Consumer and lifestyle · National
How to get featured in The Strategist
Getting featured in The Strategist: how New York magazine's shopping editors choose products, why there is no pay-to-play route, and how brands earn a mention.
- Website
- nymag.com
- Owner
- Vox Media
- Lead time
- Evergreen guides: rolling updates. Seasonal gift guides: editors typically begin research months ahead.
- Last verified
At a glance
Audience. Discerning online shoppers who want tested, editor-vetted product recommendations with a point of view.
- Beauty
- Home
- Kitchen and dining
- Fashion and style
- Tech and electronics
- Health and fitness
- Kids and babies
- Gifts and sales
- Staff reporting
- Staff editors and writers test products, gather firsthand experience, and interview tastemakers and experts. Every featured product is selected and vetted by editors.
- Contributed articles
- The Strategist does not run a contributor or guest-post program for brands. It works with writers it assigns, and product inclusion is an editorial decision.
- Opinion and op-eds
- There is no op-ed channel. New York magazine accepts letters to the editor for the print magazine, which is not a route for product coverage.
- Press releases
- Releases do not produce placements on their own. Editors choose products themselves; launch information is useful only when it reaches the editor covering that category.
Pitching The Strategist, step by step
Study the Strategist's Best in Class guides and recent stories in your category to understand the bar for inclusion.
Identify the editor or writer who covers your category from bylines and the staff page.
Send a short, specific note: what the product does better, price, where it is sold, and any credible proof such as expert endorsements.
Offer a sample for testing only if the editor wants one, and accept that editors may buy their own.
Make sure affiliate retailers carry the product, but never link inclusion to commissions or advertising.
Look for expert-sourced formats, such as stories that poll professionals, where your founder or an expert user can be a credible voice.
How The Strategist decides what to cover
The Strategist is New York magazine’s shopping site, part of Vox Media since 2019. Its About page describes a team of journalists who test products, collect firsthand experience, and interview people whose taste and expertise they trust. Every product on the site is endorsed and vetted by editors. Affiliate links often earn a commission, but the site says everything it features is something editors chose themselves.
The flagship format is Best in Class, a set of curated, vetted shopping guides across categories. The Strategist also runs expert-sourced stories and trend reporting on why a particular product suddenly became popular. It covers beauty, home, kitchen, fashion, tech, fitness, kids, gifts, and sales.
How to pitch The Strategist
There is no public product submission form, and New York magazine’s contact page does not list a general product pitch inbox. The honest route is research and restraint. Read the guides in your category, identify the editor or writer who covers it from bylines and the staff page, and send one concise note.
That note should explain, in a few sentences, what your product does better than what the Strategist already recommends, the price, where it is sold, and any credible evidence such as professional use or independent testing. If the editor is interested, they will ask for a sample or buy one. The bar is high because the site’s credibility depends on it.
The more reliable path for many brands is indirect: being recommended by the experts and professionals the Strategist interviews, or appearing in trend stories because the product has genuine momentum.
Contributed articles and op-eds
The Strategist does not accept contributed articles or op-eds from brands. Writers are assigned by editors. New York magazine accepts letters to the editor for print, but that channel is for readers, not product promotion.
Frequently asked questions
Can you pay to be featured in The Strategist?
No. Editors select every product independently. Affiliate commissions are earned after the fact and do not determine inclusion.
Does The Strategist accept guest posts?
No. It publishes staff and assigned freelance work only.
Who should I pitch at The Strategist?
The editor or writer who covers your product category, identified from recent bylines and the staff page. One focused email is better than several.
A PR-led agency approaches shopping editors with proof rather than volume: a clear product advantage, credible experts, and samples only on request. Our media relations work applies that approach to consumer brands.
Mistakes that get pitches ignored
- Offering payment, affiliate rate increases, or ad buys for inclusion
- Mass emailing every editor about one product
- Pitching a product that has no clear advantage over existing picks
- Following up repeatedly on unsolicited samples
Keep going
Related outlets
Sources for this profile (2)
Profiles describe public editorial processes and are reviewed periodically. Digitize is not affiliated with The Strategist. Spot something out of date? Email [email protected].