To get the publicity that your business needs, you will often need press coverage. But how do you attract the attention of the newspapers and other media? Simple, you do it with a press release.
Press releases are an essential tool in attracting the attention of media outlets that could be useful in building awareness of your brand.
But what is a press release and how does a press release work?
In this article, we’ll discuss the business press release and how it can be used as a useful tool in your marketing toolkit.
What Is a Press Release?
A press release is an official statement that a business will send to the media. They are designed to let journalists know about any important news associated with the business.
Press releases are a great marketing tool. Even these days, press releases are an essential way of communicating with major outlets of mass communication, including print media, TV, and radio.
Even in the days of the internet, a press release is still a relevant tool with as many as 63% of journalists preferring their news to be conveyed in that way.
How Does a Press Release Work?
The way that a press release works is quite simple. First, a company will write a statement that outlines all of the facts about a certain piece of news surrounding the business.
Once written, a press release can be emailed out to all of the relevant newspapers, press agencies, and media outlets.
Because news companies are always on the lookout for new stories, they might take your press release and rewrite their own piece using your information.
What Should Be Included in a Press Release?
It is essential that your press release is well written and follows a few simple rules.
There are certain things that should always be in your press release. These include an intro, a source, the essential information, some quotes, and a round-up.
An Intro/ Lead
You should start strong and aim to answer as many questions in the first paragraph as possible. The entire story should be condensed down into the first sentence.
Source
Give the reader an insight into the reason that you know the information you’re sharing with them.
The Essentials
Here, you will provide the reader with all of the information that they need to know.
Quotes
If you want to provide some quotes from someone of significance within your business, here’s the place you can add them. Newspapers will use these quotes directly in their pieces.
Rounding Up
Reiterate all of the main points of the press release in the close sentences.
The End
Type the word “ends” at the end, so the journalist will know that they’ve read everything.
Remember to proofread your press release. Anything that you send out will need to be easily read and understood by the journalists who may run your story. Make sure you get it right.
Why Write a Press Release?
There are many great press release benefits. These include the chance to get your business mentioned in the media and potentially reach thousands or even millions of people.
One of the best reasons to send out a press release is that it is a cost-effective way of increasing brand awareness.
To reach the volume of people that your news article might reach would cost you considerably in terms of advertising costs. However, even if you pay a PR or marketing company to write your press releases, they are still a very cheap tool.
How Do You Distribute Your Press Releases?
One of the things that might put small businesses in particular off sending press releases is the fact that you need to reach a large volume of news agencies quickly. This might mean sending out countless emails.
This takes research time and patience. Even once you’ve acquired a mailing list that you can use, you’ll still need to prepare and tailor each and every email that you send out.
You can reach a wider audience by publishing your press release through a press release distribution service. This is a far quicker way of reaching as many people as possible.
When you use a press release distribution service, your press release will be sent in various ways. These distribution services may be free, or you may need to pay for them. Most free services will simply re-publish your press release on blogs and sites that they work with.
The paid distribution services are databases that many journalists and media representatives will search for. If they think that your story is newsworthy, they will either publish a story using it or include information from it in a news column.
Are Press Releases Still Useful in the Days of the Internet?
Press releases have been around for over 100 years. They have been an important marketing tool for all of that time. However, in the days of the internet, you may wonder whether they are still relevant.
The answer is yes. Many media outlets still prefer to receive their information in this way. And, in addition to this, it is possible for you to increase your search engine optimization through the use of press releases.
For newspapers that publish online, to feature with backlinks will help you with your organic traffic and raise your search engine rankings.
Making Your Press Release Land
How does a press release work? By providing well written and to the point press releases, it is possible that your business can attract the attention of a wide audience.
If you want to make sure that your press release reaches the right people, you should think about paying for a press release distribution service.
To ensure it lands when it gets to the right people, you should also think about hiring an experienced writer to create a well-written press release.
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