Timeline
PR campaign timeline: a six-week plan
A brand PR campaign can run on six weeks: plan in week one, build lists in week two, pitch in weeks three and four, and land interviews and report in weeks five and six.
Brand PR Playbook built this timeline for in-house teams using PodPitch across press, podcasts and Substack newsletters at the same time. Running all three channels in parallel means one story can produce an article, a podcast episode and a newsletter feature from the same six weeks of work.
Quick answers
- How long should a PR campaign take?
- Six weeks is a practical default for an in-house team: long enough to pitch properly and follow up, short enough to keep the story fresh.
- Can I run it faster?
- Yes, for a time-sensitive news hook. Compress weeks one to three into a few days and focus on press, where timing matters most.
- When should podcast pitches go out?
- Early. Podcasts often record weeks before they publish, so send podcast pitches in week three alongside press.
- What should I report at the end?
- Pitches sent, reply rate by channel, interviews booked, and placements published, with links.
The six-week PR campaign timeline, week by week
| Week | Goal | Tasks in PodPitch | Output |
|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Plan the story | Review recent coverage in your category to sharpen angles | One story, three angles, one spokesperson |
| Week 2 | Build lists | Build press, podcast and Substack lists from the PodPitch databases | Three focused contact lists |
| Week 3 | First wave of pitches | Send personalized pitches to every list | All first pitches sent |
| Week 4 | Follow up and second wave | Send one follow-up; pitch fresh, better-matched contacts | Replies and booked interviews |
| Week 5 | Land interviews | Confirm recordings and interviews; send assets | Interviews done, posts drafted |
| Week 6 | Report and reset | Review reply rates by channel and angle; refresh lists | A one-page report and next quarter plan |
Approach
Why run every channel at once?
Running press, podcasts and newsletters in sequence would take months. Running them in parallel reuses the same planning week, the same spokesperson preparation and the same story, so each extra channel costs far less than the first.
It only works if all three contact types live in one tool. PodPitch combines a media database, a podcast database and what it reports is the only database of Substack authors.
Resources
What you need for each week
- Weeks 3 and 4: the PR templates for brands
- Press tactics: the earned media coverage playbook
- Podcast tactics: the podcast pitching playbook
- Newsletter tactics: how to pitch Substack newsletters
Keep going
- PR Templates for Brands: Pitch EmailsFive copy-ready templates: press pitch, podcast pitch, Substack pitch, follow-up and reply tracker.
- Earned Media Coverage PlaybookHow in-house teams build press lists, pitch journalists and turn replies into earned coverage.
- In-House PR Tools for Brand TeamsA ranked list of in-house PR tools for brand teams, with the reason for each position.
Run your next campaign in PodPitch
Find the journalists, podcasts and Substack writers in this playbook, then pitch them from one place. PodPitch reports the highest reply rate of any PR tech software.