Do you need to spread your word about an event, product, or project? Well, you might need to learn about press release distribution to get the most out of your word.
In essence, press release distribution is the process of delivering a press release to appropriate sources of media who will take on your story. This is something that can push your story to audiences you had no access to previously.
In this article, we will cover everything you need to know about press release distribution so that you can ensure your story gets coverage.
Whenever you’re ready to learn about the power of media distribution, keep reading.
Press Release: What Is It?
A press release is a piece of written content for a significant event/person regarding an organization or business advancement. It’s an official document delivered to various internet media sources, which will inform their audience about this information.
In most cases, a press release is quite short, no more than 800 words. It’s written in a strict format with a body, summary paragraph, and a catchy headline.
Press Release Distribution: Why It Matters?
Now that you know what a press release is, let’s learn about the value of a distribution cycle. Said, effective distribution of a press release will ensure that the writing of it was worth it in the first place.
Press release distribution is critical to ensure the content you want to be noticed by the right people does so. The process of content distribution is the primary stage in content promotion.
No one is aware of your services, news, content if you do not bother to make use of the power of press releases and have them delivered to publishers or journalists. And if you don’t want to spend money, you can start with a free press release distribution cycle.
Now, let’s look at some of the prominent reasons behind the benefits of a distribution cycle for a press release.
Search Engine Optimization
A press realize is a great way to garner attention and spread your message. But that’s not the only thing it’s good at. Effective distribution of press releases will improve search engine optimization for your brand.
Hence, press releases ensure that your content acquires better ranking and gets to top searches on people’s screens. So what comes as a result of SEO? Backlinks and interest.
People are genuinely more likely to read, discover and hear about you and your brand when your presence is evident on news sites. Because press releases result in interest, they will lead to backlinks driven by authentic people.
You want to ensure that you are distributing a press release efficiently to reach the best spots in online searches and get the best benefits of SEO.
Brand Awareness & Media Coverage
Next, press releases optimize your brand-building processes and help you acquire media coverage. In other words, a press release will let you garner a greater audience and acquire authentic awareness for the brand image.
In essence, with media coverage such as links and mentions, your domain rating improves. Because of this, you have a greater likelihood of being seen on SERPs.
Also, domain diversity is critical to the health of your mentions and links. Having different sources cover your brand will result in this SEO diversity.
Specifically, the more domains referring to your content links, the greater rankings will result from it. Brand mentions improve your DR, which enhances your website authority and brand awareness.
Connections
Finally, another benefit of press release distribution is connecting your business with thought specialists and influencers. Content distribution helps you build connections with journalists, bloggers, and industry experts.
All of the people listed above are likely to boost and promote your business. For instance, many news stories present how businesses are struggling with the restrictions as a cause of the recent pandemic events.
By posting these new stories, the news sites will help these businesses reach a large audience, promote their business, and raise awareness about their problems.
We can assume that these stories reached the news site via press release distribution. This is an effective means for building connections between the audience you possess and the audience of these news sites.
The same applies to delivering content to agencies or broadcast solutions, like Fox, CBS, Associated Press, and much more. In essence, distribution is an effective and creative way to attract people. Thus, tapping into large networks in which some people have greater influence over their audience.
While avoiding common mistakes for a press release, you will be able to connect your business with bloggers, influencers, journalists to boost your business. Keep reading to learn how to distribute your press release.
How to Distribute A Press Release
The first stage in the process is to find the appropriate distribution service or journalist who you think will be interested in your content. When you have some content to share, you have to get enthused by telling as many people as possible. You want everybody to hear about it.
However, that’s not always the best thing to do because everybody isn’t interested in your content. It’s only the truth that not everyone will have the time to read your content. You need to develop a press release that a journalist and their audience will be interested in.
It also helps if you’re very specific with selecting people to who you choose to send pitches. You can do this by filtering the journalists who have already written about your business or topic.
For instance, your company business does something with electronic appliances. You will need to conduct internet research and gather the information to create an impeccable press release.
However, mailing this press release to everybody you see is a waste of time; it will not provide the true results. You should reach out to journalists who are only applicable to your topic, your industry, and your message.
Get Contact Information
The second phase is to gather the valid contact details for the press release targets. You can do this solely by visiting the journalist bio on their publication page. You will be able to gather their phone number, email address, and whatnot.
Another way is to put their name into a search engine. You can search for their name and email address. Some individuals will have a website of their own with a contact page.
Still cannot find the details? Try out LinkedIn or a journalist database. All you need to do is filter the results by selecting the publication you want to distribute to and then go through all of the results you are provided with.
In any case, there are so many ways to find contact information that you might get exhausted yourself before you exhaust the actual opportunities.
Develop Press Release
The third phase in the press release distribution process is developing your press release and making sure it captures the journalist’s eye to whom you send it. Journalists get hundreds of pitches each day.
It helps if you keep yours brief, specific and skip the introduction., They don’t care about you unless the story is interesting. Send a sweet and brief message that sells your content in a couple of words.
You should get their attention and tell them exactly what you want from them as the purpose of your first email. Tell them why they should cover your story in the publication, what will they get out of it?
The Right Time
If you’re done with the previous steps, this does not constitute you being ready for your distribution as timing plays a vital role. You need to think about the appropriate time of day to deliver your distribution because there is the right time with a better success rate.
The morning time is probably the best time for you to send out your pitch. However, it’s also recommended that you wait an hour or two in the morning to send it a bit later so that you stand out amongst the hundreds of other pitches in the morning.
Follow-Up
Finally, should you consider following up on a press release? Well, that will depend on who you ask. Everybody has their own opinion on this topic, but we recommend following up on press releases.
If you have a release you’re proud of, it won’t hurt to get a follow-up. But spamming the inbox of the journalist with the same email will not do you any good. Don’t same the pitch any more than one time.
It will annoy them and ruin your likelihood of getting published. Keep your mind clear and be moderate with your pitches, tweak them accordingly, and sometimes follow-up asking if they received it or not.
Don’t do it every day either. Send a follow-up every week or so. If they don’t get back to you by the third week, look elsewhere.
Tips for A Successful Press Release
The primary thing that can and will affect the success of your distribution cycle is the worthiness of your news.
You must determine if you actually have something newsworthy? Bloggers and journalists get hundreds of pitches every day. If you don’t stand out, there’s really no reason for them to take you on.
The most difficult part of a press release is developing an eye-catching headline. The heading is the last and first thing that the readers will lay their eyes on. By using action words, precise language, and directive context, you can write a great one.
Avoid embellishment. Readers are journalists in some way; they will continue the snowball effect with their media outlets. Next, the most efficient way to write news copy is to write it like a news article.
Original, Quotes, Audience
Journalists will take on an original pitch and use it as the basis for the story, only adjusting the ending and introduction. Your release must be written very well, following a news format to the tee.
A press release should also have at least a single quote from someone who is part of the industry or business. IT shouldn’t be some random quote, thought. One must provide a human factor and insight to the story; it must become repeatable by those who read it.
One of the final things to consider with your release campaign is to whom and how you want to distribute the story. While the distribution aims to push your word as far as possible, it might be better to target the audience interested in the story. In press release distribution, quantity does not trump quality.
Business Content for You
Now that you know the power and utility of a press release distribution cycle, you are that much closer to finally advancing your story to the public. In any case, there’s really no rush, and it’s best if you take your time when developing your pitch.
A pitch is a gateway for your story to be reviewed, coincidentally published when the time is right. So don’t hesitate to take a step back and create something truly newsworthy. Some stories are simply not worth publishing; however, there will always be someone who will consider publishing it anyway.
Determine when the right time to publish is, what deserves publishing, and how it can be written to actually matter to the audience.
If you’re interested in various other ways to upgrade your business or take your marketing to the next level, check out some of the other articles we wrote down below or on the sidebar.
