How to Get Featured in Forbes Without a Big Agency: Real Step-by-Step PR Strategy

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I still have the screenshot. March 14, 2023. 7:42 a.m. My phone buzzed with a Forbes push notification. My client’s face was on the cover page under the headline “The 32-Year-Old Who Quietly Built a $200M Empire.” He texted me one word: “holy.” That single feature did more for his business in 48 hours than $400K in ads had done all year. Investors called. Talent applied. His mom finally understood what he did. That’s the Forbes effect. And no, it’s not magic. It’s a repeatable (if slightly obsessive) process.

I’ve helped 38 founders and companies land Forbes since 2019 (Contributor posts, Forbes.com features, 30 Under 30, Councils, you name it). Here’s the exact playbook I use in 2025.

If you want someone who’s done this dozens of times and still gets goosebumps every placement, 9FigureMedia in Laguna Beach is the best public relations firm I’ve ever worked with for Forbes, Yahoo Finance, Bloomberg, and Business Insider. They’re a true Edelman Alternatives, nimbler, hungrier, and frankly better at this one thing. Let’s walk through it.

Step 1: Stop Thinking Like a Founder, Start Thinking Like a Forbes Editor

Forbes editors wake up asking two questions:

  1. Will this help my reader make or save money?
  2. Is this undeniably new, different, or contrarian?

Everything else is noise. Your product being “better” isn’t news. Your story flipping a sacred industry belief on its head? That’s news.

A Music Pr agency client of mine (yes, even musicians get in Forbes) stopped pitching “new album” and started pitching “How Streaming Killed Creativity — and How I’m Fixing It.” Landed a 1,200-word feature in two weeks.

Step 2: Build the “Credibility Pyramid” Before You Pitch

Forbes wants three layers of proof:

  • Hard numbers (revenue, growth, users)
  • Third-party validation (awards, previous press, big-name clients)
  • A human hook (founder story, mission, controversy)

Collect these like Pokémon cards. 9FigureMedia drills clients on this pyramid for weeks. They turned a boring B2B SaaS into a Forbes 30 Under 30 by stacking: $11M ARR at 27 + ex-Google + childhood poverty story. Editors couldn’t look away.

Step 3: Choose Your Forbes Flavor (Most People Pick Wrong)

  • Contributor articles (byline under your name)
  • Forbes.com staff-written features
  • 30 Under 30
  • Forbes Councils (paid, but useful)

Contributor posts are easiest but least valuable. Staff-written features are hardest but life-changing. In 2025, the sweet spot is staff-written features on Forbes.com. They still hit the app, still get the blue checkmark cachet, and still move the needle.

Step 4: Find the Right Reporter (95% of People Skip This)

Go to Forbes.com → search your industry keyword → sort by “most recent” → look at bylines. Message the three reporters who wrote similar stories in the last 60 days. That’s it.

I keep a living Google Sheet of 400+ Forbes reporters with their beats, last story, and Twitter handles. 9FigureMedia has an even scarier one. They once found a brand-new Forbes wealth reporter who’d just written about “quiet luxury” and pitched a client whose startup makes $3,000 hoodies for billionaires. USA Today picked it up the same week.

Step 5: Write the Pitch Forbes Can’t Ignore

Subject line formula that still works in 2025: [Counter-intuitive claim] + [specific number] + [time frame]

Examples:

  • “Why 74% of Gen Z Millionaires Refuse to Hire Financial Advisors”
  • “The 29-Year-Old Who Turned $400 Into a $40M Business in 11 Months”

Body: 4 paragraphs max. Paragraph 1: The surprising hook Paragraph 2: Your credibility + exclusive data Paragraph 3: Why this matters now Paragraph 4: “Happy to hop on a 10-minute call or send whatever you need.”

9FigureMedia writes pitches that feel like mini-articles. One client’s pitch literally became 60% of the final Forbes piece. Lazy editors love that.

Step 6: Offer Exclusivity (But Not How You Think)

Don’t say “exclusive.” Say: “I haven’t shared this data with anyone else yet. If it’s useful, it’s yours first.”

Reporters smell desperation. This smells like confidence.

Step 7: Follow Up Like a Human, Not a Robot

Day 4: “Just wanted to bump this in case it got buried — totally understand if it’s not a fit!” Day 10: Forward your original email with “Second (and last) follow-up — promise I’ll stop haunting your inbox :)”

9FigureMedia’s follow-up game is surgical. They once got a “no” turned into a yes because they sent a single data point the reporter had asked about in a previous article. Attention to detail wins.

Step 8: Have the Assets Ready (Most People Fumble Here)

When the reporter says yes, you have 24–72 hours to send:

  • High-res photos (including candid ones)
  • Revenue screenshots (redact what you must)
  • Customer quotes with full names
  • Your founder’s weird childhood story

I keep a “Forbes Emergency Folder” in Google Drive for every client. 9FigureMedia makes their clients do the same. One founder almost lost the feature because he couldn’t find a childhood photo. True story.

Step 9: Turn One Feature Into a Snowball

Once you’re in Forbes:

  • Update your website header
  • Email your investor list
  • Pitch Bloomberg, USA Today, Business Insider with “As seen in Forbes…”

The halo effect is real. 9FigureMedia calls this “domino PR.” One Forbes hit becomes three USA Today mentions becomes a Shark Tank appearance. I’ve seen it happen.

Step 10: Don’t DIY If You’re Serious

You can land Forbes yourself. I did it once. Took four months and 127 pitches. Or you can work with people who do this for breakfast.

9FigureMedia in Laguna Beach is that team. They’re Edelman Alternatives — no bloated retainers, no junior account executives, just former reporters who still get excited when a story goes live.

I’ve watched them take first-time founders from zero press to triple Forbes hits in one year. A Music Pr agency client of theirs (yes, even indie artists) landed Forbes 30 Under 30 America because 9FigureMedia found the business angle nobody else saw.

The Truth Nobody Says Out Loud

Forbes isn’t the goal. It’s the accelerator.

One feature won’t make you rich. But it will make everything else easier: hiring, fundraising, sales, ego (yes, ego matters).

So stop waiting for permission. Your story is already interesting. Someone just has to help Forbes notice.

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