When you want to get the word out about your business, when you want to promote your products, services or events, you have a myriad of marketing tools at your disposal. Social media has become an increasingly important part of an overall marketing plan, but you mustn’t forget about the core building blocks that have been part of a PR professionals arsenal for decades: press releases. It’s still the standard for reaching the press and media outlets, but given the more widespread access to this information these days, it has also become an effective way to communicate directly with consumers.
It should be noted that a press release is just a tool and, like all other tools, it should be used with discretion and moderation. You may consider hiring a freelancer to write your periodic press releases, but that really depends on the size of your company and its particular needs. As long as the core information is understood, tapping into the stronger writing abilities of a professional is well worth the investment.
Journalists Are Lazy
I’m not singling out journalists or bloggers or anyone else who works in media, but I think it is generally true that most of us are more inclined to take the path of least resistance when it is made available to us. What this means is that when journalists and bloggers are looking for fresh stories to cover, they’re more inclined to handle the news that simply falls in their lap. That’s far easier than actively seeking out a hot topic.
What this means, in a very real sense, is that if a relevant and interesting press release arrives in my e-mail inbox, there’s a good chance that it’ll get covered in some fashion. People who work for newspapers, magazines, television shows and other media outlets are likely the same way. This is also why it is important that your press release is not just well-written, but it is easy to skim for all the pertinent details. Sections and bullet points help.
And since media people are more likely to report on the news that falls in their laps, this also means that a press release is one of the more cost-effective ways to get a lot of media attention and coverage. Reaching out to each of these outlets individually to pitch your story would take far more time, energy and expense.
SEO Benefits
The great thing about having a press release is that it becomes fair game to have that content published across multiple channels. You can send it out to your mailing list (as per the above discussion on journalists). You can put it on your company’s “press room” page. And yes, you can submit it to one of the various PR distribution services on the Internet, like PRWeb or Marketwire.
They have their own hamsters on their own wheels to keep their machines running, distributing your press release to a myriad of interested parties, including press people, potential investors, industry analysts and so forth. The added benefit is that because the websites for big PR distribution services rank so well in the search engines, any links that you embed in your press release will carry quite a bit of SEO value as well. Content is still king, but great links are great links too.
Reach New Audiences
Isn’t that the point of a good press release in the first place?
You may already have an inner circle of contacts that are happy to share your content and promote your new products, but a good press release properly distributed to the right people allows you to reach new people. And these new people can become your new evangelists too. They can, in turn, share your press release on their websites, blogs and shows, which then puts your company in front of new eyeballs.
And yes, it just so happens that press releases are one of the freelance writing services that I offer. Don’t hesitate to contact me for a rate quote when you’re ready to move forward. 🙂
I know that this about the importance of press releases, but how it it written is just as important as having a message.
If your press release is too wordy or it is overly complex people won’t read all of it. Short, sweet, to the point is what gets you read I believe.
And I think that sentiment is in line with what I said about journalists (etc) being lazy. We want to skim, get the main points, and move on.
Thanks for mentioning PRWeb in your post Michael. Great points about why to write a press release. I cringe when I hear all of the “press release is dead” blog posts. Forget about the SEO, I think it’s important to look at it as a content marketing tool, at the very least.
Stacey Miller
Social Media Manager, Vocus/PRWeb