by Elle Ray | May 21, 2019 | Press Releases
Smart Tips for Sending Out Your Press Release
The big day is coming: you’re finally ready for your grand opening! Or the founder of your company who’s lasted 44 years is retiring. Or you’re holding the biggest blow-out sale in your company’s history. Or you’re hosting a gala in support of a local charity.
All newsworthy, you think. So you knock out a press release — or hire professionals like Ray Access to write it for you — and send it to all the local media. You find the main fax and emails numbers and shoot it off, clearing your calendar for the interviews that are sure to follow when you get your press release noticed. After all, this is a big deal, big news.
In Whose World?
While the news you have to share is super important, it’s really only newsworthy to you, your employees and maybe a handful of customers. It’s really not eye-popping for everyone else. Most news that business owners think is worth at least a few inches on the local news blog or in the daily or weekly paper actually isn’t.
You probably won’t get your press release noticed if all you do is put out information about sales or good works that you do. That’s what advertising is for. And most media outlets, even small hometown blogs and publications, have a diverse audience — what’s hot for one reader is a big yawn for another. Finally, to get your press released noticed, you first must impress your primary target: the reporters and editors on whose desk your press release lands.
Tips to Get Your Press Release Noticed (and Written About)
If all you’re promoting is an event or close-out, send a notice to the calendar section of the paper or website. Save yourself the time and money of preparing and sending out a press release. Spend your resources on an ad if you think your sale is big enough. Place the news on your own blog or post it on your social media for your followers to find. Put the announcement in your next newsletter to let those on your email list know of the upcoming special event.
If you’d really like to get wider coverage and maybe even an article or interview out of the event, follow these tips to get your press release noticed:
- Send it to a real person. Remember what you do when you get mail addressed to Occupant or letters aimed at To Whom It May Concern. Like many of us, you likely stick it, unopened, in the circular file. Take the time to find out which reporter covers your industry. Build relationships with these journalists so you have a contact when you want to get your press release noticed.
- Tie your news into current events. Reporters are always looking for a local angle to a national story. For example, if you’re opening a new treatment center or holding an event to support a drug rehab, lead off with the fact that this event is tied into the opioid crisis, a huge story that’s been ongoing and probably won’t go away for a while.
- Find a hook. Much like tying your announcement into national or local news, create a scenario that puts a different or quirky spin on a trend or ongoing controversy in your area. Have you given raises to your staff so that they now make living wages? That may tie into efforts to raise the minimum wage in your state.
- Drop names. Do your best to get a celebrity to endorse your business. Better yet, ask that well-known person to attend your event as the guest of honor, main speaker or entertainment. TV news and radio personalities are always looking for a way to get their names and faces in front of the public. And their bosses appreciate the opportunities.
- Pull a stunt. This trick is as old as the media industry and involves going big to draw attention to your business and your event. Get your press release noticed by announcing you will jump out of a plane, throwing a bag of money to the crowd gathered below. To honor your founder, let it be known that a diamond is hidden in one of the cupcakes you’ll be handing out to customers all day. What? Now that’s some fodder for water-cooler talk, and a pretty good bet that some creative journalist will either write about the event in advance or at least show up to put you and your company on the six o’clock news!
Ray Access is a content marketing firm that delivers targeted words to empower your business. Contact us about your specific project to receive a quote or discuss your needs. We write website copy, blog posts, e-newsletters and more. Everything we do is thoroughly researched, professionally edited and guaranteed original.
by Elle Ray | Aug 4, 2013 | Press Releases
Breaking News about Online Press Releases
Some time ago, we blogged about press releases, since we have experience writing them. We said that press releases had to contain real news and be directed at the right audience. We said that over time, these press releases have value.
Well, that was then — this is now.
We learned recently that in the new Google paradigm, links in an online press releases hold no SEO value. None. Zip. Nada. So if you’re writing a press release and sending it out online, you should not expect a bump in the page ranking of your website, even if you placed links in the release that point back to you.
Is a Press Release Useless Then?
Here’s the interesting thing. While an online press release by itself has no value, the content of the release has as much value as it’s ever had.
How can that be, you may ask? Simple, as SEO expert Matt Cutts once summarized:
So the link from a press release will probably not count, but if that press release convinces an editor or a reporter to write a story about it… then if that newspaper links to your website as a result of that… it doesn’t matter whether it started or was sparked by a press release or it was started by an email that you sent.”
It’s Press Release Content That Matters
Press releases today are really just meant to provide a lead for someone in the media to pick up and run with. If your press release can inspire that kind of response, then it’s done its job.
If the reporter sites your company or its website in the article, that link, ladies and gentlemen, has tremendous value in SEO. Depending on the reach of the media outlet that writes and distributes the story, that link can drive all kinds of traffic to your site. It’s the ultimate in marketing: an independent third party writing about your company. And it all might start from a press release.
Long Live Press Releases!
So the press release isn’t dead. It isn’t a waste of time and money. But — and it’s a big “but” — the press release has to matter to its audience… and that audience is always the media. It has to contain significant news. And it has to be well written.
The team at Ray Access is constantly on the lookout for trends and tools in the world of online writing. When we find something of interest, we don’t hoard it for ourselves; we share it with you. Because you have a right to know.
We realize you can choose anyone to write your online content, whether it’s press releases, blog posts, or even your website text. You’ve probably know someone whose nephew writes pretty well and works for beer money. That’s fine, but remember you get what you pay for. When you want quality, professional work, writing that is effective and gets you attention, you need the pros. You need us. For more advice about our services, contact us today.
Ray Access is a content marketing firm that delivers targeted words to empower your business. Contact us about your specific project to receive a quote or discuss your needs. We write website copy, blog posts, e-newsletters and more. Everything we do is thoroughly researched, professionally edited and guaranteed original.
by Mark Bloom | Jun 13, 2013 | Press Releases
What a Press Release Can Do and What It Can’t
Like blog posts, press releases often get a bad rap. “It’s tough to get noticed,” say some. “They are a waste of money,” say others. We’re here to set the record straight. It is tough to get noticed, but press releases aren’t a waste of money.
What’s a Press Release?
First, let’s define our terms. A press release is an article sent to the media by a company or organization wanting attention for something it considers newsworthy. There are two types of press releases: online and real-world. Both have pros and cons, of course.
Real-World Press Releases
A real-world press release gets sent to actual people: reporters, news station managers and magazine editors — those with a print edition product or a television or radio show. These are the people who decide what goes into print or out on the airwaves.
Ideally in this scenario, the business owner or public relations professional develops a relationship with the people working in the media. Then, when a press release is needed, it goes directly to the right person, who may view it more favorably than a cold call letter.
Obviously, real-world press releases work best for local news, where those relationships can flourish with the personal touch. Sending a real-world press release to a national audience is difficult without a public relations firm backing it. These firms exist because they have developed nationwide relationships with members of the media.
Online Press Releases
A press release directed to the Internet is a different animal altogether. Using a paid distribution service instead of a personal relationship, these press releases can gain worldwide access overnight. Better still, these press releases often remain visible (or at least searchable) for months or years or even longer.
The disadvantage is that they are impersonal and reach sometimes dubious outlets. Without a real person championing the release, they may be picked up by media desperate for any kind of copy at all — like business journals that reach mere hundreds of people… nationwide.
The Purpose of a Press Release
A press release, however it is distributed, should trumpet actual news. It should be directed to a select audience who might be able to use that news, or at least find it interesting. Often, that means a regional audience.
For example, a promotion to president of a nonprofit would interest business and nonprofit audiences. A new product that cures prostate cancer while restoring a full head of hair, on the other hand, would be of interest to roughly 50 percent of the world’s population.
Numbers Add Up
Furthermore, firing one press release into the media jungle will not likely gain you instant recognition. If your company or organization produces worthwhile news, it may still take time to get noticed. Develop relationships with your local media correspondents. Be prepared to wait.
Eventually, you will gain their attention. Eventually, you will be perceived as a reliable source. Eventually, your press releases will be published by the mainstream media. Eventually, your press releases will find their audience.
Before you blast a press release into the air, onto the page or into computers everywhere, consult a marketing or public relations professional. Make sure that the release is well written and targeted to the appropriate audience. Distribute it to the correct media. Finally, don’t expect the world to beat a path to your door.
For more advice about blog posts and press releases, contact us.
Ray Access is a content marketing firm that delivers targeted words to empower your business. Contact us about your specific project to receive a quote or discuss your needs. We write website copy, blog posts, e-newsletters and more. Everything we do is thoroughly researched, professionally edited and guaranteed original.
