Shane’s AI PR · Draft versions

Keep the Right Pitch Version Ready in Shane’s AI PR

Save, reopen and export pitch drafts in Shane’s AI PR without mixing old wording, current form fields or duplicate follow-up records.

A pitch can be ready in the editor while the saved follow-up still contains yesterday’s wording. When you work on several stories or outlets, the useful question is simple: which version will the next person actually read?

Shane’s AI PR provides editable pitch drafts, saved follow-up records and exports. Its current version runs in your browser and uses the information you enter. Understanding what each save and reopen action does helps you keep the story, outlet and approved wording together.

This guide focuses on draft versions and the final handoff. For contact research and planning, start with the media outreach workflow guide.

1. Treat the editor and saved follow-ups as separate copies

Draft pitch email builds editable text from the form fields. Draft press release creates an outline with placeholders. These are local templates, not researched facts or a completed approval process. Read the whole output, replace placeholders and remove offers or promises you cannot make.

Both actions replace the text currently in the Draft editor. If you have already polished a version, download or save it before generating another one. Changing the form fields alone does not revise the existing editor text, and typing in the editor does not automatically update an earlier saved follow-up.

Save to follow-ups captures the editor’s current body, the current Story topic and Target outlet fields, and a preview of the first 180 characters. It creates a new record with status Draft. It does not overwrite the record you last opened.

That makes saving useful for deliberate snapshots. It also means clicking Save twice creates two records, even if the wording is identical. Choose a recognizable version label and save once at the point you want to preserve.

2. Check the form fields when reopening an older draft

Open draft puts the saved body into the editor and takes you to Overview. It does not restore the Company / brand, Story topic, Target outlet, Audience / beat, Key facts and proof, or Call to action fields.

For example, suppose you saved a workshop pitch for Example Local News, then used the form for a product announcement aimed at Example Trade Journal. Opening the workshop draft brings back its text, but the form still describes the product announcement. Saving immediately would create a new record with the workshop body and the current product topic and trade outlet.

Use this short reopening routine:

1. Preserve any unsaved editor changes before opening another record. Open draft replaces the editor text.
2. Read the saved card’s topic and outlet before choosing Open draft.
3. Confirm that the editor contains the version you intended to open.
4. Set Story topic and Target outlet to the labels that should accompany the next saved copy.
5. If you plan to regenerate text, review all six form fields first. Preserve any edited wording before doing so.

You do not need to regenerate a pitch just to correct its saved label. Update the topic and outlet, keep the desired text in the editor, and save a new follow-up deliberately.

3. Use version labels that explain the decision

A label such as “Workshop announcement | Local News | v2 approved copy” is easier to distinguish from an earlier draft than “Workshop announcement” repeated three times. Use a short naming convention that fits your team, and keep the external approval record somewhere you can find it.

Set the version label in Story topic immediately before saving the edited draft. The saved label and the email subject inside the editor are separate text at that point, so inspect both. A useful internal version label does not necessarily belong in the recipient’s subject line.

After saving, open the new card and inspect the complete body. Its short preview cannot show whether a quotation, deadline, link or final paragraph changed. The saved date is the record’s creation date, not a verified approval time or a sent-email timestamp.

Keep one clear current version for the handoff. If an older record no longer needs action, you can mark it Complete under your own tracking convention. Make clear outside the tool that it was superseded, rather than implying outreach was successfully finished. Complete leaves the record in the list and exports; it only excludes it from the Pitch follow-ups headline count.

4. Give each status a concrete meaning

The available choices are Draft, Ready, Sent, Follow-up and Complete. They are labels you choose, not observations from an email service. Changing a status does not deliver a message, schedule a reminder or confirm that someone read it.

• Draft: wording or evidence still needs work.
• Ready: the intended version has passed your review and is ready for an authorized sender.
• Sent: a person has actually sent it through the communication tool used for the project.
• Follow-up: a next action is warranted and recorded in your calendar or task system.
• Complete: no further action is needed on this record, with the reason documented where your team tracks it.

These are suggested working definitions. Agree on them before comparing counts. The tool counts every saved pitch except those marked Complete, so duplicate snapshots can make the open total larger than the number of distinct outreach conversations.

5. Export the version you actually intend to share

Download draft produces a text file from the current editor. It includes unsaved edits. Copy draft also uses the current editor text. By contrast, Export CSV in Pitch builder exports saved follow-ups, including their topic, outlet, status, creation time and full draft body. Unsaved editor changes will not appear in that CSV.

For a single approved pitch, download the editor text, open the file and check its subject, recipient placeholder, facts, links, offer and signature. Give the downloaded file a useful name so it is not confused with another file called shanes-ai-pr-draft.txt.

For a recordkeeping export, first save the version you need and then check the CSV’s relevant row. The export includes older and Complete records too. Do not assume every row is a current pitch or that the status proves a message was sent.

Export workspace downloads JSON containing pitches, contacts and coverage. Review its contents before sharing because it can include contact details and unrelated drafts. Records are stored in this browser, and the current interface has no workspace import or restore control. Keep readable exports and supporting approvals in an appropriate project location.

A final check before the pitch leaves your workspace

Open the chosen record, confirm its complete body, and compare the downloaded text with the approved version. Check the intended recipient and outlet separately. Verify every claim and remove template placeholders or unapproved commitments. Then use your normal communication tool to send only when authorized, and update the saved status to reflect what actually happened.

Once coverage appears, use the coverage and citation checklist to keep published evidence separate from your outreach activity. A clear draft trail makes both handoffs easier to understand.