PR Interview: How to Pitch Canada's Strategy Magazine

Contact Information
Jesse Kohl
Writer
Media in Canada / Strategy magazine
http://www.mediaincanada.com
http://www.strategymag.com/
Suite 500, 366 Adelaide St. W.
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
M5V 1R9
jesse(at)strategy(dot)brunico(dot)com
416-408-2300, ext. 255

Background
Jesse Kohl joined Media in Canada in September 2006.

Circulation & Readership
Nearly half of Strategy’s readers are client-side marketers (48.8%). Others include agencies (23.3%) and media sellers (7.8%).

Strategy’s 2007 stats:
- Total circulation: 14,421
- Client marketers: 7,038
- Advertising agencies: 3,355
- Media sellers: 1,119

Media In Canada’s 2007 stats:
- 100,000 monthly impressions
- 30,000 unique monthly visitors
- 38% hold executive-level positions

Newsletter 2007 stats:
- 5,800 subscribers
- 60% open at least one issue per week
- 20% open every issue

Editorial Coverage
Strategy’s editors are extremely selective about their content. Besides featuring marketing techniques in Canada, the magazine focuses on trends and developments useful to Canadians from all sources, so don’t shy away from pitching stories on American products. But, don’t assume that your product launches will be covered, Kohl warns. “Not all marketing is innovative.”

Web Site
Readers can browse archived articles either by category or by past issues, which can be accessed at: http://www.strategymag.com/articles/

The 10 categories include Regional Marketing, Retail Marketing and Brand Consulting & Design. You can find the magazine’s Editorial Calendar here: http://www.strategymag.com/advertising/pubsched.pdf

How to Pitch
The magazine’s reporters and editors seek original and actionable stories with the most impact on their readers. Strategy looks for “facts about marketing success and strategies that are innovative, creative and, hopefully, include specific measurable results,” Kohl says.

Email is the best way to reach them. Make sure you send your news item before the press release goes out. They are not interested in theory; their stories are much more pragmatic. Strategy wants to give readers information they can benefit from, not an analysis of what that information means to the industry.

Do not follow up your email inquiries with phone calls or faxes. Someone will respond if he or she is interested in your pitch. “Response times vary according to how closely the pitch fits the requirements for editorial, whether time will be needed to gather additional information or artwork on a daily deadline and how the potential story lines up against other planned stories in terms of importance,” Kohl says.

One tip: if you do hear back from a Strategy staffer, don’t put him or her on speakerphone. It’s a big pet peeve for Kohl. “It makes any recorded interview less pleasurable to transcribe.”

Contribute to Strategy
The magazine’s sources are mostly marketing departments and agencies. Here are a few suggestions on how to contribute:

- Don’t recommend stories that you think fit based on their editorial calendar. They prefer to decide what fits for their audience. Instead, email them your breakthrough news and marketer profiles.

- Your research findings, product placements and launch news can also be sent to Media in Canada, their daily newsletter. While the magazine is geared toward marketers, the newsletter is designed for all media professionals. It focuses on topics, such as ratings impact, spend trends and audience measurement tactics. Readers can subscribe to this free service here: http://www.mediaincanada.com/subscribe/

- Make sure you share your pitches with the editors a month or so ahead of the release. Either email or fill out a form here: http://www.strategymag.com/feedback/newstip.cgi

- If you have video that you would like to share with Strategy’s readers, email it to mmaddever(at)brunico(dot)com. Note: the video has to be of interest to the magazine’s audience. For instance, one Strategy Screening Room example showcases the marketing of Subaru Tornado’s special effects.

Strategy’s Sponsored Supplements
The magazine also publishes monthly supplements on various topics. Past supplements have focused on themes that included Exhibit Marketing, Specialty Television and Destination Online.

Meet Strategy’s Editors
You can find the magazine’s editors at “selected shows and conferences in Toronto,” Kohl says. Also, drop by some of the shows they organize, such as Agency of the Year, Understanding Youth, Understanding Women, Understanding Men: Metro vs. Retro and The Brand Experience.