Key takeaway: Press publications build trust that advertising cannot buy. To earn coverage, give journalists a genuinely newsworthy story, pitch it briefly to the right reporter, and make it easy to publish with quotes, facts and good images. Paid publications have their place, but earned coverage carries more weight with readers, investors and search engines.
When a respected newspaper or business website writes about your company, people see it differently. A feature in a national daily or a leading business platform tells customers, partners and investors that someone independent found your business worth talking about. Those articles also stay online for years, appear in Google searches for your company name, and increasingly shape what AI tools say about you.
What counts as a press publication
Press publications range from a short news item about a product launch to a full feature on your founder. They can appear in print newspapers, online news sites, trade publications, radio and television. Broadly, there are two types:
- Earned coverage is written because a journalist decided your story was worth telling. It carries the most credibility.
- Paid or sponsored publications guarantee your story appears, usually marked as advertorial or sponsored content. They are useful for announcements that must run on a set date, but readers know the difference.
Most successful PR campaigns in Nigeria combine the two: paid placements to guarantee key announcements reach the right outlets, and earned coverage to build lasting credibility.
What journalists actually want
Journalists receive far more pitches than they can use. Muck Rack’s State of Journalism 2026 survey offers useful guidance on what gets their attention:
- 70% said clear relevance to the topics they cover is what they value most in a pitch, yet 43% said relevant pitches are rare.
- 69% prefer pitches under 200 words.
- 62% prefer a one-to-one email rather than a mass mail-out.
- 78% prefer to receive pitches before noon.
- 58% value access to interview sources, 40% value original data or research, and 37% value high-resolution images.
- 86% said at least some of their stories began with a PR pitch.
The lesson is simple: a short, relevant, well-timed pitch with something genuinely new to say has a real chance. A long, generic press release sent to everyone does not.
Stories that get published
- Original data. A survey of your customers, a market trend you can measure, or figures from your own operations.
- Expert commentary. Your view on a policy change, a budget announcement or an industry development, offered quickly while it is in the news.
- Milestones with impact. A new market, a major hire, an investment or a partnership, explained in terms of what it means for customers or the economy.
- Human stories. How your business solved a real problem for real people, with permission to name them.
How to get started
- Decide what you want people to know about you. Pick two or three key messages and stick to them.
- Prepare a press kit. A short company profile, founder biography, high-resolution logo, photos and contact details, ready to send.
- Build a target list. Identify the publications your customers read and the specific journalists who cover your sector.
- Write a short, specific pitch. Explain the story in the first two sentences and why it matters to that journalist’s readers.
- Follow up once, politely. Then move on; persistence beyond that damages relationships.
- Share and reuse coverage. Post it on your website, social media and newsletters, and link to it from your sales materials.
Measuring the results
Count more than clippings. Track how coverage affects website visits, searches for your company name, enquiries and sales conversations, and note which outlets bring the most valuable attention. We explain how in measuring the business impact of PR.
Evaluate Media handles PR and media relations for businesses in Lagos and across Nigeria, from writing and pitching stories to securing publications through our PR Network. Book a free 30-minute review to discuss the story your business should be telling.
Source: Muck Rack, State of Journalism 2026, as summarised by the University of Minnesota’s University Relations team (April 2026).
Collins Oforgu is the CEO of Evaluate Media, a marketing and media agency in Lagos. He has spent more than ten years in sales, marketing and media in Nigeria.