Gaining Free Publicity Through Press Releases
By Kathleen Gage
One of the greatest ways to promote your product
or service is with publicity. Many people have little, if any,
understanding of how to go about securing publicity, never mind
free publicity. Fact is, people will pay more attention to free
publicity than they often do to paid advertising.
A simple way to gain free publicity is to write
and distribute a well-written and well-formatted press release.
A good press release is one of the most effective, and yet, most
underutilized, of publicity tools.
Simply put, a press release is an announcement
you send to magazines, trade journals, newspapers, and newsletters.
Also to radio and television. Often what you send to radio and
television are referred to as PSA’s (Public Service Announcements).
I have one client who hosted an event and submitted
one well-written and well-distributed press releases to the media.
When the release made it in print, they went from having a 50%
booking for their event through some direct mail efforts to filling
up the entire room in less than 48 hours. This was worth a substantial
amount of money to them.
Necessary steps
Prior to writing a press release, determine the
following:
- Who is your target market?
- What is your target media?
- Who is the contact person at the media outlet?
- What is the timeframe for submission?
- Do you have an attention-grabbing headline?
- Do you know the who, what, when, where, why, how?
- Do you have good quotes, research and technical date if appropriate?
Develop a system for writing and distribution
of releases. Stay organized. Know how to send the press release
to a specific media outlet and person. Each has their own preference
as to how they want to receive it. It will be to your benefit
to find out. A quick phone call will often provide you with this
key information.
Editors are inundated with information. If you
want their attention keep the release short and to the point.
During busy times, like before a huge event in a city, they will
be in information overload.
Don’t use massive amounts of buzzwords such
as “its all-new, interactive, interoperable, cross-platform,
new multimedia solution.” Avoid jargon. The general public
will have no idea what your industry jargon means and editors
rarely will take time to find out.
Give them the who/what/when/where/why as articulately
as you can. Make your information is complete. Incomplete information
is far more likely to get your press release in the trash bin
than anything else.
The 5 Ws of writing a press release or PSA.
- Who should attend? Who will be there?
- What is taking place? What will come from this event? Is it
a fundraiser?
- When is it happening?
- Where will this occur?
- Why would people be interested in the information? Why would
they attend the event?
Sending press releases
Many journalists prefer that you send press releases
via e-mail. You will find some die-hard snail mail folks, and
a few who like faxes. If you're about to start working with a
new journalist, and you're not sure how they prefer to receive
their press information, ask. Once they tell you how they prefer
the information, honor that request.
E-mail should be sent as a plain text file: the
simpler, the better. Do not send a press release via email with
an attachment. Most media people will automatically delete due
to the concern of a virus.
Do not send your email out via a mass email. Actually,
if you use a good contact management database, you can send it
by mass email and it appears as if each is a personalized email.
Don't send a press release to your entire press list, with the
entire recipient list visible.
When an editor calls for more information, respond
to their call as quickly and professionally as possible. There
is not substitute for building good relationships with the media.
Don’t ever think you are too busy for them.
By making yourself available for the media, they
tend to make themselves available for you. And what more could
you possibly ask for?
Copyright: © 2004 by Kathleen Gage
About The Author
Kathleen Gage is a business advisor, keynote speaker
and trainer who helps others gain marketing dominance and visibility
within their market. She is the recipient of the 2004 Giant Step
Award for Business of the Year in the State of Utah. Call 801.619.1514
or email Kathleen@turningpointpresents.com. Get Gage’s online
newsletter called Street Smarts Marketing and Promotions by visiting
www.kathleengage.com
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