How do we get trade journalists to call us for comment?

Every month the same competitor seems to be quoted in the trade magazine your buyers read. When a new regulation lands, their founder explains what it means. When the sector's figures come out, their founder comments. Your team knows the subject at least as well. But nobody rings you.

The difference is rarely expertise. A journalist on a deadline knows that founder's number, knows they will pick up and knows they will say something clear and usable. That is a relationship, and it can be built deliberately, without a large agency or a famous name.

It matters more now, because trade coverage is part of what AI assistants read when buyers ask who to hire. In Muck Rack's May 2026 analysis of more than 25 million links cited by ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini, earned media made up 84% of cited links and journalism alone 27%, while paid content was 0.3%. Each quote in a trusted trade title is an independent mention of your firm of exactly the kind those assistants cite.

#Why do some firms get quoted and others never do?

Because journalists work under time pressure and go back to sources who have made their job easier before. Being quoted is less a reward for expertise than a reward for reliability.

A regulator publishes something at ten in the morning. The story needs to be online by early afternoon, with a comment from someone who can explain what it means. The journalist has perhaps an hour. They go first to the people they know will answer the phone and say something clear. The ones who respond get quoted, and next time they are called first. That is why the same names recur, and the pattern is open to anyone willing to be useful, quickly and consistently.

#Which journalists matter to a firm like ours?

The ones your buyers read, not the most famous ones. For most founder-led B2B firms, fifteen to thirty people is plenty:

• reporters and editors on the two or three trade titles your buyers read for work
• the regional business press, if your buyers are regional
• writers of specialist newsletters and hosts of podcasts in your buyers' sector
• one or two national journalists who cover the sector, as a longer-term aim

Read the last few months of each title, note who writes about your topics and who quoted your competitors. Keep a simple spreadsheet: name, title, what they cover, recent pieces, how they like to be contacted and every interaction. It is what stops a relationship going cold because nobody remembered the last conversation.

#Where do UK journalists post requests for comment, and what are the HARO alternatives?

In more places than they used to. Answering a request quickly and well is the best first contact there is, because you solve a problem the journalist has right now.

• #journorequest on X, Bluesky and LinkedIn. Save a search for the hashtag on all three, not X alone.
• ResponseSource. A UK service that sends journalist enquiries to your inbox. It is part of Pulsar Group, which also owns Vuelio, and is a paid subscription with a free trial (ResponseSource).
• The relaunched HARO. Help A Reporter Out is now run by Featured, and sources can subscribe free to daily media queries (HARO).
• Qwoted and Featured. Platforms where journalists post requests and experts reply. Qwoted is free to join.

Check one or two at set times each day and answer only the requests you can answer well. A weak reply outside your subject costs more trust than silence.

#How do we make first contact without pitching?

Start by being useful and ask for nothing. A first email that pitches your firm reads like every other email in their inbox.

#Step 1: Read their recent work

Read their last ten pieces: what they cover, the angles they take, the sources they quote.

#Step 2: Answer a live request

A good reply to a request posted this morning does more than any introduction, because it arrives when they need it.

#Step 3: Send a short note offering help

If there is no request to answer, send the no-pitch email below.

#Step 4: Follow their work and meet in person

Share their good pieces with a comment that adds something, and say hello at trade events. A short conversation with no pitch beats ten emails.

#What do journalists want from a source?

A clear, informed view, delivered quickly, from someone who understands how journalism works:

• Speed. Reply within the hour when they are on deadline, even if only to say you cannot help.
• A clear opinion. "It depends" is not a quote. Say what you think and why, in two or three sentences.
• Specifics. An example or a practical consequence for their readers.
• Candour. If you do not know, say so and suggest someone who does.
• No selling. A comment that plugs your services will be cut, and remembered.
• On the record. Give your name, role and firm, and assume anything you say may be quoted.

Say a change is announced to how employers must calculate holiday pay. A journalist needs someone to explain what it means for a mid-sized employer by two o'clock. The source who replies at quarter past eleven with three clear sentences and a phone number gets quoted. The source who replies the next morning with a link to their services page does not.

#How do I write a good reply to a journalist's request for comment?

Answer the question in the first line, in words their readers use, and keep it short enough to paste. Add your name, role and firm as you want them printed and a mobile you will answer; leave out attachments and links to your services.

#Template: a 60-word reply to a live request

Subject: Re: comment on holiday pay changes for mid-sized employers

[Name], the biggest practical change for a mid-sized employer is [one consequence]. The businesses most exposed are [who], because [reason]. The first thing to do this week is [one action]. Happy to talk it through by phone before two.

[Your name], [role], [firm], [mobile]

#Template: the no-pitch first email

Subject: Your piece on holiday pay

Dear [Name], I read your piece on the holiday pay changes. Your point about [specific point] matches what we see with [type of client] every week. I run [firm], which advises [who] on [subject]. If you ever need someone to explain a point or check a detail against a deadline, I am happy to help, on the record and quickly. My mobile is [number].

[Your name]

No attachment, no request for a call. The only aim is that your name is in their inbox when they next need someone.

#How do I become the expert journalists quote in my industry?

By being prepared, reachable and consistent for months. Journalists come back to the source who answered well last time, so make every answer easy to give.

• Know the recurring topics. Every sector has five or six subjects that keep coming back: a regulation, costs, skills, technology, a regular set of official figures. Write your view on each in plain sentences.
• Keep a comment bank. Draft two or three quotable lines per topic that your founder will stand behind, so a request means editing, not starting from a blank page.
• Name one spokesperson and a deputy. Journalists want a person, reachable by phone in the working day.

#Build a media page a journalist can use in two minutes

A journalist who finds you through a search or an AI assistant checks your site before calling. Put these on one page:

Then add schema.org Person markup for each spokesperson, using the same facts: name, jobTitle, worksFor, description, knowsAbout (their topics) and sameAs (their LinkedIn profile). Markup will not win coverage, and Google says its AI features need no special structured data. It helps search engines read the same biography a journalist reads. Keep your founder's LinkedIn profile saying the same thing.

#Is it worth paying for Cision, Muck Rack or Vuelio as a small firm?

Usually not at the start. For thirty journalists, reading the titles teaches you more than a database, and the request services cover most live opportunities. A database earns its place when you need hundreds of contacts across sectors or countries and someone will use it daily.

None of the three publishes a price list. Muck Rack says pricing depends on factors "including the number of users"; Cision and Vuelio ask you to request a demo or quote.

#How much founder time does this take?

Less than most founders fear, if it is a routine. In our experience a short daily check and a small weekly slot beat a burst of effort every few months.

For example, a routine might look like this (illustrative times):

#How do I prepare my founder for a press interview?

Agree three points, prepare for the awkward question and settle the terms before anyone speaks.

• Ask the angle, the deadline and whether it is a quick quote, a longer interview or recorded.
• Write three points, each with one example from your own work, and practise saying each in two or three sentences.
• Prepare answers to the two questions you least want asked.
• Agree terms before anything sensitive is said (see "off the record" below).
• Afterwards, send any figure you promised in writing. Do not ask to approve the copy.

#How do we pitch a journalist we already know?

Briefly, with a story for their readers, and with the grace to accept a no. Three short paragraphs: the story in one sentence, why it matters to their readers now, and what you can offer, such as data, a client willing to speak or an exclusive. If they pass, do not re-pitch the same idea in new words.

The strongest pitches rest on something only you have, such as your own data, covered in how to turn our own data into coverage in the trade press. Longer bylined pieces are covered in whether guest articles in trade magazines are still worth your time.

#How do we keep relationships going without being a nuisance?

Stay in touch every few months with something useful, and never make them feel chased. Send a report they might have missed or a contact for a story. Thank them when a piece is published, without asking for changes. Never complain that a quote was cut. Point out factual errors politely and privately. Respect their rules on gifts and hospitality. When they move title, stay in touch: the relationship moves with them.

#Do journalists use ChatGPT to find sources?

Some do, and it is sensible to assume more will. Muck Rack's State of Journalism 2026, a survey of nearly 1,100 journalists, looks at how journalists now use AI in their work.

A journalist who asks an assistant "who are the UK experts on holiday pay?" gets much the same names a buyer would. So the two routes feed each other: quotes give assistants evidence to name you, and being named puts you in front of journalists looking for a source.

#Why does this matter for AI answers?

Each quote is an independent mention of your firm on a trusted site, next to the subject you want to be known for. A founder quoted many times in the same terms becomes a name ChatGPT, Gemini, Copilot or Claude links with that subject.

Timing works two ways. Assistants that search the web live, such as ChatGPT search, Perplexity, Copilot and Google's AI features, can reflect a new article within weeks; answers from a model's own memory change only when it is retrained, which takes months. Recency counts too: in the Muck Rack study, more than half of the journalism AI tools cited was published in the previous 12 months, with citations dropping sharply after six months. A steady stream of quotes beats one big story.

Use the same one-line description with every journalist, and list your coverage on your own site. For the wider picture, see how to get ChatGPT to recommend your firm and whether ChatGPT trusts press coverage more than your website.

#What to do this month

1. List the fifteen to thirty journalists who cover your buyers' sector, with what they write about and how to reach them.
2. Write your view on the five or six recurring topics in your sector, with two quotable lines for each.
3. Save #journorequest searches on X, Bluesky and LinkedIn, and subscribe to one request service.
4. Build a media page for each spokesperson and add Person markup that matches it.
5. Send three short notes, with no pitch, to journalists whose recent work you have read.

#Frequently asked questions

#How long before a journalist starts calling us?

Expect months rather than weeks. Answering a live request well can lead to a quote the same day, but becoming someone they ring without prompting usually takes several useful exchanges. The firms that get there keep going through the quiet periods.

#Can we ask to see the article before it is published?

Generally no. Most journalists will not give sources approval over their copy, and asking can damage the relationship. You can offer to check technical facts or figures, which many welcome.

#What does off the record mean, and should we use it?

The terms are used inconsistently, so never assume. Many journalists treat "off the record" as information they cannot use at all, while "on background" usually means they can use it without naming you. Agree terms before you say anything sensitive, never afterwards. The simplest rule is to say only what you would be happy to see in print with your name beside it.

#Do we need a PR agency to do this?

Not necessarily. Journalists want the expert, so the relationships sit with your founder. An agency or adviser can build the list, prepare positions, spot requests and draft replies, but it cannot be the expert on the phone.

#What if a journalist writes something negative about us?

Respond calmly and privately. If it is wrong, send the correct information and ask for a correction. If it is fair, deal with the issue rather than argue in public.

If you want help building the list, preparing your founder's positions and spotting the requests worth answering, that is part of Reputation That Wins. The relationships stay yours. If you are not sure where to start, the free Growth Review gives you three fixes in writing.

#Sources