Send the Press Release?

  When to Send A Press Release

April 29, 2012
 

Press releases remain one of the most effective ways to let media know about your business’ ongoing changes. They are a way to announce the opening of a new office, key staff promotion or launch of a new product.

With the goal of keeping the media informed about your good news, consider the following events as opportunities to send out a well-crafted press release:

•  Announcement of a special event or seminar
• Partnerships with fellow business and community organizations

These are ‘soft’ news angles that help you stay in the media’s eye. While they may not garner you feature coverage, they will help create a foundation for those times when your news is big, like when your business is involved in groundbreaking work or is providing extraordinary services and/or products that address the larger needs of others.

The media wants solid feature stories. So let them hear about your special activities (health fair for your employees, sending collected water filters to a natural disaster area, etc.). These human interest pieces are always in demand.

Know your basics. Before you send that press release, be sure you are sending it to the right people. Not sure? Check the media outlet’s website for staff names. Also make note of how media prefers to receive materials and when. A long-winded phone call on deadline isn’t going to get you where you want to go.