Getting in the Business Press
If you are not attracting buyers, you’re attracting researchers. The purpose of brand awareness is to put your company in the candidates’ circle when someone is looking for a solution. If they are not coming to you directly, you need to be one of the 3 or 4 companies they are considering. And if your brand is not well-known, you want to be seen as a viable option to more established players.
One way to get more brand awareness is to start showing up in the media on a regular basis.
The Press Release: A Whole New World
The concept of the press release has changed in the last 15 years. Previously, a press release was sent to a media outlet (like a newspaper). The editor decided to publish the entire article word for word, do a synopsis, or ignore it completely. The newspaper’s audience would see it the day it was published. Once it was published and distributed, it would never be seen again unless someone searched the archives at the local library.
Today, the press release is a different animal. It’s an article that will be online and “live” for decades to come—after all, it’s the Internet! Today’s press release is published and distributed by press release services to many media platforms like Reuters, news channels, TV station websites, news platforms like Yahoo Business and Morningstar, or news aggregators like the Huffington Post.
Most media channels have a “press release service” section. Since most press releases are published by press release services, the media channels earn income from publishing the press releases they receive through press release networks and other distribution services.
People may not see the press release the same day it is published, but they could see it if they do a relevant search for the topic it covers. That might be months later as the press release is “live” on the web and can be found by searching with specific keywords. The best press releases take advantage of these searches.
How to Leverage Press Releases
Successful large brands in your industry get lots of press. Their press releases are usually about new deals and other sorts of announcements. The strategy we use is beyond the chest-beating exercise of your competitors, however.
Our press release has a different approach. You don’t have to wait for a significant event to do a press release. Our press releases are used to take advantage of the search volume that targeted keywords attract. This strategic press release is not limited to a major event but rather to a piece of news that is relevant to the problem your technology solves.
Your press releases will highlight your technology as an answer to a problem that links to your solution page.
Prospects looking for a solution see the press release because it is showing up in their searches on Google; they read the press release because it may help them solve the problem; and they click on the link to your solution because what you are saying is relevant.
Keyword Strategy for Press Releases
There are thousands of press releases published every day—more than anyone will ever consume. Like any webpage anywhere, the article has to be found or show up in a place where there is an interested audience.
In order to have your press release found and read, it’s not good enough to release boilerplate industry news. You must be strategic in what you are writing about. As a rule, a press release is about an event: a new product, a new launch, a new client, or an announcement. Instead, the strategic press release picks the terms that reflect the problem your prospects are looking to solve.
The type of language that goes into the title of the strategic press release and the solution for the problem is addressed in the body. So, instead of featuring the new product or upgrade as the “hero” of the story, the problem is featured. The topic of the press release is still news, but its focus is on the problem that is being solved.
This means your press release is showing up when someone is searching for a solution. When someone clicks on an article on Reuters that discusses their problem and presents your technology as the way to solve it, they do so because it’s speaking to them in the context of status and authority.
Cost
Brand awareness is usually very expensive. You have to advertise heavily and make sure your name is everywhere. But with a consistent schedule of press releases distributed to visible business news channels, you can get a tremendous amount of traction.
Typically, a press release has a distribution cost based on the level of service you purchase. A basic distribution plan to business news sites will do fine. This is a very low-cost way to generate brand awareness and garner leads.
By setting up a regular publishing schedule and issuing press releases to major media sites like Yahoo Finance, Reuters, and Nasdaq—with topics that are directly related to the problems your prospects are looking for—you can gain brand awareness and have your buyers seek you out for that solution for years to come.
More Press Means More Authority—More Authority Means More Status
The strategic press release is a creative way to attract attention to your technology on major news outlets. Remember what I said about status? Another way to generate more status (and thus, more authority) in the eyes of Google is to show up on major news media sites—and the more news sites you’re on, the better.
It’s hard to discount an article about a company that solves your problem if you are reading about it on Nasdaq.com, Reuters, or Yahoo Finance. Established news sites not only give your business status in the eyes of Google, they also give your press release status in the eyes of prospects.
The traditional approach to media press releases: Issue a boilerplate press release when you land a new client, create a new partnership, or have a major announcement. Include lots of industry jargon and acronyms.
The strategic press release approach: Regular, consistent press releases that highlight your technology as an answer to a searchable problem that links to your solution page. Plain language that addresses what prospects want.
Press Release Services
There are a variety of press release services. Although some of them offer a free option that does get some traction, they do not compare to the reach a good paid service provides. You want your press releases on major brand name news sites.
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