Weekend Edition: AARP/Parade print opps + Web MD, Coastal Grandmas & Walking Tips
The latest & greatest on what I'm sourcing for right now
Here I am with another weekend edition. This past week was sooooooo busy. My inbox got so full that I spent half a day today going through emails. Whew! Let’s see if I have anything fun to add for the week. Well first of all, here’s this.
Does anyone else make their husbands take these photos? He’s sitting next to me right now and I just said, “I need a picture to include. How about this?” He said “No” and then reluctantly said “Fine.” So that’s us at the LA County Fair recently-ish, with my husband’s blessing-ish to post this (that just made him laugh).
Shout out to Dry Farm Wines who makes SUPER clean wines that are VERY delicious. Had a few glasses this week and what a perfect stress relief that was. Just finished the most recent season of Working Moms. Anyone else love that show? “Jazz boy tattoo” - If you know, you know. :-) And my favorite day treat as of late has been the Four Sigmatic hot chocolate. Just wanted to give some love to a few products who have really fueled my week.
I have also had some really great Lunch & Learns sessions lately (thanks to all the amazing agencies I have had the pleasure of talking to) where I do agency presentations on working with writers. That includes everything from tricks to make your pitches work (a few simple tricks can make a massive difference!), how to stand out on places like HARO/Qwoted, how to land top tier publication placement and how to make the product/person/thing you are pitching relevant. If you haven’t booked one of those with me yet, I’d love to chat with your agency.
Here is some recent feedback I’ve received on those:
“Thank you so much for taking the time to speak to the team today! Everyone really enjoyed it and learned so much. Hearing this info directly from a writer is so helpful, and really gave the team the inspiration they needed to get creative!”
“Thanks again for yesterday – so fun to hear everything from your perspective and some great actionable advice for all of our staff when it comes to pitching.”
“Wanted to say a personal thank you for your time and the thoughtfulness put into today's conversation. Dozens of useful tips for the whole team.”
“What a great session! Thank you for taking the time to share your expertise with our team this morning. I’m an earned media junkie and am always fascinated to hear straight from the source. Love learning about what writers love and hate about receiving pitches.”
Feel free to email me for more info on these hour-long session.
Now onto the fun stuff. I’m sourcing for a few stories right now. Here’s what I need.
AARP Bulletin
I am working on a big cover story for AARP Bulletin on 75 Instant Health Boosters and will need experts to provide some fast and proven ways (each tip should be something a reader can do in 5 minutes or less) to Spark More Energy, Boost Your Brainpower, Improve Your Immunity, Upgrade Your Moods, Feel More Rested, Protect Your Heart and More. I am looking for experts to provide tips for things that would fit into the following categories (open to other category suggestions if you have a tip that is super important that we should know about).
Build a Stronger, Healthier Heart
Control Your Blood Pressure
Look and Feel Leaner and Fitter
Slash Cancer Risk
Build a More Powerful Brain
Sleep Longer and Deeper
Dial Up Your Energy Levels
Drop Unwanted Pounds
Add Years to Your Life
Protect Yourself from Colds, Flus and Covid
Improve Balance and Flexibility
Stabilize Blood Sugar
Bolster Digestive Health
Reduce Your Risk of Dementia
Dial Down Your Stress Levels
Boost Your Mood
Keep Your Eyesight and Hearing Sharp
Give Your Hormones a Lift
We need these tips to really capture this moment (so not looking for just evergreen tips). What are learnings from the pandemic that can be applied to our overall health? How has our health changed (for example, has weight—and with it markers of inflammation like cholesterol and blood sugar— surged over the past two years) and how can we combat? What are the unique stressors on us in this moment and how can we combat? What new tips can be tied to studies are out there that are changing the ways we are doing things?
I would love to have experts submit some tips. Here is a story I did with a similar format that should give you an idea of the structure and what I’m looking for:
https://www.aarp.org/health/healthy-living/info-2021/60-health-habits-to-try-now.html
Must be experts in those fields, can’t be tied to brands like supplement lines, etc. for this one. Think MDs, RDs, therapists, dentists, trainers, hormone experts, eye doctors, hearing doctors, neurologists, etc.
Web MD
I am doing a story and looking for some experts to discuss a study that found that: “A person's height impacts their risk of multiple diseases. Tall stature increases the risk of peripheral neuropathy and certain skin and bone infections.” Would love to connect with a few MDs to discuss.
Parade Magazine
Looking for celebrities who play pickleball to provide quotes on why they love the game.
Brookdale’s blog
Looking for experts to comment on 2 stories:
What Is a ‘Coastal Grandmother’? Everything You Need to Know About This New Fashion Trend
7 Ways to Boost Your Walking Workout
Thanks all. You can email me at NCPajer@gmail.com, tweet me @NicolePajer and all that fun jazz. If you check out my Twitter, you’ll see that I’m pretty pumped about hitting 100 rides on the Pelton yesterday and getting a t-shirt to commemorate that moment. Haha. That’s another fun thing that happened this week. Looking forward to diving in on these stories. And thanks in advance to those who sumit.
ox, Nicole