How often should you issue a company press release?
Many new small business owners, as well as those just starting to work in marketing and public relations, often ask the question: How often should you issue a company press release?
The short answer is as often as you have real news. The longer answer depends on what exactly constitutes real news. It is also important to think about the frequency with which you issue press releases, so you can remain in the public eye and build your brand.
What is news to journalists?
A press release should contain real news, that is, real news to the people you are targeting as your audience. Your audience is made up of journalists, media outlets and perhaps prominent niche-related bloggers.
News to them is usually:
- When you have an executive or company change
- Mergers and acquisitions, that is, if you buy another company, or get bought yourself
- Publicly traded company quarterly earnings and dividends reports, in which case, you will need to send them out four times a year according the exact requirements of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
- A new product launching
- Expansion to another factory or overseas
And so on.
Leveraging press releases as needed.
Press releases are just one part of your public relations strategy, but they can be the easiest and most effective if you follow the rules about real news and present your press release in the way that those seeking stories for their target audience want most.
The headline should be interesting and make them eager to read more. The subheadline should support the headline and give a summary of what they will discover if they read on. Boost your chances of getting read and receiving coverage even more by including images and/or video that will support your press release in a meaningful way.
One press release per month is not unreasonable, provided that you genuinely have something new to tell people, and that something will be helpful to your target audience. Think “useful,” not spam.
Don’t bombard the media with press releases.
Not that long ago, sending out press releases was seen to be an important tactic in relation to “search engine optimization,” that is, getting free traffic to your site through natural means rather than running ads. The goal was to get backlinks to the site, which Google considered to be a signal that it was a quality site worth paying attention to. Unfortunately, it became a huge scam, and some companies issued far too many press releases, with little or no real value to anyone.
If your press release reads more like an ad for your new product than information about it and how it fills a gap in the current market, chances are you won’t get many media pick-ups. On the other hand, if you create a free downloadable special report and worksheets on how to plan your wedding flowers and work with a wedding florist, that could be news, especially around June (a traditional month for wedding-related news stories and articles).
Issues press releases regularly, but strategically, and see how much media coverage you can earn.
Call us today to speak to one of our PR specialists: 1-800-713-7278
