3 PR Stories Indie Beauty Brands Must Pitch in January
I absolutely love independent beauty products and I know I’m not the only one.
Most people want to choose more products from small businesses rather than international conglomerates. People love when their purchases support someone with a passion instead of a faceless mainstream company. Indie beauty brands have that personal touch, a story, and are often really good products in their own right.
And since there’s a trend of people are loving indie beauty brands, the media loves them too.
To start the year out right, I have three story ideas you can use to pitch your indie beauty brand to the media right now.
And if you don’t know how to pitch your business and products to the media, you can always contact me for DIY PR training.
Let’s get started!
Short Lead: Winter Dry Skin Remedies
Are you itchy? Are your lips chapped? Skin dry?
It’s winter, so if you’re like me, you probably said yes.
Dry skin is so annoying during the winter and it affects pretty much everyone. Something as universal as dry skin in the winter is news if you have a solution for it.
In your pitch, explain that everyone has dry skin this season and that you have the remedy.
If it makes sense, write just about the specific problem your product solves. For example, if you are pitching a winter lip scrub, you can talk just about chapped lips. But you can also suggest that your product fits into the full winter dry skin story as well.
Be sure to highlight what your product can do, the benefits, and what makes it different.
You’ll want to send this pitch ASAP. We’re already in winter, so target publications that have short lead times. This would be blogs, the online version of magazines, local TV, etc.
Medium Lead: The Best Gift for Galentine’s Day
Galentine’s Day has become a big thing in the past few years, especially after Leslie Knope made a big deal of it in an episode of Parks and Recreation.
If you don’t know what Galentine’s Day is, I’ll let Leslie explain,
“What's Galentine's Day? Oh, it's only the best day of the year. Every February 13th, my lady friends and I leave our husbands and our boyfriends at home and we just come and kick it breakfast style.”
Breakfast is optional. The important part of Galentine’s Day is showing appreciation for your BFF’s.
I’ve had a lot of success pitching self-care products such as bath bombs and face masks as Galentine’s day presents.
In this pitch, highlight that Galentine’s Day is celebrated on February 13th and explain why your product is a good gift for friends. Make sure you make this distinction. Most of us already keep shampoo, conditioner, body soap, lotion, and makeup. A Galentine’s Day gift should be something special that your friend wouldn’t normally treat herself too.
If you start pitching for Galentine’s Day in early January, you might be able to get a spot in regional magazines in addition to all the short lead publications and outlets.
Long Lead: Skin Cancer Awareness Month
May is Skin Cancer Awareness Month, so the media will be doing lots of stories about taking care of your skin.
If you sell a sunscreen or anything with SPF in it, it’s pretty obvious that that’s your pitch. In addition to pitching your product, you can also offer advice such as how to apply sunscreen, how much, when you need to reapply, or what chemicals ingredients people should look for or avoid in their sunscreen.
And there’s room for more!
Even if you don’t sell sunscreen, there are a lot of other products that are worth highlighting for Skin Cancer Awareness Month. Fake tanners are a good substitute for tanning. Ultra-moisturizing crème and products with aloe vera can help heal a sunburn. Just take a look at your product line and ask yourself how they can be part of skin cancer prevention.
May might seem a long way away right now, but for national magazines, they’re already working on it. For this reason, you should start sending your Skin Cancer Awareness pitch in January as well.
Related: Rules for Packaging Successful Soap & Cosmetic Products