How to Write and Publish a Press Release
When it comes to marketing, in almost any industry and for any type of business, publicity is the most cost-effective marketing tool there is and it�s the only part of a marketing strategy that builds credibility.
Remember, the whole goal of marketing is to build relationships and brand yourself. Press Releases are not advertisements.
There are several purposes of a Press Release. Assuming you have a well written release that will get ranked in the search engines (for traffic), the primary purpose is to build credibility for you.
When you start your business, you are virtually unknown. So one of your first objectives is to get your name out and begin branding yourself. Press Releases are going to provide you with the medium to do that through publicity and building credibility.
One major advantage to writing and submitting Press Releases are that Google and other search engines rank them very high. So, well written releases that emphasize particular keywords (typically the name of your company) will get ranked on the 1st or 2nd page of raw searches.
This will provide you with more traffic to your site. Except in this case, the visitor already likes you. They like what you wrote, it made sense, so they wanted to check you out. Credibility is the one thing that can win the customer�s heart and pocketbook at the same time and nothing builds more credibility than a well-written Press Release that gets picked up by the search engines.
There are both Paid and Free Press Releases. Typically, if you pay to have your Press Release published, it will get ranked much higher in the search engines and it will stay their for a much longer period of time.
My recommendation is to mix up Free and Paid Press Releases, but publish them at least 2 times per week. A Free Press Release will not get as much attention, and it might not submit anywhere.
Also, some Free Press Release places will not allow you to place a link back to your website. This does not mean that Free Press Releases are not a good way to get traffic. Free Press Releases are still a great way to draw traffic, but paid ones, of course, are better.
When using Paid Press Releases, your release might be submitted to Google news, Yahoo news, MSN news, etc. It can also be better optimized for search engine rankings, and you can also place keywords and a link back to your site on your Press Release.
Remember, when writing your Press Release that it's all about content. Essentially, your Press Release is a news story. Your story should sound unbiased, but still informative about you or your program and intrigue your reader to want to click your link.
How To Write A Press Release
The best way to write a Press Release is to research your topic. Know what you want to write about inside and out, and make sure you give details, and a lot of information. Be sure to come across as an expert on the topic.
Mixed Case. NEVER SUBMIT A PRESS RELEASE IN ALL UPPER CASE LETTERS. This is very bad form. It will definitely be ignored by journalists. Use mixed case.
Correct Grammar Usage. Always follow rules of grammar and style. Errors in grammar and style affect your credibility. Excessive errors will cause your Press Release to be rejected by editors.
Word Processor. Write your Press Release on a word processor instead of composing online. Writing online will not achieve best results. Take time to do it right. Write, print, proof read. Rewrite, edit.
No HTML. Never embed HTML or other markup languages in your Press Release. Your Press Release will be distributed over a wide array of networks. Including such formatting will negatively impact the readability of your Press Release.
How To Get Your Press Release Ranked
Here are a few very good ways to get your Press Release ranked high up in the search engines.
- Pick one keyword to focus on
- Write your keyword in your title
- Write your keyword at least 5�10 times in the body
Here Is The Format Of A Press Release:
Headline Announces News in Title Case, Ideally Under 80 Characters
The summary paragraph is a little longer synopsis of the news, elaborating on the news in the headline in one to four sentences. The summary uses sentence case, with standard capitalization and punctuation.
City, State (PRWEB) Month 1, 2006 -- The lead sentence contains the most important information in 25 words or less. Grab your reader�s attention here by simply stating the news you have to announce. Do not assume that your reader has read your headline or summary paragraph; the lead should stand on its own.
A news release, like a news story, keeps sentences and paragraphs short, about three or four lines per paragraph. The first couple of paragraphs should answer the who, what, when, where, why and how questions. The news media may take information from a news release to craft a news or feature article or may use information in the release word-for-word, but a news release is not, itself, an article or a reprint.
The standard press release is 300 to 800 words and written in a word processing program that checks spelling and grammar before submission to PRWeb. This template is 519 words.
The ideal headline is 80 characters long. PRWeb will accept headlines with a maximum of 170 characters. PRWeb recommends writing your headline and summary last, to be sure you include the most important news elements in the body of the release. Use title case in the headline only, capitalizing every word except for prepositions and articles of three characters or less.
The rest of the news release expounds on the information provided in the lead paragraph. It includes quotes from key staff, customers or subject matter experts. It contains more details about the news you have to tell, which can be about something unique or controversial or about a prominent person, place or thing.
Typical topics for a news release include announcements of new products or of a strategic partnership, the receipt of an award, the publishing of a book, the release of new software or the launch of a new Web site. The tone is neutral and objective, not full of hype or text that is typically found in an advertisement. Avoid directly addressing the consumer or your target audience. The use of "I," "we" and "you" outside of a direct quotation is a flag that your copy is an advertisement rather than a news release.
Do not include an e-mail address in the body of the release. If you do, it will be protected from spambots with a notice to that effect, which will overwrite your e-mail address.
"The final paragraph of a traditional news release contains the least newsworthy material," said Mario Bonilla, member services director for PRWeb. "But for an online release, it�s typical to restate and summarize the key points with a paragraph like the next one."
For additional information on the news that is the subject of this release (or for a sample, copy or demo), contact Mary Smith or visit www.prweb.com. You can also include details on product availability, trademark acknowledgment, etc. here.
About XYZ Company:
Include a short corporate backgrounder, or "boilerplate," about the company or the person who is newsworthy before you list the contact person�s name and phone number.
Contact:
Mary Smith, director of public relations
XYZ Company
555-555-5555
http://www.prweb.com
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Here Are Lists Of Press Release Distribution Sites:
