If content is king, then it’s about time we crown collaboration the queen.

By now, we all understand the value of quality content — in terms of SEO, traffic, engagement, readability, and so on. But, only recently have PR people begun to rethink our uber-competitive nature. And, we’re discovering that working together leads to better results for our clients.

For example: How many of you have seen a HARO query, and thought “Hey, that would be a perfect fit for X.” If X is another PR person, technically they’re a competitor. I don’t know about you, but when I first started my career, I never would have shared a lead with a competing agency. But, now I don’t think twice about giving someone a heads up if I see a HARO that might be relevent to them or their clients. If nothing else, it’s good karma, right?

That got me thinking. What if we took this one step further and worked together to craft better pitches? Whether you’re pitching a trend, or a human interest story — two (or more) resources are better than one. Journalists are being asked to do more with less — which means they often don’t have time to chase down interviews. Already, some PR people realize this and are finding ways to help journalists (again, think HARO). Another way to help busy journalists? Instead of just pitching your client, provide reporters and bloggers with multiple sources.Within mid-size and larger agencies, this kind of “packaged pitching” is already taking place; however, freelancers, boutique agencies and small businesses don’t always have these kinds of resources available.

Enter Pitch with Me, a new, free online service (in beta). The idea is simple: Help PR people collaborate to discover potential resources that can be incorporated into media pitches. Participating is easy:

• If you’re working on a pitch and need a resource, submit your query through a simple form on the Pitch with Me site. Just provide your contact info, a general description of the media outlet, an overview of the pitch and the type of resource you’re looking for.
• If you think you or your client can be a resource, check the homepage of this site to see if you can fill a need, or follow @pitchwithme on Twitter, which will automatically tweet submissions. If you can fill a need, contact the poster and begin collaborating to develop a strong packaged pitch.

Better pitches should lead to better results (read: happier clients). And isn’t that what it’s all about?

What do you think about this different approach to media relations? Are you interested in collaborating with other PR people to come up with stronger pitches?

With nearly 10 years of PR agency experience, Heather Whaling recently launched her own communication firm, Geben Communication. Fusing strategic thinking, strong writing skills and creativity, Heather delivers results-driven PR, social media and marketing to small businesses and nonprofit organizations. She is also the creator of Pitch with Me. Connect with her on her blog, Twitter or via email at heather [at] gebencommunication.com.

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