Press releases are a very essential tool in marketing simply because it helps your audience become aware of your product or service. A press release includes information about the product/service, quotes and people to contact. It’s an easier way to hook an audience and get them talking about your product or company.
In the age of social media, writing a press release becomes a second thought because there are so many tools to help you relay information. However, writing a press release is still very much important and one of the reasons is that it is free. The only thing it’s going to cost you is time but it is definitely worth including in your marketing strategy from a cost perspective. All you need to do is build up a list of contacts and send through your releases. It would be of great benefit to your company to use an automated email platform. This way you can keep track of all the press releases you’ve sent out and you select journalists based on their area of reporting. You can also decide when to send out your emails and you can see who has viewed it.
The best thing about press releases is that you get to control the message about your product or service. You get to decide what information is more important or how long or short you want your message to be. Another benefit to press releases is that you get to decide how wide you want to net to extend. This means that you can decide whether you want to reach a large group or a targeted audience. This all depends on what objectives you are hoping to achieve, are you trying to take the company into a new direction and garner new business or do you just want to inform your consumers about your products or services.
Press releases also benefit journalists as they use them as checklists for job titles, correct spelling of names and facts. They are also time saving and cost effective for smaller organizations. Press releases are the good old fashion way to get information out about your product or services.
Here are few tips on how to write up an effective press release:
1) Try to keep your release as simple as possible. Make it easy to read and try to be as straightforward as possible.
2) Take time to choose the perfect title and introduction for your release.
3) Make sure your press release contains news. Oftentimes people write lengthy press releases that don’t contain any news. This will not entice journalists to publish your releases. Try to write about something newsworthy.
4) Timing is everything. Try to be ahead of the curve before what you’re writing about becomes old news. You also don’t want to be too early as well, finding the most opportune time is crucial.
Another useful tool would be to monitor your release. It’s always best to monitor your release and follow up with reporters or journalists that are running the story. There are a plethora of benefits of writing up press releases and why they are of importance. They help you craft your message and give you control of that message.