The press release doesn’t get the credit it deserves in the 21st century. For longer than most of us have been alive, press releases have been a useful marketing and publicity tool that businesses, non-profit organizations, schools, and more use to tell the world about the great things they’re doing. While press releases might not be quite as important to an integrated marketing strategy as they once were, they can still benefit businesses.
Guess what? Press releases can benefit bloggers, too.
Did you know that there are a variety of websites where you can submit your press release for free publication and sometimes limited distribution? While it can costs hundreds and hundreds of dollars for full press release distribution through a site like PR Newswire, there are other sites that can help you spread the word for a much smaller investment. Of course, these sites won’t give you the instant reach that full press release distribution through a site like PR Newswire can, but it can create entry points for your blog via incoming links, and it can put your name and messages in front of audiences that may not already be visiting your blog. In other words, press releases play an important role in a content marketing strategy.
The trick is knowing where to submit press releases and knowing how to write one so it doesn’t simply read like an article or worse — a marketing pitch. No one is going to read or share your ad disguised as a press release. Remember, press releases should be written as journalistic pieces that provide newsworthy information to a broad audience.
Here are some tips to write a great press release:
- Write in the third person.
- Include a quote from a key player if possible.
- Include the date of the release and city of origin.
- Write a descriptive title without using sales language.
- Include a boiler plate description of your blog or website at the end of the press release with a link.
- Use search engine optimization techniques to drive traffic to your press release.
- Keep the length to about 4-6 paragraphs (1-page).
- REPORT don’t SELL.
Once you write your press release about the great things happening on your blog (for example, if you bring on a new writer, win an award, launch a new service, and so on), it’s time to spread the word.
Following are several sites that offer free publishing as well as a few sites that offer both free publishing and limited distribution:
- Free-press-release.com
- PR.com
- OpenPR.com
- SmallBizTrends.com – Small Business News Section
- WomenOnBusiness.com – Business Women News Section
Keep in mind, just about anything can be turned into a news item with a bit of thought and planning. Give yourself some credit for the work you do and spread the word by writing a press release and letting it loose on the Web! Be sure to include a link in your press release to your blog as well as your contact information!
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