When it comes to marketing and journalism, a few tried and true methods of getting a message out still hold up even in a largely online and virtual marketplace. One of the best is the distribution of press releases.
There was a time when the press release was a vital means of communicating information pertinent to public interaction with a brand, and while the focus of many marketing initiatives may change over the years, some just work in perpetuity. Press releases are on that list.
While not as much an imperative as they once were, people appreciate the approach to a product that is presented in a press release. Press releases are, by definition, news. News is factual. It isn’t overrun with emotionalism and sensationalism. They aren’t about opinion (although you can make your opinion known in certain creative ways). Press releases present facts and encourage discussion and interaction. So, I guess you can call that the first reason why you should send a press release. Here are a few more.
Press Releases Help People Discover Your Brand
This is true whether you go the online or print route, but there are marked advantages to distributing your press release online. When your press release is well-written, informative, and seeded with the right keywords, it will propagate well among news channels and will show more prominently in web searches on the topic covered in the release.
Social media can also give your press release a major boost, particularly if you run a little paid traffic to them. Couple your announcement with some compelling visuals, and you will have a real, tangible edge over competitors who stick solely to more traditional distribution methods. That said, don’t abandon one for another. Both have their place, and using both will maximize your reach better than trading one for the other.
Press Releases Position You as an Authority
The more in front of your audience you are, they more they are going to trust you and want to interact with you. The more people who click through to read your press release, the better exposure it’s going to get. The more visible you become to the public, the more quickly your brand is going to be perceived as an authority.
Now here’s the catch: You have to be real in your press releases. You can’t use a press release as a platform, a sounding board, or a sales page (good press releases increase click-throughs to landing pages – they don’t try to be landing pages). As I’ve mentioned before, there has to be a high degree of congruency between the brand in your press release and the brand discovered on a click-through. Mess this part up, and you will likely never win the trust of a significant number of your readers.
Press-Releases Are Highly Targeted
Most press releases are written to a specific target readership. They propagate via specific streams on the newswires. This is why researching keywords is such an important part of the process. Never, ever send a press release that isn’t optimized, and, if you’re going through a press release writing service or copywriting company, ask what keywords were used in the release and why.
The wrong keywords will direct your message away from its intended audience, so don’t skip this step. Don’t presume you know better than the market what your readers want to see. Do your research or insist that your writer do the same. Maintain accurate targeting. Deliver your message to the right people.
Press Releases Help You Create an Archive
Writing press releases for any and all significant events within your company is a powerful way to maintain a record of how your company made it from point A to point B and beyond. This helps you maintain a timeline and analyze where your business has gone, where it is now, and where it’s going tomorrow. It also helps to reinforce your position as an authority since many sites archive press releases for months or even years. These previous releases can help new customers make easier buying decisions or motivate new clients to partner with you for the services they need.
Press Releases Work
As a final takeaway, I just want to say this: Press releases have been around a long time, and there’s a reason for that. Actually, there are many, and I do believe I just touched on a few. The bottom line is this: When done correctly, optimized to the best possible audience, and distributed well, a press release can open doors in your marketing strategy that other types of content can’t. They are also versatile enough to fit into any marketing initiative: email, social media, or even print. Just remember to stick to facts and stay in compliance with the guidelines of any site or news outlet to which you attempt to distribute.