Esther Shein, Journalist focusing on technology, shares her side of tech news. Esther explains what it takes to be worth writing about. She also weighs in on what she sees as key differences between Journalists and Bloggers.
Links referenced in the show:
The music in the show, Have Mercy — Big Walter Horton, was provided by Mevio’s Music Alley.
Transcription
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Esther 00:00:21 Hi. My name is Esther Shein and I’m a freelance writer and editor specializing in covering business and technology. And today, I’d like to talk about covering technology and business from a journalist’s point of view.
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Ryan 00:00:36 This seems like a really interesting topic. It’s almost like a follow-up to a couple of episodes back when I was talking to Davide about, you know, some of his recent successes in getting coverage. I think some of the things that he said struck people as novel when he said, basically, you know, sharing his story was something that a lot of journalists wanted, right? Because it helps them do their job. And, you know, really got my wheels spinning on: what is the other side of that interaction? So I think it would be really nice to have you on here to kind of share that.
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Esther 00:01:06
Sure. I get a lot of my story ideas from pitches that I receive from PR people. And the best pitches that I get are the ones that are succinct and have an unusual story to tell, perhaps, about how technology has enabled a business to be more competitive or one that has seen compelling ROI from using a particular type of software or just doing something different to make their business and their employees more productive. It’s great when the pitch comes with an actual user of the technology because we, as journalists, really tend to shy away from interviewing the vendors themselves. Our readers just much prefer to, well, they identify with their peers and they much prefer to hear how an actual company is reaping the benefits of using a particular type of software or just how they’ve found using something that makes them more competitive and reach out to their customers and clients in a more effective manner.
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Ryan 00:02:22
Well, that seems like the advice to show, don’t tell, right? If you’re just talking to the owner/the vendor of software, they’re probably going to tell you more abstract potential use cases. But when you really can talk about what users are doing with this thing, it’s a lot more interesting because it’s focused enough that people don’t have to fill in the gaps, right?
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Esther 00:02:44
Right. And vendors also have a very specific agenda and, of course, they’re going to tout themselves and present themselves in the best possible light. And I think that readers are pretty savvy and not necessarily trusting of whether a particular technology really does solve the business need that they say it does. So in reading about what their peers are doing, I think it’s far more powerful and a company is much more likely to pay attention to a particular product if they see that it’s already a known entity and that there are others out there using it and, as I had said before, reaping the benefits from it and they want to jump on the bandwagon too.
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Ryan 00:03:30
So, basically, what I’m hearing is if someone wants to have an interesting story or potentially, you know, be covered by these things, ultimately, they have to have a unique product that has users and is solving users’ needs. It sounds very encouraging because it sounds like people need to focus on making a good product and that will help them get coverage.
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Esther 00:03:51
Right. And, of course, everybody’s budgets are stretched and are getting cut and everybody’s making do with less. So when a product has some compelling ROI and some clear-cut results, that’s something that’s going to get on somebody’s radar. And, of course, it’s something I’m going to pay attention to and be something that I’m going to want to pitch to one of the handful of publications that I write for on a regular basis.
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Ryan 00:04:24
What’s your process like? You say that you pitch stories to publications. Do the briefs ever come the other way too or how does a typical or is there such a thing as a typical workflow for where stories come from for you?
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Esther 00:04:37
I wish there was a typical workflow and I wish it wasn’t feast or famine with me, but that’s, unfortunately, the life of a freelancer and I’ve just come to accept that. Some months I’m so busy I can’t breathe and then other months I’m having to go out and pound that proverbial pavement. I have a few wonderful editors who throw stuff my way from time to time because I have established relationships with them and I’ve been working with them for a long time now, but otherwise, I just scour lots and lots of sites. I look at various newswire services, I subscribe to a lot of RSS feeds in order to find stories that I can pitch either to publications that I’ve already worked for or ones that I would really like to work for.
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RP: Wow. So newswires. So we’re not just all wasting our time if we submit to these things.
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ES: Absolutely not. But keep them short and sweet because no journalist is going to take the time to sit there and read a three or four page press release; I can tell you that.
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RP: It’s all about the elevator pitch, right?
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Esther 00:05:48
Yeah. And there’s actually another site that I’d like to mention. You know, one of the challenges as a writer, I find, and this is why it’s so great when you get a pitch from a PR person or, you know, just anybody who would like me to write about something, why it’s so great to have a user willing to talk is because it’s very difficult sometimes to find sources. There is a great Website out there that I have found to be a tremendous tool for me when I’ve really been stuck or desperate in terms of trying to find sources for my stories and most editors require a minimum of three users of a technology or a service in order to make it a good, meaty story. There’s a site called Help A Reporter Out and the acronym is H-A-R-O: HARO. And journalists and PR people can both use this site and when I have a topic that I’m stuck on in terms of finding sources, I can go on there and post an inquiry and I can tailor that inquiry to whomever I’m looking to speak with, be it academic types, analysts, authors, or companies that might be using a particular product that I want to hear more about. It’s really been a tremendous resource.
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RP: That’s interesting. So it’s almost like, you know, craigslist for journalists.
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ES: Kind of. Yeah, except you don’t have to spend any money. Well, I guess with craigslist, you don’t either. But it’s free and PR people can also go on there and look for pitches from people like me and it’s a great way for them to put their clients in front of me.
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RP: Yeah. That’s great. We’ll definitely link that up. I’m sure you’ve just sparked a lot of people’s interest just with that. Like, “Really? There’s a thing like that?”
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ES: And then I’ve heard from another one recently. I think they’re pretty new. It’s called NewsBasis. And there’s another one I use from time to time called ProfNet.
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RP: Okay. Great. And we’ll put all those in there. So you’re definitely leveraging the Internet a lot. Do you tend to write for the Internet as well or do you, I guess it all comes down to where do you write? On atoms or bits, right?
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Esther 00:08:13
I find that most of my clients are Web-based. Some of them still do have print pubs and from time to time my stories show up in the printed versions as well. I’m not really sure what criteria they use to decide if a story is going to make it into the print version as well as the Web, but I find, and I’m sure this comes as no surprise, that more people tend to like to read their news and feature stories and look for product information on the Web. And I’m much more apt to hear from somebody commenting on my article or perhaps wanting to suggest a follow-up topic or something ancillary that I might be interested in right there and then on the Web as opposed to taking the time to shoot me an e-mail.
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Ryan 00:09:04
So a professional journalist that writes a lot of articles for the Web. I think this starts leading to the question of so where does journalist stop and blogger start? Like, do you see there being a big difference in the role between these two or, I mean, is that just, like, old thinking or is there place for both? What do you think?
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Esther 00:09:26
I think there is a place for both and I think that there’s a very clear delineation between a reporter and a blogger. And I think that the easiest way to describe the difference is if you’re looking at a newspaper and you see columnists vs. hard news reporters or even feature reporters. Those of us on the reporting side are supposed to be, and I emphasize supposed to be, fair and impartial and present both sides of an issue and do some research and interview several different sources before coming to a conclusion and making sure that all the points of a particular issue are covered. Bloggers, on the other hand, tend to be more colorful and opinionated and have something on their minds that they really want to espouse and just want to let people know what it is that they’re thinking and why, perhaps, they should consider another point of view; that being, their own.
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Ryan 00:10:35
It’s interesting that the way that you phrase it, especially, you know, to hear a professional journalist say you don’t treat it like a caste system or something like that. You just say that these are two different ways to tell a story. And it almost sounds like you’re saying what makes a good blogger makes a bad journalist, but that doesn’t mean that it’s any less valid.
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Esther 00:10:56
I don’t think that a blogger can’t also be a journalist, but I think that they need to be very careful about emphasizing that they are writing a blog vs. writing a straightforward news or feature story. When you blog, you don’t necessarily have to present the opposite side of the coin on a particular issue that you have an opinion about because it’s your opinion. I think that when you write a news story, you’d be hard-pressed or it really wouldn’t be a news story without presenting all sides of a particular issue as well as finding some independent comment from somebody who doesn’t have a vested interest in what you’re writing about as well. And I know that for pretty much all of the publications I write for, I always have to find that independent voice because, let’s face it; everybody’s got an agenda, right? So you’re always going to hear what somebody wants you to hear, but if you talk to somebody like a tech analyst from one of the multitudes of firms out there from the Gartners of the world down to the, you know, the more niche, boutique-y types of firms, you’re going to get that independent perspective that news stories really need. So I would say, in summation, that I really think that there is a place for both and I think that the world is actually a better place because bloggers and columnists exist. And bloggers are really just an extension of newspaper columnists in my mind. They have an opinion on something and, generally, these people are articulate and they write very well and it’s nice to present that different side of an issue. For example, in the Microsoft buying Skype case, to look at something that’s so recently been in the news. It’s interesting to me to read these blogs on the implications of the sale and what Microsoft’s plans are for Skype and people speculating on whether it’s going to become a paid service now or if it was merely done to keep Skype out of Google’s hands. So I like that I get that added perspective, but I certainly don’t look to the bloggers for my accurate information. I’m not saying that they’re inaccurate, I just think that they, again, have an agenda, they have an opinion (a very strong opinion, which is why they’re blogging in the first place). So I think that it’s a nice enhancement to read blogs and hear what the buzz is after you read about the news itself.
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Ryan 00:14:01
It’s interesting also for me to hear you say that, you know, you less channel this as, you know, professional vs. unprofessional. And you say, well, bloggers are very similar to columnists. And it’s almost like when someone says the difference between journalist and blogger is just a false comparison just because it’s just not apples to apples at that point.
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Esther 00:14:25
Right. And I can tell you that I have never blogged. And the only thing that I would say that is something to be a little bit leery about is if somebody is trying to wear both hats. Clearly you’re going to find out what a blogger’s opinion is about something that they’ve just written a news story about and it might get me thinking, well, how fair and impartial can they really be when they clearly have an opinion about, you know, it’s almost like the guilt vs. innocence thing if you’re a reporter covering a trial. Are you going to want to read a blog on, you know, the reporter’s opinion of whether somebody committed a murder or not or do you just want them to present the facts of the case. So I think that bloggers need to be careful if they’re going to step over -- or I should say reporters need to be careful if they’re going to step over to that blogging side and just, you know, make sure that they’re careful what they blog about if they’re going to be writing so-called news stories on the same topic.
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Ryan 00:15:37
Well that’s interesting to me. So you’re saying that a good journalist doesn’t have an opinion or just that they work really hard to not let it change the orientation of their story?
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Esther 00:15:46
I think that they have to absolutely, unequivocally work very hard not to let their opinion seep into a news story. They’ve got to be fair and impartial, they’ve got to present all sides of the issue, they’ve got to do lots of research, and they’ve got to make sure they understand the issue that they’re covering. Bloggers simply don’t have that same set of rules because it’s strictly opinion and observation.
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Ryan 00:16:18
So when you’re coming up with stories, do you have a specific beat, I guess is where I’m going with this? Or is it technology at large or are there certain areas that you find yourself either more interested in or just more well-versed in because you’ve read up on it more?
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Esther 00:16:36
I used to have beats (so-called beats) when I worked on staff at some tech trade publications like PC Week back in the late ’90’s, which is now eWeek. But now I’m sort of a jack of all trades. And I find that I am at a bit of a deficit because that doesn’t allow me to become a so-called expert in one particular area of technology. I have really covered the gamut and I’m proud to say I have managed to learn a lot in a very short amount of time about whatever topic it is I’m writing about. The value-add that I offer my clients is that I don’t just crank out stories like a machine. I really take the time to research whatever topic it is I’m writing about, whether it’s virtualization or cloud computing or cloud robotics or mobile apps, I really make sure that I hone in on and read whatever I can and interview (sometimes I over-interview) a wide number of sources so that I make sure I’m very comfortable writing about what it is that I have been commissioned to do. I also like that because it has taken me out of my comfort zone and it has forced me to learn something about different technologies that I may tend to shy away from sometimes, like things having to do with storage and the data center and networking, infrastructure, that sort of thing. It’s forced me to learn something about those topics. I tend to like anything to do with technology and education. I think it’s very exciting, the inroads that have been made in schools through the use of technology; so that’s a particular interest of mine. I am very excited about all the mobile applications that are becoming available and how people are really moving away from bigger and bigger to smaller and smaller and they want applications at their fingertips anywhere/anytime. I also like writing about the 3D world as so many products and applications are becoming 3D-enabled glasses-less, meaning without needing to wear special glasses to view 3D; I think that’s a very exciting area as well.
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RP: Wow. So it sounds like you cover the gamut from infrastructure to consumer electronics.
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Esther 00:19:25
Yes, I really do. I get contacted by a wide range of publications and when you’re a freelancer you don’t like to say no to anybody. So I really do immerse myself in whatever it is I’m covering at the time. And I just want to clarify when I say I don’t turn anybody down, I previously also said that I don’t crank out stories like a machine. In a good month, I’ll have 3-5 assignments on my plate at a time of varying length and I find that I’m very comfortable with that amount of work. It’s not too too much, it’s not overwhelming, and I’m very organized and I manage my time very well. And when you work for yourself and you work out of a home office, you have to learn to be very disciplined and sit down at that desk at, you know, 8 or 8:30 in the morning and just start cranking.
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RP: I think a lot of the listeners can identify with that, right? The need for self-discipline. I think there’s a bit of overlap with, you know, startups.
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ES: Absolutely. And that said, I like to do all of my research ahead of time. I am one of those people who writes well on deadline or close to deadline. I’m not sure why that is, but that’s just always how I’ve worked my best.
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Ryan 00:20:48
So with such a broad range of topics that are sort of, you know, in the scope of what you might write about, to get on your radar, what’s the criteria? I know earlier you talked about, you know, be unique, be credible, have some users. I mean, it seems like there’s probably something else that would have to happen first to kind of just grab your attention before you kind of vet those principles.
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Esther 00:21:14
I like having first right of refusal and with certain PR people that I have relationships with, when they send me something, one of the first things I’ll ask if it’s a topic I’m interested in pursuing is, “Have you pitched this to anyone else? Has anybody picked this up already?” Because, if so, chances are we’re not going to cover it. But I also like when, I’m not sure if I said this earlier, but when a pitch is very honed in and there’s not a lot of vendor and PR-speak in there and I have to really go digging to find out what the news is. And a product or a pitch doesn’t always have to be about something unique. It just has to be about something that’s either just occurred or something that we haven’t heard a lot about already or something that takes a different approach or an angle. Just something that people are going to want to read that’s really going to solve a business need and help people do their jobs more effectively. I mean, that’s really what it’s all about for everybody. Save time, save money, you know, create better workflow, more efficiencies, things of that nature.
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Ryan 00:22:33
So even with a very technical slant on your writing, it’s less interesting for you to tell a story about, say, features as it is business benefits.
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ES: Correct.
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RP: Which is really where most people probably should be focusing their marketing efforts anyway because that’s ultimately what their potential users are interested in.
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RP: Exactly. It’s got to have some sort of business value and solve a particular need and help a company save time, save money, and make their employees more efficient.
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Ryan 00:23:08
I think it’s refreshing to hear things like this. All too often, there’s rumors, be it SEO or different marketing, kind of, grey techniques that seems like people encourage you to do things that aren’t necessarily good for your business, right? Like, well, if you tell this kind of story, maybe it’ll be more likely to get picked up or, you know, search engines find this or whatever. But it’s nice to hear you say, “If you’re going to write a story about something, basically, your credentials are: have a unique product with a user base that’s getting their needs met and be current and topical and have a nice story that’s based off of what you actually bring to users and not necessarily how.” It really is just saying have a good product, you know, focus your company on meeting the needs of your users, and odds are people will want to talk about you because that’s an interesting product.
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Esther 00:24:01
Right. And it also really should be something that you just haven’t seen beaten to death in a whole bunch of other publications. Like, I can’t tell you how many stories I see, you know, I subscribe to lots of different news channels and research firms, newsletters and, you know, I just think that it gets old after a while to see the same old, “Well, should I move my data to the cloud?”
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RP: Right.
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Esther 00:24:30
You know? I mean, it’s just been done to death and it’s time to come up with a new angle as to, you know, “Despite the recent Amazon outage here’s why it’s still safe and secure to move XYZ applications to the cloud.” That’s far more likely to get somebody’s attention.
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Ryan 00:24:52
Well, that’s great. I guess, do you have any last things, like, say, you know, our target audience typically, I think, smaller companies, developers, more on the independent side. Thinking about those kinds of shops, any advice that you’d offer to them to say here’s really how you could focus your company to make it more likely for someone to write a story about you?
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Esther 00:25:14
I think it doesn’t matter whether you’re a small business or an independent developer. I think if you have an interesting story to tell that you haven’t seen written about to death and you really believe firmly that it’s going to solve a particular business need or enable somebody to conduct their business more efficiently and effectively and save time and save money and enable you to work with, you know, these reduced workforces, I think that’s something that people are going to be interested in, it’s going to strike a chord, and it’s something that people like me are going to pay attention to. There’s a huge market for small businesses out there. I write for a publication specifically focused on small businesses and their needs are not that different from, say, more enterprise-wide or global companies. But yet they do have unique needs. They tend to have smaller budgets, well, not tend; they most certainly have smaller budgets, they have smaller workforces, and they are more resource-constrained than the larger companies. But, you know, when it all comes down to it, the issues tend to be the same. And they also are going to pay attention to products that are going to help them save time and money and solve a particular business need and make their workforce more efficient and help them do their jobs better.
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RP: Well, I thank you very much for your time. This has been great.
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ES: Thank you. It’s been a pleasure.