Navigating Freelance Pitches While Balancing Persistence and Rejection

The freelance market is experiencing a tremendous amount of growth, with Forbes suggesting the potential emergence of a “freelance revolution” in the near future. The magazine also mentioned a global survey revealing that 90% of corporate leaders acknowledge using freelancers and have intentions to increase their hiring of freelancers in the future. Even with all of these options opening up for freelancers, they may still find that they are having difficulty breaking into it despite consistently pitching their stories.

A change in mindset and method could be all that is standing in the way of this goal.

Clear Intentions and Selling Yourself

Conducting thorough research is a great start to making the pitch and best communicating how you as a writer would be an asset to your publication of choice. A few bits of info that are useful to know before pitching are knowing who the target audience is, the general tone of voice employed in the publication, and who it is you are sending the pitch to (searching on LinkedIn is useful here). Also, the journalist should let it be known that they are a storyteller of a high standard, and they know what stories to tell.

At the same time, it is a good idea to keep it concise and stray away from long-windedness. Tina Rosenberg, the co-author of the “Fixes” column in the New York Times, gave some handy insight on this, “Think of your pitch as a movie plot — one that you’re able to sum up in a sentence or two ... If it takes a long time to summarize the pitch idea, you might want to rethink the ‘story’ you’re trying to tell.” In short, tie it all in, employing your personal background along with your specific knowledge base, and you have a solid foundation.

Building Relationships

Being connected to the editors of the publication the journalist is pitching to is the best way to have a pitch accepted—but having an existing relationship with those editors is often not the case. If you are not so fortunate, an alternative is to examine a publication’s masthead and article bylines to identify the individuals on the publication’s team and tailor the pitch to a particular individual, addressing the appropriate editor by name. Even if the pitch is not accepted, presenting an idea to a magazine becomes an initial step in forming a helpful connection with the publication’s staff.

Persistence and Rejection

Persistence truly is key to a pitch successfully leading to a concrete future with a publication. Unfortunately, it can even take years to get into a desired publication while taking jobs that are not as desirable, but it is crucial to persevere. Rejection is a part of the experience. It is arguably the most challenging aspect of the process to deal with and it is necessary to develop a thick skin. To combat the disheartening feeling, journalists can turn to the things that perk them up the most, whether it be exercise, watching their favorite show, or listening to the music that makes them forget all their troubles for a while.

Putting It All Together

The path to success in freelancing involves a strategic combination of persistence, adaptability, and relationship-building. Freelancers must find the intricate balance between pitching, facing rejection, and repeatedly refining their approach to carve out a meaningful and enduring presence in competitive freelancing. One of the best qualities a successful journalist can possess is tenacity, and if they do not let the challenging process take that away, accomplishing their ultimate goals is inevitable.