How to Build a Media List

If you want people to notice your idea, product, service, startup, nonprofit, or business, building a media list is a key step. The media, when used correctly, is one of the most powerful tools for creating buzz and shaping the story around your brand. Just think about why billionaires like Jeff Bezos bought The Washington Post for $250 million, or why Patrick Soon-Shiong, a biotech billionaire, bought the Los Angeles Times for $500 million. In the same way that billionaires acquire media outlets to influence public opinion, you can create a media list to ensure your brand’s message reaches the right audience.

What is a Media List?

A media list is simply a list of media outlets that you want to reach out to. It's the starting point for getting the word out about your brand. You would create a spreadsheet and add the media outlets you're targeting. Then, you find the journalists and editors at those outlets who decide what gets published.

Our platform offers a free directory of popular media outlets that can save you time. Instead of starting from scratch, you can use our directory to find thousands of media outlets, making it fast, easy, and reliable.

Why Earned Media Matters

Earned media is when your brand gets mentioned in articles, blogs, or news stories without paying for the exposure. This kind of coverage can bring valuable traffic to your website, which shows up in analytics tools like Google Analytics or Matomo as "direct traffic." It's just one channel, along with others like SEO, paid ads, and social media, but it's a big one.

According to Cision, companies that use earned media see a 5.6x increase in website traffic and a 25-40% boost in customer engagement compared to those relying solely on paid media. If you're not building a media list and reaching out to journalists directly, you’re missing a huge opportunity to grow your brand.

How to Get Started

You can start building your media list by visiting our free directory. It provides the websites and company LinkedIn profiles of media outlets, helping you identify where to reach out. From there, you’ll need to research to find the journalists and editors at those outlets.

We also offer a one-and-done, done-for-you solution with our premium media lists, which include media contact information for journalists, editors, hosts, and other media professionals, complete with verified emails, phone numbers, and LinkedIn profile details. You can save days or even weeks of research time. We've done the work for you, providing quality data at an affordable price with fast delivery.

Using earned media to spread the word about your brand can be a game changer. By building a strong media list, you’ll have the power to control your brand’s story and reach a much larger audience.