The Seven Habits of Highly Effective Press Releases...

Dan's content is irregularly read by handfuls of people. Join the elite few by reading his blog: dcrBlogs.com, following him on Twitter: dcrTweets.com or reading his fiction: dcrWrites.com but NOT by Clicking Here!

Dan also writes content for hire, but you can't afford him anyway.

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LaunchGal

14 years ago

HI Dana

thanks for sharing. Interesting article and analysis.

Curious about your sig file. I clicked on the link and had a nice tour of your site...didn't see more info on your 'free' press releases

cheers

Jane

Thanks
1 reply

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Dana_W

14 years ago

Originally Posted by LaunchGal

HI Dana

thanks for sharing. Interesting article and analysis.

Curious about your sig file. I clicked on the link and had a nice tour of your site...didn't see more info on your 'free' press releases

cheers

Jane

What I am saying in my signature file is that on my website, for free, I have numerous blog posts telling you how to write a press release. If you read through my blog posts I pretty much spell it out for you - how to SEO them, how to write a headline, what to write about, what to avoid at all costs, etc.

Thanks

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Rod Cortez 14 years ago

Originally Posted by Dan C. Rinnert

Dana, is that really you?

Hahaha, I was going to write the exact same thing.......good to see you posting in here Dana.

RoD
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- 1 reply
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- Dana_W 14 years ago
  
  Originally Posted by Rod Cortez
  
  Hahaha, I was going to write the exact same thing.......good to see you posting in here Dana.
  
  RoD
  
  I was kidnapped by aliens, but when they tried to probe my brain, they found no signs of intelligent life there, so they put me back.
  
  No, actually, I was taking an emergency medical technician course, while writing press releases and web content for my clients - I got so busy I had no time at all to visit the WF. EMT class is finished, I'm back, for now. Probably going to take a paramedic course next year.
  
  Thanks
  
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Dana_W

14 years ago

In the flesh. Okay, not in the flesh, online from a long way away. How are you? What up?

Thanks
1 reply

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Dan C. Rinnert 14 years ago

Originally Posted by Dana_W

In the flesh. Okay, not in the flesh, online from a long way away. How are you? What up?

Still working on that site I inquired about doing a press release for a couple months back, but I'm probably not going to do a press release on it, though I will possibly be needing a press release on the next site I'll be doing, for which I'll be borrowing code from the current site I'm working on.

How about you?
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Dan's content is irregularly read by handfuls of people. Join the elite few by reading his blog: dcrBlogs.com, following him on Twitter: dcrTweets.com or reading his fiction: dcrWrites.com but NOT by Clicking Here!

Dan also writes content for hire, but you can't afford him anyway.
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Dana_W

14 years ago

One tip that WASN'T in the article about SEOing press releases - make sure to put your best keyword in the headline. Google seems to give special consideration to headlines, and it can help you get really good ranking. Also - just FYI - in the article, they recommend long press releases. However, if your press release is more than 400 words you will be charged extra by some online press release distribution sites.

Thanks
1 reply

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JosephMiller 14 years ago

Hi all,

I just registered to thank you all for checking out my blog post. Glad you liked it, and Dana's tip about including your top keyword in the headline is definitely spot-on.

I would even add that you should try to put the keyword in as early in the headline as possible, especially within the first 67 characters or so.

Send me an email at joseph.miller AT businesswire DOT com if you have any ideas for future posts!
- [ 2 ] Thanks
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Dana_W

14 years ago

Hey, guys, the writer of the blog post on Business Wire signed up for the WF! How cool is that?

By the way, Joseph, as I mentioned on Twitter - I'm very impressed with how you keep track of what people write about you and your blog posts online! It's the offline equivalent of writing thank you notes. Excellent reputation management and networking, there.

Okay - if Joseph is still following the thread - I've always recommended submitting press releases early in the week rather than the weekend, if possible. Do you agree?

Thanks

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JosephMiller

14 years ago

Thanks Dana. There's a lot of content out there so I'm always appreciative when people take the time to read mine.

Based on what I've observed and the data I get to see, distributing a press release on the weekend seems to decrease the odds of getting a larger audience for it, especially for B2B audiences that are less likely to be in front of the computer.

Just going off of Google Analytics (or whatever stats program you prefer), I can't remember working on a website that didn't follow a "wave" pattern with peaks of traffic during the week and valleys on the weekends.

[ 1 ] Thanks
1 reply

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Dana_W

14 years ago

Originally Posted by JosephMiller

Thanks Dana. There's a lot of content out there so I'm always appreciative when people take the time to read mine.

Based on what I've observed and the data I get to see, distributing a press release on the weekend seems to decrease the odds of getting a larger audience for it, especially for B2B audiences that are less likely to be in front of the computer.

Just going off of Google Analytics (or whatever stats program you prefer), I can't remember working on a website that didn't follow a "wave" pattern with peaks of traffic during the week and valleys on the weekends.

That is SO awesome to hear! I love having actual stats to back me up!

Thanks

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warriorkay

14 years ago

If only more IMers will use press release as it
should be, it's VERY powerful, if used well, but
of course quite time consuming, unless one
is really to pay the money for having others
do the work for them,

Kingsley

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RentItNow

14 years ago

Dana,

That was a very interesting article. I've been reading quite a few PRs lately myself and may add one thing that can help people in writing them.

When scanning, I filter out nearly ALL self-serving, arrogant PRs. In other words, "XYZ Announces Its New CEO" or "XYZs New Product Promises To Revolutionize...". Anything that is remotely arrogant gets the pass over.

What I look for myself to publish on news sites is something with a timely benefit to the reader (helps to be interesting, but not necessary). It has to stop my readers in their tracks and make them say, "Hey this article is speaking to me". Otherwise, who the heck cares about your press releases!

Now, I know it is somewhat the job of the writer to take the PR and make it interesting to their readers but if the content writers don't read it in the first place, it's not getting to news sites and seen!

Thanks
1 reply

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Dana_W

14 years ago

What I am aiming for in a press release is to quickly communicate the benefit to the reader. I'm sort of looking at it from an IM standpoint in a way. People are busy, there are countless things competing for everyone's attention; I just want them to read the headline and know immediately if the press release has information that is relevant and useful to them.

As for "XYZ Announces Its New CEO" - press releases can be used for different purposes. That kind of PR isn't that interesting to most people, but it's still worth doing for branding purposes, to get a company's name out in front of the public, for SEO purposes, etc. But you are right, it's not likely to contain info that is useful for most readers, unless it were a huge company like Apple or Microsoft announcing their new CEO.

Originally Posted by RentItNow

Dana,

That was a very interesting article. I've been reading quite a few PRs lately myself and may add one thing that can help people in writing them.

When scanning, I filter out nearly ALL self-serving, arrogant PRs. In other words, "XYZ Announces Its New CEO" or "XYZs New Product Promises To Revolutionize...". Anything that is remotely arrogant gets the pass over.

What I look for myself to publish on news sites is something with a timely benefit to the reader (helps to be interesting, but not necessary). It has to stop my readers in their tracks and make them say, "Hey this article is speaking to me". Otherwise, who the heck cares about your press releases!

Now, I know it is somewhat the job of the writer to take the PR and make it interesting to their readers but if the content writers don't read it in the first place, it's not getting to news sites and seen!

Thanks

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HeySal

14 years ago

Hi Dana --
I guess it's just me but the use of "habits" which personifies the press release instead of something like "traits" or "facets" has me in the RCA dog head crank right now. LOL - I think I'm going to have another cup of coffee before I tackle this one.

Good to see you again.

Thanks
2 replies

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Sal
When the Roads and Paths end, learn to guide yourself through the wilderness
Beyond the Path

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Dana_W

14 years ago

Originally Posted by HeySal

Hi Dana --
I guess it's just me but the use of "habits" which personifies the press release instead of something like "traits" or "facets" has me in the RCA dog head crank right now. LOL - I think I'm going to have another cup of coffee before I tackle this one.

Good to see you again.

I believe the author of the blog post got that headline from the book The Seven Habits Of Highly Effective People.

Good to see you too! Have a cuppa on me. I do love my caffeine!

Thanks

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JosephMiller

14 years ago

Originally Posted by HeySal

Hi Dana --
I guess it's just me but the use of "habits" which personifies the press release instead of something like "traits" or "facets" has me in the RCA dog head crank right now. LOL - I think I'm going to have another cup of coffee before I tackle this one.

Good to see you again.

Well, I didn't want to steal...I mean borrow from the Seven Habits title too much.

Thanks

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tecHead

14 years ago

Now, this is the kinna stuff I like reading on the WF; reminds me of the old days.

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Don Schenk

14 years ago

@Dana, thanks for finding this gem and passing it on to us.

@Joseph, thanks for doing the researche and padding it on to Dana.

And BW welcome to the WF. We do have a lot of fun here - learning, and drinking coffee (or tea).

@Sal - Love the RCA dog - I'm old enough to remember wire recorders - magnetically recorded to a thin steel wire. The was before tape recorders.

:-Don

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Mark Riddle

14 years ago

Thanks Dana, & Welcome Joseph Miller.

Press Releases are always a power tool to both get your business noticed, AND to build a branding reputation.

Releases aren't just for the newsroom anymore !

Mark Riddle

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JosephMiller

14 years ago

Hey everyone,

I just penned a new post on press release timing if you are interested:

Use Google Trends to Find the Best Time to Send Your Press Release

blog.businesswire.com/2010/06/03/use-google-trends-to-find-best-time-to-send-press-release/

(Sorry, I can't post links yet!)
Joseph

Thanks
1 reply

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Rod Cortez

14 years ago

Originally Posted by JosephMiller

Hey everyone,

I just penned a new post on press release timing if you are interested:

Use Google Trends to Find the Best Time to Send Your Press Release

blog.businesswire.com/2010/06/03/use-google-trends-to-find-best-time-to-send-press-release/

(Sorry, I can't post links yet!)
Joseph

I can, click away folks.....

Use Google Trends to Find the Best Time to Send Your Press Release BusinessWired – Business Wire Blog

RoD

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"Your personal philosophy is the greatest determining factor in how your life works out."

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contactscape

14 years ago

Originally Posted by Dana_W

...is an article on businesswire.com's blog.

I am a sucker for articles like this where people do a scientific analysis of what is successful and what works - in this case, what works best for SEOing press releases. Good info!

Their tip on including multimedia in your press release to increase # of people hitting on it is one that I have heard from a number of people in the field, and I do find that it seems to increase number of views. Use a picture, logo, video, etc., if you have the option.

Seven Traits of Highly Effective Press*Releases BusinessWired - Business Wire Blog

--
To add to what Dana said: Also make sure you have researched your target market beforehand and geotarget your press release (maybe in a few states to start with) and gradually expand on exposure from them.

A good press release dispatched in narrow market segments produces better results on most occasions.

Good article there Dana, girl power

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Dana_W

14 years ago

Awesome blog post on when to post a press release, Joseph! I tweeted a link to it.

Thanks

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