What Makes Great Press Release Distribution in 2022

An Intro to Press Release

Press release writing and press release distribution form one of the most tested methods of generating news about your product, brand, or company.

The concept, as timeless concepts go, is quite simple. You create a piece of factual media from news internal to your company, stamp it with your brand and company identity, as well as general information about your business, and send it to journalists and media outlets.

This is a formula that has worked for a very long time and still essentially remains the same in 2020. It has created a symbiotic relationship wherein companies can get internal news out framed in a way that’s favorable to them, and journalists, who are often pressed for time, can receive factual reports from the companies themselves.

What’s New in 2020?

The major innovation in PR distribution has largely been through PR distribution services that can connect you quickly to very large audiences of journalists and media outlets. These providers, including PRDistribution.com, have networks of thousands or tens of thousands of different types of media outlets, spread across hundreds of thousands of journalists, reporters, bloggers, pundits, industry experts, etc.

Naturally, this is a powerful shift in the industry and many companies opt to use these press release distribution providers rather than manually tracking down journalists and publications. This is made easier by the software packages provided by these services that allow targeting by region and industry.

How Does a Press Release Help My Brand or Company?

The short answer is that a successful press release can be massively helpful in building brand awareness. A well-established press release distribution company can get your news in front of major media outlets. PR Distribution, for example, has had client articles published in the Washington Post, Forbes, ABC, Bloomberg, FOX, and virtually every major network, as well as search engine news services such as Google News and Yahoo! News.

In technical terms, press releases can:

1. boost SEO,
2. increase local and regional awareness,
3. keep company developments in the eye of your industry.

All of these, ultimately, are boosts to branding, marketing, and sales volume.

So, how do you ensure that a press release will be successful? We get into the different factors that make for a successful press release, as well as what role your press release distribution service plays in that.

Writing Your PR Content for the Correct Audiences

When writing your press releases, your first questions should help you determine your audience. Who is the readership of this piece? How are they tied to your clientele? How relevant is your news to them, and to the publication?

Taking into account the industry placement of your audience, their age, interests, familiarity with your brand or competitor brands, their location, etc. are all key considerations.

These considerations will affect not just one press release, but the entirety of the content of your marketing campaign. Major press release distribution companies will offer you the ability to target different publications. You control the ability to cast a wider or narrower “net” of target journalists and media outlets. PR Distribution allows a variety of selections for targeting, varying by the PR package you choose.

This is all context-specific to your current objectives and overall content strategy. For example, if you are a financial services company that works primarily with regional clients, you may choose to pitch your press release to regional and industry publications. This will be more cost effective than distributing the press piece nationally. This also affords the ability to tailor content to a regional audience.

In instances with highly localized or niche press pieces, we highly recommend using writers that are familiar with the subject matter and local language. The use of appropriate vernacular and industry terminology also makes the work of journalists and editors much easier.

Different press release distribution services will provide different ways to customize their solution. At PR Distribution, our Premium, Premium Pro, and Premium Concierge packages all provide syndication on a regional and local level, as well as access to industry publications. Many of our users choose Premium Pro for the added reporting and analytics available at that tier.

If you serve a particular niche or are moving into a new industry niche, you may want to forego a regional strategy and move to a national strategy that is highly targeted toward journals, print media, and TV and radio in your industry. Being more specific and technical with this type of content can be helpful, as the readership often has industry expertise.

Targeting Options through PR Distribution

PR Distribution categorizes articles by industry and region. Your press piece will also be natively displayed on our site (at every tier level) providing a strong boost to visibility for the article. Releasing articles at regular intervals also serves to compound the effectiveness of SEO, as search engines will commonly return older articles in their results.

If you are targeting a specific publication, it can help to reach out individually to journalists on their staff, as well. Crafting an individual pitch takes time, but not all publications are equal in terms of visibility, particularly if you are moving into a specialized market.

International Readership

Most established press release distribution services will clearly report the different publications which your press pieces are being syndicated to. PR Distribution’s network contains numerous media outlets from countries outside of the United States. Our partner news outlets serve regions in Asia, Europe, North America, South America, and Africa at regional and national levels of readership. PR Distribution also works with large wire services such as Reuters, the Associated Press, and Bloomberg.

Search Engine Visibility

One of our strengths at PR Distribution’s is our team’s high level of familiarity with search engine optimization in regard to both Google and Bing search. We were among the first press release distribution services to implement a strategy regarding Google AMP. Our ability to stay at the forefront of changing algorithms and search features means that your press pieces hosted on our site are optimized for search traction.

We also work closely to make sure we optimize our clients’ content for Google News, Bing News, and Yahoo Finance, all of which provide quick and powerful visibility in searches. Our strategy for providing near and long-term search visibility is in many respects industry-leading. We are also constantly tweaking the way in which the press pieces we distribute interact with search engines and their various outlets.

Complete Marketing Strategy

Press release distribution can be a strong multiplier in the effectiveness of your overall marketing strategy. Different paid pieces, such as PPC, partnered posts, and digital advertisements can spike in terms of through traffic and impressions because of a well-crafted press release campaign.

A well-crafted press release can greatly increase returns on SEO, as well. Your on-site brand content can also be targeted for boosts in traffic via press releases.

Branding and Multimedia Opportunities

PR Distribution offers the ability to add media to your press pieces. Offering different types of media helps build brand awareness among your readers and can give journalists different options when working with your article. It also creates a more evocative piece of content for your website, if you host the content locally on a blog.

Many press release distribution services will charge for the upload of images or video to a piece of written content, but our experience with press releases show that having different media to complement an article can greatly increase traffic and traction. When we host your content after it’s been sent out for distribution to news outlets, we will also keep your visual media up. Best practices for search are always changing slightly, but prioritizing reader experience will consistently remain of high importance.

How long does it take for your press release to be sent out?

The speed of upload and distribution varies from service to service. PR Distribution is able to upload and distribute your press release in as few as 24 hours. Different outlets have different processes, of course, for determining the publication of a piece. In most instances, online outlets, including our own well-trafficked articles, will come up the fastest.

Are your press release campaigns working?

Your press release distribution service should also provide up-to-date reports on what publications are picking up your piece. PR Distribution’s reports will also list live links to your uploaded press pieces. You can follow these links to follow up with publications and also externally link to them from your own site.

Customer Service

When you start using a new press release distribution service, it pays to get acquainted with their customer service processes. Purchasing the enterprise level packages, in PR Distribution’s case, the Concierge Pro package, gets you priority service. The experience level of your customer service representatives often plays an important part in how your service is handled, as do the policies of the company in question.

Your simple interactions with the service, from navigating their site, to payment, to learning more about the services, should also be straightforward and intuitive. Many established businesses in 2020 still do the bulk of their business offline, and maintain slightly clunky web presences. But, the press release industry relies on interactions across the Internet. The ease of use of a website, the thoughtfulness of a web portal, and the general tech-savviness of a press release distribution provider can be strong indicators of how well the business’s ship is run.

Other Features

Besides the core features of press release submission and media uploads, look for other ease-of-use features that are part of your press release distribution service. How easy is it to look at your previous press releases? Can you track performance through their web portal? How easy is it to schedule a release?

Ease of use, especially in larger teams, should be a priority for your press release distribution provider’s software. You want a smoothly running marketing machine, of which pr distribution is one component. The technical thoroughness of your provider could potentially have long-term implications for the success of your marketing efforts. PR Distribution has a wealth of technical expertise, and has a track record of keeping press releases online and accessible for far longer than competitors.

PR Distribution’s Writing

Our staff has written extensively about the importance of creating the right content for your campaigns. We’ve discussed ways to discern your best audience and ways to target that same audience effectively. 

We also understand that not every business has dedicated editors and writers on hand to create extensive content for each campaign. PR Distribution works with writers and industry specialists to help our clients create effective content that is relevant to their industries and audiences.

These are professional writers who not only have a strong grasp of composition and press release formatting, but they often also have prior experience with industry publications.

PR Distribution Customer Service

Our customer support team is available for support 24 hours a day, every day of the week. The team is well-trained and experienced in troubleshooting issues or resolving other service issues.

Our sales team is available from 9 AM to 5 PM PST Monday through Friday. They can help connect you to the correct distribution packages, as well as helping you find writers and other marketing expertise for your campaign.

PR Distribution, a Complete Solution

Press release distribution services have different missions. Our mission at PR Distribution is to provide an agile, robust, and forward-looking system that stays at the leading edge of the press release industry. We are client oriented and are invested in the latest methods that will give customers the edge in experience and effectiveness. Our track record of growth and success speaks for itself.

We invite you to visit us at PRDistribution.com and do a thorough comparison of the value,expertise, and professionalism we provide.