Need customers? Need sales? With a well-written press release, you can invite potential customers to your business and get them in the buying mood. Optimize your release for search and you substantially increase your ability to reach the most people in the least amount of time.
Sound good? It should because press releases are proven to be one of the most effective ways to promote your company products or services without any money exchanging hands for advertising.
Now for the big question. When should you write a press release? Basically whenever you have something to brag about. This can be when you–
- Introduce a new product or service or when you improve an existing service or product
- Hire a new employee, have personnel changes or when someone receives a promotion
- Host a community or in-store event (open houses, parties, sales)
- Conduct a seminar, class or workshop
- Win a new contract or get a big-name client
- Achieve a major milestone
- Raise funds for a charitable organization
- Celebrate your company’s anniversary
- Publish a book, white paper, case study or tip sheet
No. 1 Earlier I mentioned optimizing your press release with SEO copywriting extends your marketing reach. The first step to optimize your release is to identify quality keywords and plan how and where you will insert them into your content. Keyword tools like Wordtracker, Google Adwords, and Keyword Discovery help you identify words and phrases your target audience is likely to use in their online search queries. Another way to implement SEO is to enclose keywords in your press release title, the body and the call to action. You can find more SEO techniques and tips here.
No. 2 Press Releases with photos work harder at attracting attention and draw the reader in. So if you can include images of company events or any photo that shows you or your company in action, you’ll do better at driving traffic to your website. If you don’t have any photos here’s a nifty alternative: turn your quote into an image.
No. 3 Time your news release to a season or key dates. For instance, enthusiasm on keeping New Year resolutions is typically high Jan through April. You can capitalize on an entire Q1 with releases that cover tax preparation, weight loss, greener living and home organization. Key dates could be the Super Bowl, The Academy Awards, Easter, Valentines or St. Patrick’s Day.
No. 4 Pay close attention to your press release copy. Catchy headlines arouse curiosity. If you need ideas, get them by reading titles of magazine covers and newspaper stories. Other copywriting issues you should watch out for are things like proper tense. Something like, “Today ABC company announced…” is what you would write if your release has more of a hard news feel. Otherwise stick to present tense.
Once you get your news release written, let it simmer overnight. The next day, re-read it and if you find any phrases that sound salesy, take them out. It also helps to read your release out loud. Any words or sentences you stumble over should be replaced because they’ll make readers stumble, too.
How long should your release be? Aim for one page. Otherwise your release might come off dry, plus if you give out too much information you might discourage website traffic. Finally, proof your release for spelling errors and typos. Here’s a proofreading tip: Read your release backwards.
Your next step is to submit your release. Click here for a list of press release distribution websites.
When money is tight and results are slow, it’s normal to feel overwhelmed about what marketing steps to take next. If this happens to you stop for a second. Then shift your mindset.
