Promotion is an integral part of any business marketing enterprise. Simply put, marketing has two major goals: to help your business make sales and that your business succeeds. As such, among the promotion mix, a business can look into is press releases. Press releases and other PR activities can help keep the buzz on your product or service keep going.
Public relations, and press releases in particular, helps you to craft your messaging without the risk of being misinterpreted. Plus, the reach of your message can go along way with relatively little costs compared to advertising. With a press release you can easily gain instant exposure, build trust and increase traffic to your website or store. However, not all press releases might provide the right amount of exposure.
The thinking here is the more people see your message, the higher the chances they will try your offering. The key to any messaging is it should be noticeable, and in this case newsworthy. Make sure the messaging in the press release is crafted in a manner people care about the announcement. Second, the message should also be relevant to your target audience.
Why Distribute Press Releases?
Information on unique product or service offering has to reach the public, both current clients and prospects. Press releases help amplify your messaging as they are sent to journalists, news agencies and online/printed media who in return reach thousands.
Besides the number of people, your product or brand can also reach geographical destinations you could not reach with other promotions. If crafted well, your press release can capture the right attention. It can even reach Google news in a matter of minutes.
The key to having your release reach Google News is simple. Use clear and coherent language, headlines should not be more than 110 characters; use short paragraphs (at least 80 words per paragraph). And last but not least, always remember to copy edit your press release thoroughly before sending it out.
A shoddy press release will rarely get published as it is an indication of carelessness. Your press release is also a touch point to your clients, as such you need to create a consistent brand and to provide messaging that’s easily digested and engaging.
Best Press Release Distribution Sites
Once you have crafted your press release, you need to get it out to the world. Here is a list of 10 press release distribution sites and tips for how to choose.
24-7pressrelease.com
24-7pressrelease.com is a cloud-based press release distribution platform for small businesses. Its features include real-time news content, free news widget, and RSS feed.
Prices range from the $19 per release (simple post) to $389 (mass media visibility package). The latter includes offers to send your press release to more than 4,500 websites, an option to upload video on YouTube, the inclusion of up to five pictures or documents and others.
EIN Presswire
EIN Presswire’s distribution services come with SEO and RSS feeds. However, you are limited to five distribution channels with each release. Its basic starter package will start you at $49.95 and will continue with more robust offerings such as Pro, Pro+ and Corporate.
eReleases
eReleases provides targeted press release distribution services to journalists, global news sites, websites, wire services and others. It touts itself as a traditional press release distribution company focusing primarily on sending press releases to journalists. Prices range between $299 (Buzz Builder package) to $499 (PR Pro package) depending on the services you choose.
NewswireJet
NewswireJet distributes press releases to over 350 media outlets. The pricing starts at an affordable $59 per release. The starter package comes with a PDF report on all links, traffic, audience and engagement of over 250 standard media sites.
The Buzz Maker Plus package priced at $ 149 comes with more than 400 guaranteed distribution sites, usability for up to 6 months and other benefits.
Online PR media
Online PR Media offers a multimedia press releases to its clients. Its free online press release comes with a 90-day life along with SEO support. However, this free package allows only one submission a day.
The Social media press release comes with a price tag of $22 which includes instant social sharing on Facebook and twitter along with an ad free press release. The Video PR Premium visibility package is set at $549 and comes with a video press release distributed to 1,800 websites and other syndicated websites.
PR.com
A cross between a public relations and advertising entity, PR.com offers a wide range of services. From a directory of businesses, products and services, a press release distribution service, job search website, and online publication of articles, reviews and celebrity interviews.
PR.com comes with a free limited package and for those willing to pay it offers a wide range of more robust service as well.
PR Buzz
In addition to distributing press releases, PR Buzz creates SEO results in search engines and news sites. Its unlimited press release distribution for one company comes at $299 per year. This comes with Search Engine Optimization (SEO) benefits for your press releases and website.
PRLog
PRLog provides of free press release distribution services. However, there is a limit of two free press release submissions per day on PRLog, but all press releases submitted are instantly approved. It also includes HTML links in the press release body with distribution to a variety of news sites.
PR Newswire
PR Newswire is a provider of multimedia platforms and press release distribution. The site claims to reach nearly 3,000 newsrooms across the globe and has its own media monitoring service.
The company’s site contains current news releases distributed by PR Newswire including multimedia press releases, investor relations and disclosure, and company news. Pricing is based on its annual membership fees which is around $195/year. Users have the option to pay for every press release based on geographical locations.
PRWeb
PRWeb’s solutions include online coverage, search visibility, and PR services. The pricing plans range from $99 to $389 per news release. The premium option includes distributing your press release to industry-curated Twitter feeds and influential blogger networks to drive website traffic by syndicating your press release across hundreds of media partner websites and others.
Send2Press
Send2Press offers press release distribution, social media marketing, and press release writing. Businesses can use Send2Press to compile and distribute press releases with the starter package at $89 per post.
The Open Press
The Open Press offers press release distribution for plain formatted releases and also charges fees for HTML-coded releases. This distributor’s prices start with the low price of $ 10 per release and goes up based on the package requested.
Tips for Choosing a Press Release Site
The most important thing while choosing a press release distribution sites is to see whether it caters to your target audience. Do your due diligence by checking out reviews of the distributors, what their online visibility looks like, what their brand engagement is and others. Likewise, look for additional services that can help boost your impact. This includes writing services as well as analytics in terms of reach and engagement.
Equally important, have a thorough read of the terms and conditions. Free offerings can be useful but make sure they are the right fit for your needs. A common pitfall here could be hidden costs they might offer for free, but they might add additional costs along the services to get what you really need.
Remember a press release strategy is not a one-off operation, you need to have a release calendar set to meet your promotional needs. Some might be pricey, but a reliable distributor that delivers on promises made brings more value. Your distribution partner should not be rigid but instead should offer you services to boost your brand. Negotiate hard on allowing links to your website, usage of logo and other points of interests.
Media Pickup
Remember your objective is to create a ripple effect of your message. This is where media pick up comes in play. Media pickup means media deciding to run with your press release. The media which is a third party in this case reinforces and authenticates your brand. Your press release distributor should have a proven track record with media and a history of providing valuable news and information.
Then comes online visibility. The distributor should be able to enable your brand to reach the websites that matter most to your business. Make sure the package specifically offers reaching your preferred target audience. This will in turn help increase your search visibility.
Research indicates a huge number of customers search online before making a major purchase. The distribution service you choose should have a high search engine authority to increase your opportunity to organically reach your target audience.
A Word About SEO and Press Releases
It might not look like it, but press releases are still relevant to SEO as they are a great first step towards reaching customers. Both through print media and online, such as Google and Yahoo, you can help at the very least generate recognition towards your brand. Readers will convert to customers as they understand the story behind your business.
The key is telling a good story of your business or brand. Stories stick in people’s mind while announcements get overlooked or are forgotten. Try to not turn your company’s story into spam press release by not thinking creatively.
Identify what is unique about your business and story and share it. Keywords help you reach audiences, so make sure to include words your customers would look online regarding your particular product or service. The content you produce is as important as the press release distribution site you are using.
The goal of promotion is to attract, convert and retain customers. A press release can be an ideal gateway to customers. To really capitalize on it you should have a compelling story using the right words to draw attention to your brand or products. Your press release is a conduit to your customers and should be accorded as much consideration as a walk-in customer. Even more so as you are dealing with thousands of potential customers.
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