Why Promote Your Press Release Online?
It’s not good enough to just “spray and pray” your press release out to a bunch of journalists and hope for good results.
Promoting your press release online is essential for reaching your target audience and maximizing the impact of your message.
In an era dominated by digital communication, here’s why online promotion is crucial:
1. Broader Reach
The internet allows your press release to reach a global audience instantly. By promoting it online, you can connect with media outlets, influencers, and potential customers across geographic boundaries, ensuring your message goes far beyond traditional press coverage.
2. Enhanced Visibility
Online platforms like newswires, social media, and email marketing can help boost the visibility of your press release. Search engine optimization (SEO) ensures your content ranks well in search results, making it easier for interested audiences to discover your news.
3. Real-Time Engagement
Digital promotion enables real-time interaction with your audience. Through comments, shares, and discussions on social media or blog posts, you can gauge public interest, address questions, and build relationships, fostering greater brand loyalty.
4. Cost-Effective Outreach
Promoting your press release online often costs less than traditional methods like print advertising. Tools like social media ads, email campaigns, and online news distribution services provide scalable options to fit any budget.
5. Data-Driven Insights
Online promotion offers measurable results. By using analytics tools, you can track metrics like views, shares, click-through rates, and engagement levels, giving you a clear picture of what works and what doesn’t. This data allows you to refine your strategies for future press releases.
6. Targeted Audience Reach
With online promotion, you can target specific demographics and industries. Social media platforms and digital advertising tools let you focus on the people most likely to care about your news, ensuring your efforts are both impactful and efficient.
Promoting your press release online not only amplifies its reach but also makes it a dynamic part of your overall communication strategy. By taking advantage of digital tools and platforms, you can transform a simple press release into a powerful storytelling tool that resonates with your audience.
How To Promote Your Press Release Online
So how do you do it? What are the best solutions to ensure you get your online press release to as many eyes as possible?
This guide will show you how to promote your press release online and increase your readership.
Here’s what you need to know about press release distribution:
1. Reach Out to Media Outlets
Your first step should be to reach out to online media outlets that specialize in publishing press releases. This can also include digital versions of popular newspapers such as The New York Times or The Wall Street Journal.
It’s at this time that you or your company should start working on building your media list. In this list, you’ll include the following information:
- Name of the Publication
- Direct Contact Name
- Usually a PR Manager
- Email Address or Press Release Submission Link
- Submission Rules
- Audience Information
- Size, demographics, industry, etc.
As you build your media list you’ll know which media outlets to contact for future press releases. In the beginning, send your press release to as many relevant publications as possible.
Later, you can fine-tune your distribution method to only working with media outlets that have published your press releases before. You can also be more selective with the type/quality of media outlet to work with.
2. Self-Publish Your Press Release
While this wasn’t always standard practice in the “older” days of Public Relations, you can now publish your press release on your website. This can be done in addition to or instead of publishing via media outlets.
You want to either publish it directly on your website or via a publishing platform. If you choose the former, ensure that you have a great web development team who can make your press release look neat and readable online.
If you publish it via a publishing platform, then you can choose whichever platform(s) that you find easy to use and ideal for presentation.
A few publishing platforms that you might wish to consider are:
- Medium
- Substack
- Teletype
- Telegraph
- Ghost
- WordPress
This is the fastest way to publish your press release and share it with your audience. These platforms have been used primarily for blogging but they can work just as well for publishing press releases.
3. Distribute It Using a Press Release Distribution Service
Yes, you can distribute your press release yourself, but by doing so you will probably miss a large number of media outlets that would have run your story, if only they received it. Press release distribution services solve that!
Using a press release distribution service is a powerful way to amplify the reach of your news and gain exposure to a wider audience. Among the various options available, eReleases stands out as the recommended service for its comprehensive distribution network and industry-specific targeting capabilities.
Once your press release is ready, eReleases offers a range of distribution options to tailor your outreach. You can select specific geographic areas, from local to national, and choose industry categories that align with your news. eReleases also provides additional features like multimedia inclusion and social media distribution, which can enhance the visibility and engagement of your release.
After submitting your press release to eReleases, take advantage of their editorial review process to ensure the quality of your content. Once distributed, eReleases provides real-time reports on where your release has been picked up, allowing you to monitor its initial spread. These reports are invaluable for tracking the performance of your release and identifying which outlets are giving you the most valuable coverage. eReleases also offers analytics tools to help you measure views, engagement, and other key metrics, providing insights that can inform your future PR strategies.
Complement your eReleases distribution with the other strategies discussed here. By effectively leveraging eReleases in conjunction with other promotion strategies, you can maximize the impact of your press release, increase the likelihood of media coverage, and ultimately achieve your public relations objectives.
4. Sharing Via Social Media
Of course, social media marketing is the best way to promote your press release once you’ve published it online.
But rather than just mindlessly tweeting a link to your press release or sharing an image of the press release on Instagram, you must have a cohesive marketing strategy.
Let’s look at a few quick strategies for promoting your press release via a few social media platforms:
How to Share Your Press Release on LinkedIn
1. Craft a Professional Post:
Write a concise and professional introduction to your press release. Highlight the key points, such as the announcement, its significance, and how it impacts your audience. Keep the tone formal and engaging, as LinkedIn is a professional network.
2. Use an Attention-Grabbing Headline:
Your headline should immediately capture attention. Use strong, active language to convey the importance of your news.
3. Include Visuals:
Posts with visuals perform better on LinkedIn. Add an eye-catching image, infographic, or a short video related to your press release to increase engagement.
4. Leverage LinkedIn Groups:
Identify and share your press release in LinkedIn Groups relevant to your industry or audience. Tailor your message to match the group’s interests and rules.
5. Engage Your Network:
Encourage your employees, colleagues, and connections to share your post to extend its reach. Personal endorsements from your network can significantly boost visibility.
6. Add a Call-to-Action (CTA):
Direct readers to your website, a detailed press release page, or a related landing page with a clear CTA, such as “Learn more,” “Download now,” or “Register today.”
How to Share Your Press Release on X (Formerly Twitter)
1. Use a Short, Impactful Tweet:
Twitter has a character limit, so focus on crafting a concise and compelling summary of your press release. Include a hook that piques curiosity or emphasizes the news value.
You can tweet something along the lines of:
We’ve launched a new product.
The new Ultra Earpods
Comfier. Better Quality.
Read about our launch:
Link to your press release
You should also consider “pinning” this tweet until the press release is no longer relevant or becomes outdated. Make sure you allow replies on the press release. This lets you engage with any followers who might have questions or comments after they read your press release.
Make sure you respond promptly to any replies. This increases your chances of having your press release read.
2. Incorporate Hashtags:
Use relevant hashtags to expand the reach of your tweet. Incorporate popular industry hashtags and trending topics (if applicable) to make your post discoverable to a wider audience.
3. Tag Relevant Accounts:
Mention individuals, partners, or organizations involved in your news. Tagging them increases the likelihood of retweets and engagement.
4. Add Visual Content:
A vibrant image, infographic, or short video accompanying your tweet can dramatically increase its visibility and engagement.
5. Schedule Multiple Posts:
Share your press release more than once on Twitter, varying the copy each time. Post at different times to reach followers across multiple time zones.
6. Engage with Your Audience:
Monitor replies, retweets, and mentions related to your tweet. Respond promptly to questions or comments to maintain a dynamic presence and build rapport with your audience.
How to Share Your Press Release on Facebook
1. Create a Captivating Post:
Write a post summarizing your press release in a conversational tone that resonates with Facebook’s diverse audience. Highlight the main points and include an emotional or relatable angle if appropriate.
2. Include High-Quality Visuals:
Posts with images or videos are more likely to catch attention in crowded newsfeeds. Choose visuals that complement the content of your press release and enhance its appeal.
3. Use Facebook Stories:
Leverage the Stories feature for quick, engaging updates about your press release. Add links or stickers encouraging viewers to read the full release.
4. Target Specific Audiences:
Use Facebook’s targeted advertising options to boost your post. Narrow down your audience based on demographics, interests, and behaviors to ensure your press release reaches the right people.
5. Encourage Sharing:
Ask your followers to share the post with their networks. This can amplify your press release’s reach organically.
6. Monitor Engagement:
Track likes, shares, and comments on your post. Engage with your audience by responding to their comments and encouraging discussions about your news.
7. Pin the Post:
If your press release is a significant announcement, pin it to the top of your page so it remains highly visible to visitors.
By tailoring your approach to each platform, you can ensure your press release gains the visibility and engagement it deserves across LinkedIn, X, and Facebook.
5. Create Video and Audio Versions and Other Graphics to Support Your Release
This is an unusual approach as press releases have always been in written form. However, as so many internet users prefer video and audio this opens more opportunities to promote your online press release.
For example, on some publishing platforms, you can publish an audio version of your press release. Substack, for instance, has an in-built audio player so your readers can listen to the press release while reading it.
You can also create short 30-45 second videos with a narration of the press release. Within the video, you can include links for your audience to engage with your brand.
This can include adding annotations on a video publishing platform such as YouTube or Rumble. You can also add QR codes within the video to link to the press release or another link on your website.
This will likely become standard practice in the future but for now, this will help your brand stand out amongst your competition.
In addition, you may want to create an infographic that visualizes important data or timelines related to your announcement.
You should consider designing shareable quote graphics featuring key statements from your press release. These should be published along with your press release, and added to your social media feed so others can pick them up.
And, of course, you should ensure all multimedia content is branded and includes your company logo and URL.
Don’t forget to add these video and audio versions to your other social media platforms too!
6. Timing Is Key
Often, the major reason why no one read your fantastic press release is because you released it at the wrong time.
Take a moment to pause and reflect on the last time you published a press release that didn’t get many views.
You might have released it on a day when there was another major news event. Whether this news event was relevant to your industry or not, it distracted readers from coming across your press release.
Another aspect is to consider when your audience would be interested in learning more about your brand. For example, during the summer holidays, it’s not ideal to publish a press release related to the education industry.
But as the school year starts, you can publish your press release and expect your colleagues to take notice.
At times you might need to delay a press release if there’s been a crisis. If there’s been a devastating natural disaster, the news about your new headphones must wait!
However, there are also cases when a press release should be published as soon as a crisis gets declared. This is often the case in matters of reputation management.
For example, if your company has been embroiled in a controversy you must publish a press release no later than 24 hours after the news becomes public.
If you were to take much longer then your defense wouldn’t get taken seriously. No one would be interested in reading your press release to hear your side of the story if you delay its distribution.
7. Look At Your Analytics
After you distribute your press release you want to study analytics to track performance.
This gives you an idea of which social media platforms worked best for your distribution. You can also compare the views on different press releases to compare the quality of the release.
eReleases offers a package of reporting for every press release distributed through their service to help you track and easily see that your release is receiving coverage.
8. Let a Professional Write It
Our final great tip to promote your press release online is to actually make sure it meets professional standards.
Even if you run a small startup you’ll have to fight against major corporations for attention. The best solution for this is to have a professional writing service write your press release for you.
You’ll discuss your brief with the writing service and they’ll take over. The press release will meet industry standards and will be immediately ready for publication once it gets delivered to you.
This is a service that all entrepreneurs should invest in and is the best way to ensure you succeed with online press release marketing and distribution.
Advantages of Promoting Your Press Release Online
Promoting your press release online offers several key advantages:
- Increased reach: Online promotion allows your press release to potentially reach a global audience, far beyond the limitations of traditional media outlets. This expanded reach can significantly increase the visibility of your news.
- Cost-effectiveness: Compared to traditional PR methods, online promotion is often more affordable, offering a higher return on investment. Many online promotion tactics, such as social media sharing, can be implemented at little to no cost.
- Speed and immediacy: Online channels allow for instant distribution of your press release. This immediacy is crucial for time-sensitive news or when you need to respond quickly to market developments.
- Targeting capabilities: Online promotion tools often provide advanced targeting options, allowing you to reach specific demographics, industries, or geographic locations more precisely than traditional methods.
- Measurability: Digital promotion provides detailed analytics and metrics, enabling you to track the performance of your press release in real-time. This data can help you refine your PR strategies for future releases.
- Multimedia integration: Online platforms allow for the seamless integration of various media types, such as videos, images, and infographics, making your press release more engaging and shareable.
- Long-term accessibility: Unlike print media, online press releases remain accessible indefinitely, continuing to attract attention and potentially generating leads long after the initial distribution.
- Increased engagement: Online promotion allows for direct interaction with your audience through comments, shares, and discussions, fostering greater engagement with your news.
- Cross-platform promotion: You can easily share your press release across multiple online channels, from social media to industry forums, maximizing its exposure.
Promote Your Press Release
Now you know how to promote your press release online and get your word out to a larger audience.
You want to start by reaching out to media outlets. Make sure you build your media list as you reach out to them.
You can also self-publish your press release as well as distribute it via social media. Make sure you create a video and audio version and that you release your press release at the appropriate time.
You also want to study analytics to track performance. If you need help writing your press release, we’d be glad to help!