Who you should send your architecture to…

The most common question we get asked when talking to architects about getting published is ‘Who should I share my projects with?’

We know that there are as many different ways of getting your story out there as there are stories to be told. And that can be confusing, and a little bit daunting. What you really need is to find the right journalists for your project.

We also appreciate that not everyone knows who they should be contacting, in what order or where they should be looking, so here are some tips.

Who’s Who?

The most important part about understanding ‘the media’ is getting to know the publications, and the journalists who contribute to them and edit them. You can easily find editors and journalists on social media (Instagram is a great one for architecture and design journos) or handy apps like this one.

It’s worth connecting with journalists now, as you’ll get a sense of their interests and content without having to rush out and buy every copy of their magazine.

The Right Fit

Make sure you’re sending editors projects that fit their publication. For example, you wouldn’t send a recently completed school project to Houses Magazine (the title of this mag gives some clues as to what they’re looking for, but Katelin Butler has the specifics for you here). Once you’ve found the publications you think fit your work, you can then submit your projects to them.

Acknowledging their publication when contacting journalists is always beneficial (e.g. ‘I loved the beach house special issue last month, Alice’), as it shows that you’re engaged and you understand the content, but it’s not crucial.

Timing is Everything

We have a simple recommendation for the order in which you contact editors. It’s what we call ‘fast to slow’.

The logic is that you should start with fast publications (Instagram feeds, Blogs) that get your project out there in small digital bites, and move on to slower media (Magazines, Books, TV) as time goes on; where more in-depth stories will be told. The only exception to this is Newspapers (and news-driven publications), as they have potential throughout the media cycle – from ‘New School Opens’ to ‘Local School Project Goes Viral’.

While it’s not a concrete rule ‘fast to slow’ is a good little framework for you to share your work with journalists.

In short:

Who do I contact? Know the editors and their publications and choose the ones that fit your project

In what order? Fast to slow media

Where do I look? Social media and BowerBird are a good start

Of course, BowerBird makes all the above as simple as a few clicks, allowing you to follow journalists and create press kits (BowerKits as we call them). On top of this we have created our ‘Find publications’ tool – curated lists tailored to your project, which tell you who to send to and in what order. A handy little feature.

Get your exclusive BowerBird invitation here.