Press Release Myths Debunked: Do You Still Need Them to Grow?
How people and organizations communicate and market their businesses has changed significantly over the past ten years. Before the technology revolution of the last decade, a press release was one of few choices that organizations had to generate awareness for a new product or service.
Multiple Inbound Marketing Choices
In today’s marketing landscape, however, there are countless inbound marketing strategies. Like many other forms of communication, the form and function of the press release has evolved to keep pace with technological advancements.
However, the explosion in popularity of social media, data analytics and a never-ending news cycle have a few marketing departments questioning whether press releases are still relevant and effective. The answer is a resounding YES.
6 Reasons Why the Press Remains a Relevant and Effective Marketing Strategy in 2020
1. Press releases are cost effective.
Press releases can be seamlessly woven in to an email campaign. You can easily:
Send press releases directly to consumers through online distributors
Segment journalists based on their specialty reporting areas
Track open and click through results
2. Press releases enable you to establish a relationship with the media.
Press releases are a preferred resource in the eyes of journalists.
According to one report, when looking for content from brands, 71% of journalists seek to cite press releases and news announcements as their primary source. As such, a professionally written, factual, specific and newsworthy press release will continue to be of interest to journalists.
Press releases are always a good channel for:
announcements about personnel additions or restructuring
new product or service launches
earnings announcements
new location openings
approvals of new patents
mergers or acquisitions
Remember, journalists place significant importance on timely information. The best press releases tell about news that is happening right now or news that is about to happen.
3. You are able to control the message.
From the quote itself, to who provides the quote, and which information to feature, your organization is in the driver’s seat.
Organizations can utilize the press release to communicate:
background information about themselves
investor considerations they would like to highlight
industry or market trends the company is positioned to leverage
what impact the product, service or the organization itself will have on the audience
a new whitepaper or industry study your organization has created
during a crisis, to mitigate negative press and genuinely reassure customers
4. Establish credibility for your organization.
The press release is a trusted source of information.
In today’s data-driven world, the press release has also become a trusted source for data.
By consistently producing professional, honest and credible press releases, established brands build trust with journalists and loyalty with existing and potential customers. Start-up companies can leverage the press release to establish brand recognition and disseminate positive messaging about the organization.
5. Generate SEO traffic.
Search engines design their algorithms to seek and find well-written content for their users.
When your press release reports on a newsworthy topic, it should reach many people.
Distributing a solid press release with a backlink to your website provides the opportunity to capture the attention of both potential and existing customers. It can also:
drive traffic to your site
become widely shared on social channels
spur investor interest and consideration
produce leads and convert sales
It is completely acceptable to optimize press releases to generate website traffic. Utilize SEO best practices so search engines are able to find, index, and rank the press release. 6. Press releases present a way to diversify your content portfolio.
In the eyes of Google, content is king. In order to find your way to the SERP, your marketing strategy should be constantly innovating and evolving.
The press release is a critical component of a diversified portfolio of marketing strategies.
Press releases can be repurposed as:
blog posts
podcasts
eBooks
whitepapers
This way, not only does content creation become more efficient, but you now have an opportunity to reach customers or investors who missed the message the first time around.
Final Thoughts
Writing agencies have teams of experienced writers that can optimize the message you are trying to convey. The right agency can leverage deep knowledge of the targeted markets to structure the release to be both newsworthy and attention-getting.
The press release continues to be an important tool for building your brand, garnering attention from the media, and telling a data-driven story about your business.