One of the coolest things about working in public relations is forging strong working relationships with press. Recently, we were pleased to begin such a relationship with Modern Marketing Exchange, an online publication and weekly newsletter focused on innovation and new technology for marketers and filled with short, punchy and relevant pieces. Editor Agata Smieciuszewski was good enough to answer our questions.
How do you characterize Modern Marketing Xchange? MMX is a place for today’s marketers to come and learn about what’s new and exciting in the industry. We also send out a weekly newsletter to our audience of brands and agencies. My goal for the site is to bring the news that you may have missed to you in a condensed and quick way, with the main points outlined in a clear way.
What kind of stories are you looking for? What constitutes a great pitch for you? A great pitch for me is a current news-based or thought leadership article that addresses an issue facing modern marketers today. I want to inform marketers about what they may have missed and educate them on how major technology changes affect the industry. I love news that deals with upcoming major events (for example, Super Bowl ad season is huge for marketers) or new technology (new updates on social channels, a new Apple product, VR technology, smart cars, etc.)
What are the top qualities you look for when considering content submissions (byline articles)? I love getting submissions from people who want to contribute to MMX! I want it to feel like a collaborative environment where experts share information with each other. The three main prongs of my editorial mission for MMX are as follows:
Keep it short: People have less time to waste these days, and their attention spans are way shorter. Publications have to be mindful of this and adapt their strategy to reach the audience in the best possible way.
Keep it current: With the onslaught of news from all angles, it’s important to sift through to what’s really important and affecting marketers today. (for example, MMS is huge for marketers) I want news that matters.
Make it visual: Images add a new and interesting element to an article, and can add a lot of information in a small amount of space. I love including images, diagrams, infographics, or any other visual elements to a piece that will make it more valuable to the reader.
What kind of content do you avoid? Self-promotional content that serves just to sell to my audience. Nobody likes to be tricked into reading ad copy when they think they’re reading informative articles. I want to make sure that reading MMX is worthwhile, and that people come away feeling like they learned something that matters.