REEF: Media Lists, Community Management and Pitching Journalists

Part of my job at Reef was to monitor brand and product media placements, create media lists and pitch journalists, all using the Cision platform.

Part of my job at Reef was creating media lists comprising of journalists and contributors from about the nation and world to correspond with upcoming product launches or stories. For example, I created a media list of journalists and writers to correspond with International Beer Day. I would later send them a pitch using the Cision tool proposing articles or media placements claiming that the Fanning, Reef’s beer-opening sandal, was the perfect International Beer Day accessory.

I also used HARO (Help a Reporter Out), to track opportunities for Reef to earn media placements. For example, I spent time finding all of the “back to school” roundups and sent pitches for which Reef product lines would make the best back to school choices.   

In addition, I worked with a rep from Cision to modify the algorithm used to only come up with Reef-related stories. We ran into a problem where the word “reef” was constantly used online in the contexts of coral reefs and aquariums, and every time it was, Cision brought it to our attention. Due to the fact that this made it hard for us to find the stories that really mattered to the brand, I took time devising qualifiers that ultimately made our results much more accurate and useful.