How To Use The Media To Build Your Business

It Costs You Nothing but Time and Knowledge 

by Susanna K. Hutcheson

When Sharon Holmlund's business was mentioned in Home Office Computing magazine, she received over 400 inquiries. When Sharon Olson received a plug in a newspaper column, over 900 readers wrote to her. When Janice Guthrie's business was mentioned in Reader's Digest, she received over 740 calls immediately. The list goes on.

You can use the media such as newspapers, radio, television, magazines and even online publications to gain competitive advantage. But there are some things you need to know before you embark on a media campaign.

The first thing you must know are the facts about editors. Editors, while in their role and on the job, are not especially nice people. Now how can I say that without fear of either contradiction or being sued? Easy. My father and my mother both were newspaper publishers. And I was the editor and publisher of a number of newspapers.

In addition, I have known hundreds of people in the media. I still do. And they're all basically the same nasty people. Now when I say that I mean they're nasty on the job. Not necessarily in their personal lives. And to be fair, most of them have great sense of humors and are really decent people. But they have tough, very demanding jobs.

Why are media types like this? Here are just a few reasons that will help you understand the people who will read - or throw away after reading a few lines - your press release. 

 They're usually opinionated yet often can't express those opinions.
 
 They're under very tight, rigid deadlines and absolutely MUST meet those deadlines.
 
 They have keen competition and need to get the best news and stories before anyone else does.
 
 They're inundated with press releases of all types. Everyone wants a freebie. Most don't know how to write them. Many send them to the wrong editor or wrong publication.
 
 They're tired and overworked.
 
I could go on. But you get the idea. When I was in the newspaper business I kept a bottle of Maalox in my lower right desk drawer at all times. The medicine may have changed to Prilosec and it may be kept in pocket or purse but I bet the majority of media types still take medication for sour stomachs. It's a rough life.

So here you come with your press release. You're all excited about your new widget or Web site and think the entire world should share your feelings. One of these lovely people described above gets your press release. What do you think your chances are of exciting this person?

Here are some tips to help you get your press release read. They are provided by Internet InfoScavenger. 

 Don't sell. A release which tries to sell or advertise will be tossed. Be factual -- not promotional. 
 
 Make it newsworthy. Are you solving a problem or filling your readers' needs? Pinpoint what that need or problem is and write the press release from the perspective of the readers' benefits. 
 
 A headline that gets to the point. Craft a headline which conveys immediately why this news is important. Avoid promotional sounding words. What you say here determines whether the reader will read the rest of the release. 
 
 A strong leading paragraph for your press releases. Answer who, what, where, when, why, and how. Write this paragraph as an abstract or summary for the press release. 
 
 Detailed explanation from the reader's perspective. Give details of the news so the editor understands why it's important to his/her readers. Any background information, quotes of note, comparisons to similar products or services, etc., which illustrate the importance of this news should be included here. If you're announcing a new product, mention shipping date, price, and other points of interest. 
 
 Short corporate summary. Include especially any information about products or services which help establish your expertise. Also mention your location, years in business, etc. Keep it short; don't include the annual report. 
 
 Include complete contact information. Write a release that includes contact name, company name, full address, phone number, email address, and Web site URL. The contact name should be someone who's available and capable of answering questions. 
 
 Keep it short. Maximum length should be one to two pages and no more than 500 words (some experts say no more than 300 words for a press release). There are exceptions to the length issue.

TIPS FOR SENDING AN EFFECTIVE PRESS RELEASE

1. Target your audience. Only contact editors who write about your industry or topic.
 
2. Find out the best way to contact your audience. Is it by snail mail, email, or fax? Not everyone wants press releases by email.
 
3. Don't write email press releases with attachments. Write the release within the body of the message.
 
4. Don't follow up. You will annoy most editors by making a second contact to ask if they got your press release.
 
5. Know the editor's deadlines. Don't expect a magazine editor to cover your event scheduled for next week. Find out when you should send your press release for the best timing.

SOME DREADFUL THINGS TO AVOID 

1. Updating your Web site with the "news" before sending your release. If it's a new product, update that section of your site. If it's not important enough to be added to your own site, why should anyone write about it?
 
2. Do not call editors, publications, etc., on their 800 numbers. This includes calling to get the name and address of the appropriate editor as well as worthless follow up calls ("did you get my press release?"). Don't expect others to pick up the tab for your marketing costs. 

For a PR template and some good information on press releases, you can go to Press Release Writing.com (www.press-release-writing.com).

WHAT EDITORS LOOK FOR 

Editors want news. Period. They want to sell papers or magazines or whatever. They want to please advertisers. They have many gods. So your press release should give them NEWS. 

One way to get their interest, according to Market2Editors, is to stress the news angle of your material. Make it a story they will feel they need to print TODAY. Use independently gathered statistics or your own market research to bolster your claim that the public needs to know this information RIGHT NOW! 

In fact, just posting your own marketing survey may, in fact, actually qualify as news. And remember, if you are going to present a Doomsday situation, then make sure your product or service is going to save the world. 

Now you'll need someone to help you distribute your press release. One good solution is to visit the folks at Internet News Bureau (www.internetnewsbureau.com)

You can distribute your press release free at PR Web (www.prweb.com). 

TIPS FOR EFFECTIVE ONLINE MEDIA MESSAGES 

Distributing your own Press Releases online can be very effective. The days of mailing by postal mail are pretty much over. So you need to know how to effectively produce your online release. Here are some tips.

1. Distribute email press releases in plain ASCII text. 
 
Draft your press release as you would any other email message, using an email software program such as Eudora or Microsoft Outlook. Never send press releases as attachments to email, or attach other documents to email press releases. If you need to prepare a paper copy of the press release, copy and paste the ASCII text into a word processing document (such as Microsoft Word) after the release is written in the email browser. 
 
2. Keep the text brief and focused. 
 
An electronic press release should follow the same "pyramid" format as any other press release. Start with the most important information (and remember the five "W's" - who, what, where, when and why). Use short paragraphs and keep it brief. 
 
3. Write a subject line that's compelling or provocative. Keep in mind that the subject line is the first thing reporters will see when they download your release. Never email a press release (or any other message) with a blank subject line. 
 
4. Include your electronic contact information. 
 
Remember to include your email address and Web site URL in addition to your phone and fax number, and address. Put all your contact information at the top of the press release. 
 
5. Use hyper-links where appropriate. 
 
If there is additional information available on your Web site - such as a white paper or an event announcement - include a hyper-link so reporters can click right to it. Online publications will often include these links in their stories, making this an effective way to direct visitors to your Web site. 
 
6. Send a test message before distributing your press release. 
 
Always send a copy of the press release to yourself or to a colleague before distributing it. Check the format to make sure there are no broken lines of text, and check for any mistyped Web URLs by testing them to make sure they work. 
 
7. Avoid disclosing the recipients' email addresses. 
 
Always type the recipients' addresses in the "Bcc" field of your email message header, rather than in the "To" or "Cc" field. 
 
8. Post your organization's media contact information on the home page of your Web site. 
 
Be sure to keep the contact information up-to-date. And include information on how reporters can be added to your mailing list. 
 
9. Treat email media inquiries the same as phone inquiries. 
 
Always respond just as promptly to email media inquiries as you would to phone calls. Reporters who work for online publications are much more likely to contact you by email than by phone. If you're responsible for answering media inquiries, check your email frequently throughout the day. 
 
10. Set up an online archive for your media communications. 
 
Set aside an area of your Web site where reporters can locate past press releases. (If you publish a newsletter in electronic form, maintain an online archive of past issues, as well.) 
 
11. Post press releases only to appropriate lists, news groups, and publications. 
 
If you plan to post your press release to any email discussion lists, news groups or online publications, make sure the topic of your release is appropriate content for the list or Web site. If your press release announces a new report on air pollution, it would not be appropriate content for a forum for race car enthusiasts, for example. 
 
12. Collect email addresses from your media contacts. 
 
If you've been distributing your press releases by fax or postal mail, ask your media contacts if you can switch to email distribution. Commercial media directors (such as Bacon's Metro California Media) routinely include email contact information. Major newspapers frequently have separate staffs for their online versions, so you'll need to include those contacts on your list too. There are also media directories and news services specifically for online publications that may be appropriate to add to your media list. 
 
13. Limit the size of your email message window. 
 
In many email browsers, text that is longer than the width of the message window will "wrap" to the next line. (When text is set to "wrap," you don't need to hit the "return" key at the end of every line.) If the size of your message window is set for more than about 75, the automatic "wrap" may result in broken lines of text.

SOME GOOD RESOURCES AND FINAL WORDS 

A very good article on effective press release writing can be found at: www.poewar.com/articles/releases.htm

Okay. So the grouchy editor isn't sitting around waiting for your press release. He isn't all that excited about your widget or your Web site. But if you can provide him with a nugget of news that will interest his always hungry readers or viewers or listeners, you'll get your press release published. 

And remember one final thing. Chances are the editor (if she's a good editor) won't publish your release exactly as written. She'll probably call you for more information and rewrite it herself. Don't be offended. That's her job. 

For a decent press release template go to Press Release Writing.com (www.press-release-writing.com).
Another one is at About PR (www.aboutpr.com/subpages/samples)

You should also read a recent report by Jakob Nielsen called PR ON WEBSITE: INCREASING USABILITY. It's located at Useit.com (www.useit.com/alertbox/20030310.html)

You can get lots of free publicity if you learn to use the media wisely. So begin today to learn the methods of getting to the editor and getting published. It will pay big dividends. 

 

This article has been reprinted with the kind permission of Susanna K. Hutcheson. Susan is a professional advertising and direct mail copywriter. She was the first copywriter to utilize the Internet as a place to market this type of service. Susanna has clients all over the world. She writes everything from Web site content to direct mail and radio spots. Visit her Web site at www.powerwriting.com.

Her email address is powerwriter@powerwriting.com  
Telephone: (316) 684-0457.

© Copyright 2003 by Susanna K. Hutcheson and Powerwriting.com LLC. Any republication in any manner is prohibited without the consent of Powerwriting.com LLC or the author. We do give you limited permission to use this article on your Web site or in your newsletter if you print it or reproduce it exactly as it appears here including this notice and the one that follows. This article cannot be sold by you or published in a for-profit publication, a pay-per-view site or a site which sells memberships. It cannot be used by schools or in textbooks without our consent in writing. Rights to use this article may be purchased from us. Call us at 316-684-0457. Report any violation to legal@powerwriting.com 

 

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