During the Christmas break we secured national media coverage for our long-standing client, MS Trust.

The story - about a midwife from Hampshire who had been diagnosed with MS shortly after recovering from breast cancer - first landed as a New Year feature in The Mirror online, referencing MS Trust four times.

This single piece of national coverage led to more than 20 separate online regional articles and social media posts across Reach publications.

We could have pitched this story directly to a staff reporter, but we made a deliberate decision to work with a freelance journalist we know and trust.

Here’s why:

• One of the key advantages of working with freelancers is motivation: they are paid per story and are therefore highly invested in seeing strong ideas land.
• Freelancers regularly pitch directly to news and features editors, which makes it more likely that their emails will be picked up and their ideas seriously considered.
• When a pitch doesn’t land first time, they will often try to rework it, find a new angle and try to place it elsewhere.

Ongoing newsroom cuts mean there are more freelance journalists in the market than ever before, so it’s well worth making sure they’re part of your media planning.