Publicists
Press outreach for publicists
Press outreach is your bread and butter. The difference between a publicist who gets results and one who doesn't often comes down to systems. A repeatable process for sending promos, tracking engagement, managing follow-ups, and reporting results lets you handle more clients without dropping the ball.
Running press campaigns for multiple clients simultaneously
During a busy month, you might have five clients with overlapping release schedules. Each one needs a different promo sent to a different subset of your contacts with different messaging. Without a proper system, things fall through the cracks. Promoly keeps each client's campaigns separate. Set up sender profiles for each client so promos go out under their brand. Schedule sends in advance so you're not scrambling on deadline day. The timeline view lets you see all upcoming campaigns at once, so you can spot conflicts before they happen. If two clients are targeting the same journalist in the same week, you can stagger the sends or prioritise the stronger pitch. This kind of coordination is impossible when you're running campaigns from a personal email account.
Managing journalist relationships at scale
Your media contact list is the product of years of relationship building. Promoly helps you protect and develop it. Every interaction with a journalist is tracked: which promos they opened, which tracks they played, which campaigns they ignored. Over hundreds of campaigns, this data becomes incredibly valuable. You can see which journalists are most responsive to your pitches, which ones only engage with certain genres, and which ones have gone cold. Use this to segment your sends intelligently. Your top-tier contacts (the ones who open everything and frequently result in coverage) get the best exclusives. Your mid-tier contacts get standard press sends. Your cold contacts get occasional campaigns to test whether they're still active.
Handling exclusives and premieres
Exclusives are one of the most powerful tools in a publicist's kit. Offering a premiere or first listen to a key publication can be the difference between coverage and silence. But exclusives require careful management. When you offer an exclusive through Promoly, send it as a separate campaign to just that journalist. This keeps the track out of your broader press send until the exclusivity window has passed. Track whether the journalist opens and plays the track. If they don't engage within 48 hours, you might need to follow up or consider offering it elsewhere. Keep notes on which publications have received exclusives recently. Spreading them around builds goodwill across your contact list rather than favouring the same outlets repeatedly.
Building client reports that justify your retainer
Every publicist knows the anxiety of sending a monthly invoice to a client who isn't sure what they're paying for. Campaign data removes that uncertainty. For each client, compile: total journalists reached, open rate, play rate, download rate, feedback received, and coverage secured. Promoly gives you the first five automatically. You add the coverage yourself. Present this data alongside a list of every piece of coverage: publication name, article type (review, premiere, feature, interview), date, and URL. This combination of outreach data and coverage results shows the client exactly what their investment produced. Clients who see this level of reporting renew contracts. Clients who get vague updates don't.
Press Outreach checklist for publicists
Set up sender profiles for each client
Client name, artwork, brand colours, and bio. Promos should look like they come from the artist, not your PR firm.
Segment your press contacts
Tag by publication, genre, response history, and tier (top, mid, cold).
Build a release calendar
Map out all client releases for the quarter so you can plan outreach without conflicts.
Upload tracks and prepare press kits
Have audio, artwork, bios, and photos ready before you start writing emails.
Write specific pitches for each client
Match the artist's voice. A punk band and a jazz trio need very different email copy.
Schedule sends in advance
Don't wait until the last minute. Set up campaigns days ahead and review before they go out.
Manage exclusives carefully
Send exclusive offers as separate campaigns. Track engagement and follow up quickly.
Follow up based on data
If a journalist played the track, follow up. If they didn't open, try a different approach.
Compile monthly reports
Combine Promoly stats with coverage results. Present both to your client.
Review and clean contacts quarterly
Remove bounced addresses. Update journalist roles and publication affiliations.
Quick tips
Stagger sends for overlapping clients
Don't hit the same journalist with three promos in one day. Space your client campaigns out by at least two to three days.
Keep notes on journalist preferences
Some journalists prefer short emails. Others want a full press release. Note these preferences in your contacts and write accordingly.
Use engagement data to negotiate retainers
If your campaigns consistently show 40%+ open rates and strong play rates, that's evidence of a well-maintained contact list. It justifies premium pricing.
Frequently asked questions
Can I send promos from my client's email address?
Promoly campaigns go out from Promoly's servers with your client's brand name as the sender. Recipients see the artist name, not a generic PR address.
How do I prevent the same journalist from getting too many promos?
Use Promoly's contact management to see each journalist's recent activity. If they received a promo from you in the last week, hold off on the next one.
Can I share access with my PR team?
Currently, Promoly accounts are single-user. If you have a team, you can set up workflows where one person manages the account and shares reports with colleagues.
What happens if a journalist marks my promo as spam?
Promoly monitors deliverability. If a contact marks your email as spam, they're automatically removed from your list to protect your sender reputation.
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