Hello There
Missed last week’s Q4 Strategy Live? Catch the replay here.
Check the PR calendar for this month’s key dates and Requests for timely opportunities.
Keep an eye on the Gift guide database for upcoming deadlines. We have 46 gift guides open and waiting for your pitch - you can check deadlines by filtering recently updated.
THIS WEEK:
Editor workshop: How to get your products in the online Christmas gift guides this Q4
📅 Thursday, 25th September | Missed it? Catch the replay.
We’re sitting down with Victoria Evans, Founder & Editor-In-Chief at City Kids Magazine, to find out what makes a gift guide product stand out, when to pitch and the mistakes that get pitches ignored. Join live here when the call starts.
COMING UP:
Onboarding call
📅 Tuesday, 30th September | 🕤 9:30am
Join live here when the call starts.
Rosie & team PR Dispatch
Current Newsjacking Topics
Olivia Culpo's 'fifth wall' taps into one of the year's biggest trends – proving the ancient design technique is ever fresh →
Why Gen Z could transform the UK’s small business landscape →
Primark drops chic Art Deco homeware – right as Pinterest predicts the style will dominate this autumn →
Jump on relevant trending topics to get your brand into the conversation. Find out more about newsjacking here.
In an Hour This Week
Ready, set... Q4
Q4 is especially crucial for most eCommerce brands. With Christmas and peak sales season approaching, you’ll want to maximise product visibility. Use the Strategy Planning resource to align your pitches with key seasonal dates and awareness days. What products or profile angles will be most relevant - are your asset and imagery ready?
In last week's Q4 Strategy Live Rosie talked us through a PR strategy plan for Pro member Molly Mahon and gave each of our members who applied for the Strategy audit a hook to get them started. Get ready to feel inspired and watch, learn and gather some ideas for your own brand. You can catch the replay here.
Christmas Gift Guide Checklist & Hooks
Christmas is in full swing. This checklist has you covered, from timelines and must-have assets to punchy hook prompts and ready-to-use templates to help your pitches stand out.
What to Do This Week
-
90% of your PR efforts should be proactive.
WHAT:
Pitch to 5+ ‘Proactive Opportunities.’ Across product placement or profile press.
Follow up on last week’s pitches.
Why? Journalists often check their inboxes first when looking for products or businesses to feature.
-
Core requests
Press requests offer great opportunities, though journalists often check their inboxes first, so proactive outreach is key. Around 10% of PR involves responding to these fast-turnaround requests.
Gift guide requests
Christmas gift guides ramp up from July to December. Dedicate extra time to these during the festive season.
.WHAT:
Check both core and gift guide ‘Request’ pages.
Only respond to relevant requests to ensure you are building positive press relationships.
Why? You’ll instantly increase chances of being featured because the press are actively looking for that certain product, comment, experience or opinion.
-
The press often features brands without replying, so track potential coverage and quickly share mentions across your channels to maximize impact.
What the Press Are Working on in September
Long-Lead
JUL
AUG
SEP
APR
MAY
JUN
OCT
NOV
DEC
Short-Lead
APR
MAY
JUN
JAN
FEB
MAR
JAN
FEB
MAR
SEP
JUL
AUG
OCT
NOV
DEC
Daily & Online
JAN
FEB
MAR
APR
MAY
JUN
JUL
AUG
SEP
OCT
NOV
DEC
Recently Updated
Current Request Opportunities
Current Gift Guide
Requests
Academy+ September Highlights
AI prompts
Our AI prompts are here to help you come up with press-worthy angles, write subject lines that get opened, and tweak your pitch in seconds.
Christmas checklist & hooks
Christmas press is in full swing. This checklist has everything you need to jump in, assets, timing, and punchy hook prompts to make your pitch stand out.
Monitoring coverage
As we gear up for festive PR, make sure you’ve got media monitoring set up so you never miss a piece of coverage.
Scroll. Click. Stay Ahead.
Drowning in admin? 14 hacks to take back control
Guardian
September has always carried that back-to-school energy, inspiring productivity hacks. From inbox resets to smarter diaries, to bring focus and a sense of calm.
The 2025 Pinterest Autumn trend report
Autumn is bringing more than just pumpkin spice. Check out Pinterest’s latest report to see what’s trending this season: from beauty, fashion, food and homeware.
Brand awareness + performance = BFFs
Tracksuit
Latest research from TikTok and Tracksuit shows that brands people already know get nearly triple the conversions of those they don’t. Download the report here.
