We often hear from people who want to know exactly what to say when they email journalists. What kind of information do journalists want? Should I be chatty or formal, offer lots of description or get straight to the point?

To answer these questions and more, we’ve used our 30 years of combined media experience to generate five templates for emailing journalists which you can keep hold of and use again and again for all kinds of messages.

From replying to journalist requests to sending out press releases to pitching stories, these templates have all been tried, tested and developed by experienced digital PR Corinne Card, who’s used them to gain press from places like the IndependentDaily MailBBC. They’ve also been checked & edited by Jon Card, a Guardian business journalist who receives hundreds of email pitches every day.

Join our mailing list below for occasional freebies, offers and media advice and we’ll send your five templates for emailing journalists as a first instalment. These templates will be your shortcut to success with journalists, so you won’t have to learn the hard way!