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SWMS Valet Archives: Pitching Reporters Who Cover the Big Vendors
PR
March 17, 2026 at 4:02 AM
Occasionally, I go back into the archives of SWMS valet consulting and cherry-pick some of the dialogs I've had over the years with our subscribers. Here is an exchange about pitching big companies. What are the best practices regarding reaching out?
Cheat Sheet: AI Reporters in Govt. Pubs
March 15, 2026 at 4:26 AM
Here's a short and sweet cheat sheet for you, comprising reporters -- and a couple of podcasters -- who focus on AI in the federal government marketplace.
The SWMS Origin Story
March 13, 2026 at 10:22 AM
The scribbling began after a Ziff-Davis off-site at spring Comdex in Chicago in 1998. My then-boss made a presentation to the whole company, appropriating my ideas, presenting them as his own. That was the last straw.
The 'So What' Cascade: Stress Test the Pitch Before Sending
PR
March 8, 2026 at 9:28 AM
You probably know to ask all of these questions before you go to market with your pitch. It doesn't hurt to review them.
AI Checkers: Not Trustworthy
March 7, 2026 at 3:11 AM
Good luck finding anybody who likes AI checkers. They can't be trusted. Here's a recent dialogue from LinkedIn.
They Said It -- Week of 03-02-06
PR
March 6, 2026 at 3:44 PM
Welcome to the first installment of They Said It, a fun, easy-to-scan column that comes from the mouths of others. Let us how you like it! An abbreviated version of They Said It appears in each SWMS emailer.
Cheat Sheet: 36 B2B Influencers
March 3, 2026 at 1:48 PM
Subscribers have been asking for this cheat sheet for some time. Thank you for your patience. We studied both the vendors and the indies. Please let us know who we have left out. 
Using AI, the NYT Pans for Gold and Gets It
March 3, 2026 at 6:20 AM
Here is a clever use of AI, and it's a technique you can steal. Check out this story that appeared in Nieman Lab last month. It documents the fact that the New York Times has been monitoring right-wing podcasts for a certain trend -- basically that MAGA is fraying over Donald Trump's handling of the…
The 2026 Podcast Landscape: Where to Aim?
March 2, 2026 at 2:33 PM
Many of our subscribers talk about "podcasts" as if it's a single landscape. That's simply not true. There are actually four different landscapes, and they often overlap. This exclusive SWMS analysis -- delivered in video (2:42) -- will tame the client and help frame your approach when going to…
A Ticking Time Bomb Threatens Substack Authors
February 28, 2026 at 8:59 AM
Yes, email newsletters keep growing more powerful. Will it stay that way?  Let's look at what NYT and Business Insider do with their daily email -- and what they don't do. Study the graphic behind the SWMS paywall. Both publishers give you near-zero information about what they are promising to…
Does Forbes Sound Desperate to You?
February 28, 2026 at 7:43 AM
It sounds like a winning formula: stage a multi-day event in an exotic place, get a bunch of early achievers to talk about how they did it. Wouldn't that attract legions of people who (a) share those aspirations and (b) want to reach them?   
A New Top of The New Stack
February 24, 2026 at 6:14 AM
Alex Williams, founder of The New Stack, did not respond to our request to discuss his departure from the publication he founded. In spite of that, it is fair to say that AI is about to transform the top of The New Stack.     *** Take a look at the web site of Insight Partners, the private-equity…
Cheat Sheet: Data Privacy Reporters
February 6, 2026 at 2:57 PM
Below are the names of 16 reporters -- mostly from the trades -- who regularly cover issues of data privacy. Their articles run the gamut from politics, to law, to breaches, to VC funding of startups in the data privacy space. The data privacy beat inevitably will have to become less…
SimilarWeb Stats: Tier 1 Traffic Tanked in '25
January 7, 2026 at 12:00 AM
Everybody knows that web traffic is descending — but exactly where?
Cheat Sheet: Data Privacy Reporters
January 3, 2026 at 12:00 AM
... and rarely reveals it. Roughly 45K opinion recent pieces from Washington Post, New York Times, and Wall Street Journal, are 6.4 times more likely to contain AI-generated content than news articles from the same publications, with many AI-flagged op-eds authored by prominent public figures…
Cheat Sheet: Data Privacy Reporters
January 3, 2026 at 12:00 AM
From WebPro News: Romanian software marketplace Tekpon acquired The Next Web (TNW) from the Financial Times, rescuing the tech media brand from closure.
Eric Savitz: Edit, PR, Corporate Comms, and The Journey Continues
December 23, 2025 at 3:00 PM
If you can name somebody other than Eric Savitz that has more than three decades of experience in across, edit, PR, and corporate content, let us know.
Q & A: Loren Feldman, 21 Hats
December 23, 2025 at 5:30 AM
Nobody has more experience understanding small business than Loren Feldman. More than two decades ago, he served at Inc./Fast Company, moved on to the New York Times, then Forbes. Loren then started his own small business called 21 Hats. In this SWMS Q&A, we explore some of what Loren has learned…
Cheat Sheet Lite: MarTech/CX Newsletters
November 24, 2025 at 12:00 AM
Here are 14 paths for you if you seek newsletters that are updated frequently in martech and consumer experience, or CX. Let's call this a "cheat sheet lite" because there is no author information here. That said, these links will save you time.
Cheat Sheet: Data Privacy Reporters
November 24, 2025 at 12:00 AM
The day is coming that you will not be able to avoid framing the targets in terms of red or blue. So far you've been able to do that. Those days are coming to a close: large swaths of "the audience" are headed in this direction. If you don't believe it, read this from Bloomberg. You will never see…