Tips for Building Your Brand Via Press Releases
In the “good old days” of print media, the quickest way to create a buzz about anything was to use press releases. Publicity agents in the entertainment world have always been aware of this advertising art form, and many a career has been launched or boosted by using the press to spread the word. The success of using this type of promotion required knowing when to release information for the best effect and which print outlet to go to.
These aspects still apply today. The only difference is the medium. The internet can still be used to get the word out about a brand name using press releases, and there are several websites now that specialize in this service. Some even provide this service free to the company promoting a brand name. Yet even those sites that do charge tend to keep the rates low enough that it brings a great savings over traditional print and online advertising and promotion techniques. There are some general rules of thumb to follow when using press releases to build a brand.
The first tip for building your brand via press releases is to choose the best target dates to release them. This is usually best approached by keeping up with any related industry, especially regarding typical product release dates as well as any other special events that will be taking place throughout the year in those related industries. This can include semi-annual sales events that tend to take place around the same time each year; annual conferences or trade shows that can be targeted; and related news events that can be followed up by press releases tying in a brand to a specific type of product or service.
These aspects will actually end up requiring the most on-going effort to build a brand through diligence. The other tips for brand-building have more to do with the actual writing of the press releases, and this area of promotion will simply require either hiring someone who is skilled and experienced with writing press releases to begin with, or studying the proven methods of writing effective press releases.
Basically, a good press release is no different than a good news report. The same general rules apply - the famous “5 W’s” of who, what, when, where, why. These are also mandatory for an effective press release. A good press release must start with a strong first paragraph in order to catch the attention of a random reader quickly. This will take some practice - as all of the writing will. The language and grammar must be as proper and acceptable as possible. Slang, over-the-top promotion, and inappropriate punctuation (too many exclamation points, for instance) will be counter-productive. A press release is not an advertisement, and must not be written as one. This will lose whatever interest was created in the first place.
Lastly, it is always best to proofread a press release before the final draft is submitted to the chosen website(s). Several re-reads are recommended, and it never hurts to have others read the copy before the final draft. They may catch errors that were missed, and will usually have a good outsider’s view of the effect of the press release
These aspects still apply today. The only difference is the medium. The internet can still be used to get the word out about a brand name using press releases, and there are several websites now that specialize in this service. Some even provide this service free to the company promoting a brand name. Yet even those sites that do charge tend to keep the rates low enough that it brings a great savings over traditional print and online advertising and promotion techniques. There are some general rules of thumb to follow when using press releases to build a brand.
The first tip for building your brand via press releases is to choose the best target dates to release them. This is usually best approached by keeping up with any related industry, especially regarding typical product release dates as well as any other special events that will be taking place throughout the year in those related industries. This can include semi-annual sales events that tend to take place around the same time each year; annual conferences or trade shows that can be targeted; and related news events that can be followed up by press releases tying in a brand to a specific type of product or service.
These aspects will actually end up requiring the most on-going effort to build a brand through diligence. The other tips for brand-building have more to do with the actual writing of the press releases, and this area of promotion will simply require either hiring someone who is skilled and experienced with writing press releases to begin with, or studying the proven methods of writing effective press releases.
Basically, a good press release is no different than a good news report. The same general rules apply - the famous “5 W’s” of who, what, when, where, why. These are also mandatory for an effective press release. A good press release must start with a strong first paragraph in order to catch the attention of a random reader quickly. This will take some practice - as all of the writing will. The language and grammar must be as proper and acceptable as possible. Slang, over-the-top promotion, and inappropriate punctuation (too many exclamation points, for instance) will be counter-productive. A press release is not an advertisement, and must not be written as one. This will lose whatever interest was created in the first place.
Lastly, it is always best to proofread a press release before the final draft is submitted to the chosen website(s). Several re-reads are recommended, and it never hurts to have others read the copy before the final draft. They may catch errors that were missed, and will usually have a good outsider’s view of the effect of the press release
