Why your PR strategy must go beyond the press release
Reporters are bombarded with the same old approach to promoting your client’s ‘news,’ yet the practice persists. To improve your odds for coverage, consider its value to a journalist’s audience.
It’s not your fault.
You were taught how to run a business, not how to share company news with media outlets. You probably copy what you’ve seen others do.
That’s OK, but it’s probably not doing anything for you. If your PR firm or in-house communications crew is only distributing press releases, they’re not doing meaningful PR work.
Press releases for B2B companies can serve a purpose—but even then the impact is extremely low. Who trusts a company that says it’s fantastic? Plus, press releases are typically distributed to appease somebody—an executive, marketer, shareholders—someone who wants to see their achievement up in lights.
Before you even think about writing a press release, ask yourself what’s in it for the reader.
Let’s say your company made something great. What did it solve for a customer? What are the data points or customer insights? Your prospects want to hear from your customers, not from you. If you don’t have results, wait until you do.
Email pitches (short notes of highlights or bullet points that point to a possible story) to journalists are likely to perform better than a press release.
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