The unparalleled importance of press releases for the growth of the business is hard to avoid. A PR does not only serve only as a marketing tool but authentic documentation of a company’s deeds. It can offer greater advantages when the PR is distributed properly through relevant, reputed, and credible media and news platforms. A press release campaign is much more than just writing a PR as distribution plays a bigger role in reaching the target audience.
It requires sending the press release to journalists, reporters, and press release submission sites where it can gain more media coverage. As a result, the PR will be read by more people including potential customers, investors from the niche as well as competitors. But there’s a catch. These PR submission sites and journalists from niche backgrounds receive a lot of PRs every day. And if you are trying to get featured; your pitch needs to be perfect. Here’s how you do it.
How to Send a Press Release in 4 Easy Steps?
1. Write Your Press Release properly
No matter how great distribution sites and journalists you approach; the PR will not be accepted if it does not have quality information along with a compelling angle. So, first comes crafting the press properly while maintaining its regular format and style. The AP-style press release is widely used by media personnel and so, it is recommended in most cases, especially for official announcements. You might already know how to write a press release effectively. Here are some key pointers to help,
- Keep it brief, precise, and to the point excluding flowery inputs (preferably, 300 – 500 words)
- Simple language, journalistic tone, and a newsworthy angle
- Highly attractive headline (Within 70 characters)
- Accurate information from sources
- Proper boilerplate and media contact
- Inverted pyramid structure along with multimedia attachments
2. Build a Strong Media Contact List
It does not require to say that this is an intriguing process that needs a lot of research, patience, and consistency. Start with creating a contact list of media and press professionals who might be quite interested in the story and your PRs. Looking for them in the niche is the best thing to do or you can research submission sites that accept similar stories like yours. Look for the platforms and media personnel who work in your niche industry and whose target audience aligns with yours. You can create the media contact list based on various aspects but make sure to know the following elements,
- Media outlet name
- Name of journalist or press contact
- Contact information (email address or URL of a web form for submitting a story)
- Information about their audience base
- Submission guidelines
In order to find the names of the media contacts, visit the official websites of those agencies. You can also take help from the platforms like LinkedIn which helps to find out additional information. Here are some sources when you are looking forward to building a strong media contact list.
- Traditional News Outlets – Traditional news outlets such as newspapers, magazines, radio stations, television channels, etc are great sources to gain more media coverage. You can use these sources to generate email addresses and information about the editorial staff as well as offer web forms for online submissions.
- Trade Publications - Many industries have digital and print trade publication magazines which are regularly updated with new information and news regarding the niche. If you are able to find such a reputed publication or business magazine from your industry, it can be a game changer. You can also get a list of relevant trade publications on Google where you will find the guidelines and PR writers.
- Non-traditional News Sources – Social media platforms such as Facebook, business networking organizations, bloggers, social influencers, and other digital groups fall in this category which is not really official new outlets but can be very effective in terms of modern audience and marketing trends.
- Journalists – Other than the professional organizations and submission sites, you will also find many journalists who have their own websites. Platforms like Medium and Substack can help you find out such journalists in the field who write for audiences similar to yours.
3. Craft Your Pitch
After getting relevant contact from the resources, it is time to pitch the contacts you have gathered. This is a crucial step since your press release is going to be accepted based on your pitch. This pitching mail goes along with the press release document and creates room for it. The pitch should be explaining who you are, what your business is associated with as well as why the journalist or the submission sites should accept your PR as in why you considered them pitching in the first place.
Even though you are attaching the press release document, the journalists, reporters, and media professionals would hardly get any time to read it since they receive a lot of PRs every day. That is why it is important to include a preview of the PR in the pitch along with a compelling story angle. Make it easier for the professionals and let them know how covering your story can benefit them. Following these basic behaviors of courtesy and professionalism can make a big change.
4. Send Your Press Release
Now that your pitch is ready, you can submit the press release content directly to the media list which sends the pitch and the press release to everyone included in the list. You should craft it in a way that helps to make the task easier for them. Do not forget to include links to images, videos, and graphics that can be utilized to create the cover story. You should also send a link to your press kit that helps to generate background information about you and your company.
As a press release is a time-sensitive document, the pitching, and submission take place in advance, before the distribution is actually needed. Here are some general tips on how advanced you should start for different platforms so that you are able to get a positive response.
- Traditional Media Outlets – Sending a press release a week in advance is best in this case.
- Journalists, Bloggers, and Influencers – Send a media advisory to the professionals two to three weeks prior to the event or announcement and then send them the press release a week before the event. Do not forget the send a follow-up with a post-event press announcement that helps to generate more buzz.
- Trade Publications – Usually the editorial calendars for business magazine-styled publications are planned long in advance. In order to stay in a safe spot, sending the press release three to six months ahead is the best advice in this case.
- Book Launch Announcements – Publishing book releases two to three months prior to the book launch is highly recommended to create anticipation in the market as well as among the readers. Sending media advisory is also necessary, followed up by a post-launch press release.
- Events and Annual Meets – Based on the nature of the event and the time needed for guests and media to prepare for it, you can send the press release a week, a month, or just a few days before the event takes place.
- Crisis Release and Trending Topics – Such press releases fall in the urgent category which is quickly sent out for distribution right after it is crafted. Trending and high-value events such as Award ceremonies also demand similar urgency in PR distribution.
Though there are many other types of press releases; these are the most used PR types and official occasions that require more attention.
Bonus Step: Track Performance With Analytics
After sending the press release for distribution what you should do is monitor the PR campaign which help you gain more critical insights that can be implemented in the future. Monitoring its performance help to gauge more success while finding out more creative spaces to work on. There are many web tools, PR analytics, and trackable links that help to track many crucial metrics such as,
- Backlinks earned
- Which websites linked back to yours
- Website traffic produced
- Conversions
- Web traffic & online engagement
Concluding Thoughts
Utilizing a press release for your business is not an easy task. It requires writing, researching, pitching, and distribution to gain effective results. That is why hiring a professional press release agency for this purpose is the best thing you can do. Professional PR writing and distribution packages can be also obtained at a fairly reasonable price. However, do not give up on your organic approaches since it helps to create a long-lasting impact in the market. Know how to send your press release properly at the right time, and gain more exposure for your business.
