How to get into a journalist’s contacts book – and be the kind of person they want to speak to

Trainee journalists are taught the importance of maintaining a good contacts book.

That used to refer to a physical book containing the names and numbers of people they come across and might want to speak to again.

These days, that “book” might exist electronically in a host of ways, but the principles of cultivating good contacts are pretty much evergreen.

Journalists who take the trouble to scrupulously update their contacts book tend to find it pays off. You never know when you might want to speak to someone who used to be on the local council years ago, or who called you about a one-off story which unexpectedly becomes relevant again. (Reporters who don’t keep their contacts book up to date sometimes find themselves scouring notebooks or dairies from years ago for the number they should have kept handy.)

More commonly,though, the contacts book works as a directory of people who are knowledgeable about something and who can be called on to comment when that subject comes up.

The good and bad things about contacts books

While a contacts book is invaluable to a journalist, but there are some downsides that reporters need to consider as well.

When a reporter is writing about a specialist subject – whether it might be insolvency, employment law, the state of tourism, the red tape plaguing small businesses – it’s helpful to have the numbers of people who can reliably help us.

On the other hand, I think reporters should make a conscious effort to expand their contacts as well as going back to those who have been helpful in the past. Doing both those things keeps stories fresh and hopefully ensures some diversity of perspectives in what we write.

But most journalism is practised under pressure of deadlines. So the reliable contact who can respond in a timely and helpful manner will be highly valued.

What makes a good contact

A journalist will be massively happy to know you if you can do a few of the following things:

Comment with knowledge. If you’ve spent a significant chunk of your life learning about your subject, you will be have the authority to explain it to other people, or comment on trends in your industry.

Express a strong opinion. Journalists need to hear forthright views. If you’re asked to comment on the state of your industry or the economy in general, it’s helpful if you can put it straightforwardly. You're not forbidden from expressing uncertainty, or from sometimes saying "On the one hand there’s this, but on the other hand there’s that”. But strong opinions make good copy.

Have some data. If you can voice a view about how brilliantly or terribly aerospace, farming or family finances are doing, that’s great. But if you can back it up with some data – in forms that can be easily quoted and understood – that’s better still.

Respond in a timely fashion. A reasonable reporter doesn’t necessarily expect you to comment right this minute, but they might still be working to a pretty tight deadline. If you can find out when your thoughts are needed and respond as quickly as possible, you will be among the journalist’s favourite people. It’s fine to say that it’ll take 15 minutes or an hour, or even that you won’t be able to help on this occasion, but try not to say you’ll call back in two minutes unless you really will.

Be honest. If you’re speaking for your business or industry, there will be a tendency to “talk up” the prospects for your sector and keep your peers happy. That’s fine if it’s accurate, but most people can spot the kind of positive talk that is divorced from reality. Readers tend to know spin when they see it.

Don’t self-promote. If you’re quoted as a source of expertise your field, that may well help establish your reputation and authority. But if you use the opportunity to slip in a mention of your great value products and services, you’re likely to undermine your own credibility.

Represent other people. A single voice in an industry is fine, but if you represent a larger number of people – either because you have a role in some trade association, or just because you speak to a lot of your peers – you’ll have extra authority. That doesn’t mean, though, that we never want to hear from the mavericks who say something different from what most people in their field think.

Be human. I’ve mentioned before that all news stories need to be about people. If you’re talking about an unfair area of law, you can speak broadly about some of the heart-breaking cases you’ve seen. If you’re commenting on business regulation, you can describe the pressure you’ve seen people under. If you’re commenting on how busy the summer has been for the tourism industry, you can use some facts and figures but also tell how your people have been rushed off their feet.

Be concise. You may know a great deal about your subject, but if you reel off a dozen insights, you might not feel the journalist has represented you well when they quote two or three of them. Try to boil down your message to the essentials, without misrepresenting it. (It’ll also give you an idea how hard a journalist’s job can be!)

Know what’s coming up. If you can spot the big issues in your area of expertise and point them out to journalists ahead of times, you will help establish yourself as an authority. If you were the person who flagged up the significance GDPR, for example, when it was still on the horizon, you’ll probably have more gained more recognition than if you were one of the hundreds putting out press releases on the day it came into force.

How do you get into a journalist’s contacts book?

If you want a journalist to know about you, I’d suggest a short email introducing yourself.

You could explain where you’re based (for a regional publication), what your specialism is and how you can respond quickly to requests for comment. Do a little homework and make clear your relevance to the journalist's area of interest - otherwise your message might be overlooked when the journalist is deleting emails a bit zealously.

You might mention something that’s on the news agenda right now, or will be coming up soon, and suggest it might make a story. You could point to your previous speeches, articles or blog posts that represent your distinctive point of view.

And although some journalists say they don’t have time for meetings without a clear purpose, personally I like to say yes to a coffee or a shortish Zoom call to get to know someone and their perspective on their industry. I think it helps both parties understand each other and bear each other in mind.

Wrapping up

These approaches may not pay off overnight, but they can help build a relationship and establish you as someone who knows what the media need.

What expertise do you have that could be of interest to other people, as well as establishing you as an authority?

It might be that the world needs to hear from you and has been missing out.

• I write regularly about sharing your news with the media. Follow the hashtag #FitToPrint to ensure you don’t miss out.