Budget is one of the biggest concerns for all kinds of marketing and promotional approaches. Similarly, the concern for press release cost is also valid as it is one of the integral parts of a business’s marketing approaches. However, the cost for PR services can range from very low to very high based on various PR aspects, distribution networks, and additional features.
With a simple search on Google, you will be able to find a handful of PR sites waiting to offer press release writing and distribution services. Among the paid packages, you can also find a free press release site that is offering free packages even if it is especially for the first timers. While it sounds very tempting, the biggest question is whether you should avail of them or not. Let’s take a better look at the advantages and disadvantages of a free PR to have a better understanding.
Advantages of a Free Press Release
- Completely Free of Cost - Obviously, any free service is quite alluring and a free PR service is definitely helpful for beginners in the industry. The free-of-cost service allows independent individuals, startup companies, and small-scale enterprises who do not have a secured budget to run R campaigns. Being free, there is no fear of losing money as well.
- Basic Visibility - Free PR services can offer you a basic amount of visibility in the market which is not much but better than nothing. Though it does not make the content optimized with SEO practices, its readable value can make online users go through it if easily available.
- Immediate Distribution - Free PR services usually take place immediately as no market analysis is done in this case. As soon as a free PR site receives a PR, it publishes it directly through its common distribution network. So, the whole process gets done pretty quickly.
- As a Trial - In case you are skeptical about a PR platform, you want to purchase a package but are not sure if it is going to be successful or not; in that case, you can simply avail of a free press release to check if the agency is strong in its game. There is no worry about losing money but you can enjoy the package as a trial.
Disadvantages of a Free Press Release
- Poor Quality - As the saying goes, ‘You get what you paid for’; free PR services are mostly not good at quality. Whether it is a PR writing service or a distribution; the service will not provide fruitful results like a paid package that is handled by professionals. With poor quality of service, it will be quite hard for you to achieve your PR goals.
- No Guaranteed Placements - Free PR services do not assure any guaranteed placement. So, whatever happens, after PR distribution is completely based on your luck. For free PRs, the chances of getting featured in Google News, and getting featured over media platforms are slim.
- Does Not Offer Any Additional Benefits - Paid press release writing and distribution packages offer a handful of additional benefits which makes the campaign even more solid, established, and fruitful. Starting from SEO optimization and audit, and mobile distribution to permanent hosting and multimedia addition; many features get left out in the case of the free PR packages.
- No Analytics are Provided - Free PR sites do not offer any analytics or real-time data of the campaign. As a result, there is no way to understand whether the campaign is being successful or not. Similarly, the users are unable to get critical insights of the campaign which can help to improve the next campaign or any other marketing approaches.
Concluding Thoughts
With a clear comparison between the advantages and disadvantages of a free PR, it is evident that anyone can avail of free PRs without worrying about the budget. However, if you want an effective and long-lasting impact in the market; go for the Paid PR Packages only.
