Please provide a brief introduction to yourself & Goodto.com
I’m Steph the Family Editor at Goodto.com, a family website with over 7.7million global monthly users, and 3million UK monthly users and 11.5 million monthly global page views. We pride ourselves on supporting women throughout their life, we champion them to believe in themselves and trust their instincts. Our content - and the content that we collaborate on serves to inspire and empower our audience. I’m also a coffee-with-frothy-milk lover, avid Netflix binger, and mum to four-year-old Ted, I live in Kent with my husband and son.
Give us the inside scoop, what is your favourite part about working as Family Editor?
Speaking to ALL the experts and - as a mum myself - discovering the huge amount of fact from fiction and myth from evidence-based knowledge. Basically it’s everything I wish I’d had found when I was a brand new mum and trying to figure it all out - alongside trying to like my husband again (this one is a post-natal biggy that no one seems to talk about!)
If you could give a PR advice on what to do to get your attention and secure coverage with you - what would it be?
1. Know and understand the audience we talk to. As a brand we are open to new ideas and angles, but ultimately the main thread in all that we do is helping parents. Parents are sleep/time/cash poor. Get my attention with anything that will save mums and dads on all of these things. At Goodto.com we provide content that has a huge impact on money and life two of the biggest strands for anyone.
2. Make it all skim-readable and bite size. Treat the first paragraph in every email as an‘elevator pitch’. As my first editor at the Sun told me ‘Pinch the reader don’t stroke them’. 2a. BUT also include all the information/images I may ultimately need then and there.
3. Stats, latest research and expert opinions are always welcomed.
4. Always offer samples as authentic journalism means we’ve tried and tested the product before telling our audience to part with their money for it.
5. If your email is informative with strong quotes or tips then know that I've starred and saved that for future use. I delete nothing that is of value and will be in touch when I need more.
What’s the most memorable approach you’ve had from a PR (good or bad)!
Some of the campaigns that PRs deliver on are amazing, clever and so creative! I think the most bizarre one was when Instagram was really starting to come into its own the Amaro filter was crushing it - and I received a mug with what they thought was my dog on it. They’d lifted it from my insta page. I think the personalised angle was supposed to be cute, but it felt… a bit creepy.
Pre covid, anytime anyone sends cupcakes in or food in general it’s always a hit. People ALWAYS ask who sent them.
Tell us something fun that people don't know about you?
Ich weiß nicht: I grew up as an Army kid, mainly around Germany. But I can (embarrassingly) only speak GCSE level German. Apart from how to order an ice cream; because, well… kid priorities.
OR
I once closed down City Airport: I used to row and one freezing January was part of a four who capsized a boat in the docks right next to City Airport. We ended up climbing out of the water airport side. And ran - through the snow - across a live runway to get help. Closing the airport down as armed officers greeted us thinking it was way more sinister than four very cold very wet rowers.
@stephanielowe.me
@Stephan71429551