distinction is important because you can have excellent credentials and a terrific book, but if your materials are confusing, your proposed talking points are vague, you take days to respond, or there is nothing available showing how you communicate, you may cause friction and make the decision harder than it needs to be. And when media people are busy, hard decisions have a way of becoming no decisions.
So when someone says, “Send me more information,” make it easy for them to keep saying yes. Send what they asked for promptly, and do not bury them in everything you have ever created. If they ask for a bio, send the appropriate bio. If they want talking points, send clear talking points. If they ask for interview clips, choose your strongest and most relevant ones. If there is a particularly good article, statistic, or piece of research that strengthens the idea, include it.
And if you are not sure what they mean by “more information,” it is perfectly reasonable to ask what would be most helpful. The goal is not to impress them with the sheer volume of material you have. The goal is to send them the pieces of information that will help them make a decision.
Media Darling Moment: When media asks for more, give them exactly what helps them take the next step.
This is also why I encourage authors and experts to have their media materials ready before they begin pitching. Once interest appears, momentum can take over. You do not want to spend the next two days trying to locate a high-resolution headshot or hunting down the one good interview clip you remember doing three years ago. Those things should already be waiting.
Because sometimes “send me more information” becomes “let’s do a pre-interview or a pre-chat,” and sometimes that becomes “can you do the interview tomorrow?” There are steps between the pitch and the appearance that most people never see, and learning to recognize those steps can help you respond in a way that keeps things moving forward.
So the next time you see those wonderful words, “Send me more information,” enjoy the moment. You got their attention. Then help them make the next decision easy.
Warmly,
Joanne
P.S. Remember, let’s take it one step at a time!
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