Choosing the Right Time for Your Press Release
You need to choose the right time for your press release to get the most impact from your story – and to produce the most earned media from the sharing. Consider that you are pitching a story idea to a journalist, editor, or producer who sees hundreds of pitches. Not only do you need to craft a strong press release to get noticed, but you also need to time your press release so that it does not get lost in the avalanche of ideas.
Steps to Choosing the Right Time for Your Press Release
Start by knowing your media target. You need to understand the individual lead time requirements for the media outlets where you want to send your press release. Once you understand the lead times, you can narrow down the best time for sending in your press release.
Recognize the changing technology. The mobility of information means media outlets that were traditionally unreachable during the weekends may still receive information while away from their desks. Since these are the times that the fewest press releases are sent in, it can open a window of opportunity. Craft a powerful subject line and headline and then take advantage of these lulls in emails.
Be willing to invest in measurements. If you intend to send out more than one press release over the lifetime of your company, then you need to develop a system that will help you determine the times that worked best for you so that you will be in a position to repeat the process.
Top Benefits to Choosing the Right Time for Your Press Release
- The noise of other emails may not be as great. Getting around the noise of other press releases can be one of the biggest challenges you will face. Choosing a time that has less noise can help.
- Media professionals will appreciate your investment. When you take time to learn the specific needs of the media outlets (including lead times) then you make it easier for the media professionals. Anytime that you can make the job a little easier, it can give your press release a leg up on the competition now, and in the future.
- Get timely exposure by sending out your press release with enough lead time for media outlets to cover your event. The exposure can help to boost the results of your event and provide even more earned media opportunities in the future.
The best time for a press release can shift – depending on your story and other factors (including breaking news or holidays). You can choose to follow the industry standards or create your own map for successful press releases by measuring your efforts and then honing your release times.
Some experts are predicting that the time limits for press releases are getting to be fewer and fewer as the news cycle continues to expand. For now, you will want to keep in mind the lead times of the publications that you are targeting in order to choose the right time for sending out your press release.
