Some Knowledge

If you have a business and you are looking for publicity for your product or service, you might consider issuing a press release to the media.  You will need to target the editor of the news media to which you want to send your release.  This will take some research.  Find the person who handles stories in your field.  You might want to make a phone call to the agency to find out who this person is.  You will also need to get enough information on your product that will allow a writer to write an article based on your information.

Say for instance that you have a new product that you are trying to sell.  What about this product makes it new or different from what is already available?  Where can people purchase this product?  How much does this product cost?  What are the advantages of owning this product compared to owning something sold by a competitor?

You will want to answer any questions that a consumer of your product might ask.  You will want to have an angle that shows your product as something new and newsworthy.  Once you have your press kit together, it is time to start approaching the media.

News agencies are always looking for stories.  They sell advertising to make money.  You will want your story to be a bit different than an advertisement.  The fact that you sell some product is not necessarily news.  That your product has some new or different feature, that is news.  Write up a press release detailing what is new or different about your offering.  State what it is about your situation that would be interesting to readers or viewers of a possible story.  Give contact information so you can meet with the media to further promote your story.

You will always want to be honest in any news release.  If you are caught promoting something based on bogus information, people will not want to talk to you.  Do not get the reputation of promoting vapor, or pointless news stories.  Be honest about what you are promoting and give good information.  When you are meeting with the reporter offer all the helpful information you can so that he can write a good story.

If you have a news story about your company that might appeal to a wider audience, you might consider sending a press release to a news agency like Reuters or the Associated Press.  If your story is picked up by a news agency it might be carried by a lot of different papers and television stations.  News agencies are the big time in the press.  They are the distributors of information to a hungry media.

Even if you do not work for a big time corporation, you still might consider using a press release to promote your business.  It is a bit like free advertising, getting a story in the press.  A press release can generate more results for you than an advertisement though, because people give a higher authority to a news story than they do to an advertisement.  Just tell the truth about what you are offering and provide useful, interesting information.  A news story, a favorable news story, can generate a lot of business if it is done well.  It will take some effort and interaction to get something published with a press release, but the results might be well worth the time invested in this pursuit.