1515 Broadway
New York, N.Y. 10036
Phone: 212/536-5336
Editor's Note: If you want a brief summation of what this publication's all about, consider that this magazine's tag line is "The Newsweekly of Marketing" and you've got its business philosophy under wraps. But pitching to this trade magazine, which boasts a circulation of 26,582, is another story entirely because that requires far more depth and analysis. We suggest you cozy up - and get familiar with a stack of Brandweek issues - before you get bold and wind up your best pitch.
| Sections |
News Coverage has included news ranging from The Snapple Lady to the Tamagotchi craze. Middle-of-the-book articles are more featury. The magazine also has its fair share of obligatory personnel news and tantalizing industry buzz. |
| Editors |
News Editor: Matthew Grimm Address: 1515 Broadway New York, N.Y. 10036 |
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Days to Contact/ Days to Avoid |
Middle-of-the-book stories are decided months in advance and production deadline is Tuesday for the Monday publication date. Grimm meets with reporters/editors putting together news stories on Wednesday. Thursday and Friday are the true crunch days.Remember, it's tough to get any of these journalists on the phone since they are hunting down and writing stories on a daily basis. |
| Methods | Pitches should come to Grimm by snail mail unless it's something breaking and closing the magazine's on the horizon. But keep in mind: this is a reporter-driven magazine so most of the pitches are routed to the writers who cover specific genres of news. |
| Comments |
You might as well shoot yourself in the foot than try to place a follow-up call to Grimm - much less a call at all. That's because you'd better have a "How's-the-family-doing?" relationship before you decide to touch base with him on a regular basis.
"It [what they're looking for] seems like a no-brainer," Grimm says. "We're not a clearinghouse for news - what we run is strictly defined and is proprietary info. that's never been seen or read about before...that's what we broker in for our readers." |
| Sections |
News at large: Fast Food Seizes on licensing/restaurants/new product news and also hits on stories with some kind of toys/snacks/softdrinks breaking-news flavor. |
| Editors |
Editor at Large: Karen Benezra Fax: 212/536-1416 |
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Days to Contact/ Days to Avoid |
There are no good or bad days since Benezra puts together pieces weeks ahead of time and those that have to come together in just days. |
| Methods | Benezra prefers paper - that means faxes or snail mail, but like most editors/reporters we've come across, she's not big on calls. Why? Because only about 5 percent of what you're pitching her way can be used for a story, background or as a launch pad for a long-range piece. |
| Comments | We've come across editors who have been snooty and those who have just been plain rude. Benezra's neither - she's just frank. Benezra, who said that what she covers will soon be rounded out to have more of an entertainment angle as well, advises that Brandweek isn't a news "round-up" for what's already in the marketplace; it's "a forward-looking" publication. |
| Sections |
Features Stories have touched on topics as diverse as whether "The Drew Carey Show" or "3rd Rock" is faring better as well as a somewhat flippant look at how salon-only haircare products have been "diverted to the shelves of mass merchants." |
| Editors |
Features Editor: David Kiley Fax: 212/536-1416; E-mail: [email protected] (Note: Kiley was recently named Features Editor and will continue to cover the wine-and-spirits beat. He won't, however, be covering the automotive industry in the future.) |
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Days to Contact/ Days to Avoid |
Plan for your pitches to arrive Monday or Tuesday during typical 9 a.m.-5 p.m. working hours. |
| Methods | Kiley wants faxes or pitches sent through snail mail. He also likes e-mail but that's best used when you have some kind of rapport with him. He ends up deleting about 25 e-mails (what he calls spam) every day, so yours could end up in the electronic waste bin if it's not news that's really worth his attention. |
| Comments | Kiley says: "Tell every PR person on the planet, don't call me and say such and such, like 'Did you get the press release I sent you?' and then call me back and ask 'Are you going to use it?' or ask 'Is there anything else you need?' - if there's anything else I need, I guarantee they'll hear from me. Sometimes I get two or three or four calls from someone and it's maddening." |
Editorial Contacts At Brandweek
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Editors
Editor in Chief - Craig Reiss 212/536-6570 Executive Editor - Gerry Khermouch Editor - Mathew Grimm Managing Editor - Chuck Stogel Editor-at-Large - Karen Benezra Editor-at Large - Terry Lefton Features Editor - David Kiley |
Reporters/Beats
Cosmetics, Pharmaceuticals - Sean Mehagan Senior Reporter, 212/536-6544 Apparel - Becky Ebenkamp Travel Industry, Consumer Electronics - Shannon Stevens, Food Marketing - Stephanie Thompson New Media, Telecommunications - Entertainment Industry - T.L. Stanley |