The Propel Media Barometer: Q1 2022
Here at Propel, a new year means new data; The Q1 2022 Propel Media Barometer is finally here!
This report reveals original research findings about the earned media landscape of 2021, based on nearly 1.4 million real pitches that communications professionals sent to journalists last year alone.
Earned media naturally saw tremendous growth and importance across all industries in 2021. As trade shows, outdoor advertising, events and experiential marketing all saw declines as a result of the pandemic, earned media saw increased relevance to businesses, government departments and charities looking to communicate their message.
This report will walk you through a data-based exploration of media relations in 2021 so you can best tailor your earned media strategy as we enter a new year.
Did you know that the annual average journalist response rate to media pitches went from 5.21% in 2020 to 3.53% in 2021? This marks a staggering 32.25% reduction in the annual average journalist response rate to pitches.
Continue reading to learn more about the report.
What is the Propel Media Barometer?
The Propel Media Barometer is a quarterly data report that we share to help communications professionals with their craft. It is our way of keeping a pulse on the communications industry and sharing actionable insights to make public relations doable and attainable for all.
Because of Propel PRM’s email integration features, we are uniquely able to anonymously aggregate data from our users’ media pitches to arrive at original findings about journalist open & response rates, pitching preferences, the best (and worst) times to pitch, and so much more.
For our reports, we analyze data from over one million real pitches to journalists! From here, we find out what the media is looking to cover (or not), and what proves to be the best ways to engage with it and its people.
As a PR person, I’m sure you’re wondering:
- What are some of the most popularly pitched topic categories across all comms pros?
- How have the average journalist open & response rates to pitches changed from one year to the next?
- On which weekdays are journalists most engaged with pitches?
- What are some of the most pitched media outlets? How do journalists at these outlets engage with PR pros?
The Q1 Propel Media Barometer has the answers to all of these questions, and more.
Here are just a few highlights from the latest report:
The Top 10 Most-Pitched Topic Categories
Below, you’ll find the most-pitched topic categories from 2021. See the percentage of total annual pitches that fell within each topic category as well.
The 2021 Average Journalist Open and Response Rates
In 2021, the average journalist open and response rates have decreased rather dramatically compared with the 2020 rates. See the change in the annual average journalist open rate to media pitches:
And the change in the annual average journalist response rate:
This means that 2021 saw a staggering 32.25% reduction in the average journalist response rate to media pitches.
The Most Pitched Media Outlets of 2021
Which media outlets are companies prioritizing in their pursuit of earned media coverage? Here are the outlets that Propel users pitched the most over the course of the year:
Download the full Q1 Media Barometer report here.
