How to write an effective online press release

Press releases are a pivotal part of your Online marketing strategy and can help brand your business more effectively than a blog.

Blogs (this is a blog) are also essential and you should already have a blog that you consistently write and publish to endear yourself to your readers. Blogs are information based articles explaining what you know, and how what you know will help your reader. Conversely press releases are news about your company, so right now you are already thinking:

“How on Earth can I make our news interesting?”

Nowadays it’s not enough to just push out bland news about your business because you know Google wants it;

‘Screw Google’ There I said it!  WRITE FOR YOUR PEOPLE!

What I mean is most business people who write blogs and press releases love the business they are in, and when they get in front of the PC they are dying to get their information out to people, sure it’s a pain writing it out spell checking it (contrary to recent comments yes I do spell check twice, you should see the first draft!) then publishing, checking the images, and then spending 30 minutes posting to social media, but it’s all worth it when you start getting enquiries I promise!

To get people to read your press release you have to start thinking like newspapers. Ever noticed that whenever a pop star appears in the press for whatever reason, good or very bad, there is ALWAYS an album not far behind? In the entertainment industry any publicity is good publicity.

Now I am not advocating going on a drugs binge and getting arrested to get in the news! Think about their headlines and what is the real message you need to get out to people? For example look at these headlines and see the real message.

Headline: ABC Company opens office in Shanghai

Real message: Look how successful we are!

Headline: Leading Research and Development scientist joins ABC Company

Real message: We are so much better than the rest!

What’s the message you want to get out there modestly through your press release? What do you want people to think about your business after they have read the press release? That’s the key.

Remember people love good news stories so tell them how you are growing and tell the reader what you did for that growth so they can feel they will benefit from the information. For example you could say:

“We have opened up our new office in Hong Kong based on the progress made through our social media activities, we attended a social media workshop in Bangkok a while back and we learned how to speak and listen to our people online, this has been pivotal for our business growth.”

What you are saying is: Look how forward thinking and successful we are!

Write out your press release like a news article, don’t be selling, the publicity and message you are transmitting will be a silent salesman. You can even interview yourself, many a time I have been sat in a pub in downtown Bangkok writing out my press release (and you thought I was in my penthouse office with a Washington Post reporter on hold ha ha!) and talking to myself for my interview like this:

“We asked Alan Johnston Director of Netmediauk Limited why he decided to open a Business directory for business in Thailand and what makes their business directory different and of value; Mr Johnston added……. Blah blah” Much to the amusement of the people sitting opposite me!

When you’re wonderful press release is written, and you have a great compelling headline, you can then publish it to online press release sites. My own personal favourite is PRLOG.COM they give you a free account and it acts like your press room.

The process is simple they give you an easy to follow template to add your heading, body, keywords, and a  biography area for news reporters to contact you if need be.

You can also add a couple of links in and publish for free. The free publication on PRLOG.COM much like any of the other press release sites will get you a few good readers, I would recommend the paid option for $50 this will get you on over 20 authority sites which is great link love because PRLOG’s syndicated partners are many, and you can stipulate a business category which will make sure you get good links from targeted avenues.

You get a statistics link, to see exactly how many people have opened and read your PR, and what sites it’s been syndicated to. When you have a few Press releases done, create a press room and have it linked to your website it looks really professional and cool!

If you have something you are absolutely desperate to get out to as many people as you possibly can as quick as possible I would contact PRNEWSWIRE a UK Company who have most of the daily tabloids, TV, and biggest international websites on their database and they can get you on the behemoth websites like Yahoo finance like I did last year and Yahoo finance has 59 million readers a day! Boy did that make a difference to my business fast! You will need to be sat down when you get the invoice, but you get what you pay for! I would contact

Ben.Chancellor@prnewswire.co.uk.

I am affiliated with neither PRLOG OR PRNEWSWIRE.

To learn all about Press releases, blogging and social media marketing in Thailand or UK… guess what you can contact Netmedia.

We also can write out your press release for you, and publish it to our 30,000 people on Social media as well as the Press release sites syndication for maximum results!