Throughout this series, I’ve tried to get you to see your small business blog as your company’s media outlet. One great way of using your blog to perform as your media outlet is to write and disseminate your company’s press releases on your blog. Now that your blog is up and running and has some great content to offer the world, you should think about writing a press release to announce your blog’s existence.

Press releases are an excellent way of drumming up new publicity for your business or blog and are extremely cost-effective. If you write your press releases in-house, they are basically free, but to get the most publicity, you should think about having a professional writer craft your press release and submit them to relevant media outlets. Usually these writers have contacs within the media outlets that will increase the chances your press releases are published as a newsworthy event. If your press release is not written correctly, you will have wasted your time as most journalists will just throw away press releases that are not formatted correctly so make sure you understand how to write a press release correctly before spending the time or money to have one written

How do I write a press release?

• Follow an accepted press release format. Any other format may land your press release in a garbage can
• Add an element of newsworthiness. Without a news angle, journalists will probably not find a reason to use your press release for a story in their publication
• Do not write your press release like an advertisement. If a journalist thinks your press release is just an advertisement, they will not use it. Leave out language that sounds as if you are talking directly to a prospect

What do I do with my press release once I’m done writing it?

• Submit your press release to any number of press release distribution sites. There is a list of sites you can use at the end of this post
• Submit your press release to your local media, especially your local newspaper. If you create a news angle that involves your town, your press release has a far better chance of being published and creating some good publicity for your business or blog
• Post your press releases on a media page on your blog. This will let your readers have access to your press releases and keep them aware of new initiatives your business may be embarking on

What should I expect once I send my press release out?

• You may be contacted by one or several journalists looking to follow up on your press release or get more information for their story. Be as helpful as possible and give them your time and attention. They probably won’t keep calling you back if you don’t have time when they call the first time
• Depending on the news angle included in your press release, you can expect to see your press release published as a news story in some of the media you distributed your press release to. Save these stories for future marketing purposes
• If your press release is published as a story, you should begin to see some new traffic headed your way. Keep track of this traffic so you can test how well your press release performed and so that you can compare it to future press releases you might submit. If certain publications send more traffic than others, you should focus your future efforts on the publications that perform better

Press releases and other public relations efforts can be very effective in producing publicity for your business and blog and driving a large volume of new traffic to your site. Be sure to follow the guidelines expected by journalists and appeal to their need for news stories by making your press release as newsworthy as possible. Hire a professional writer and increase the chances your press release is published as a news story and learn from their efforts so that you may be able to duplicate their successes in the future. Also, spend time deciding on the best publications to submit your press release to. The better a publication’s readers match your ideal prospects, the more likely your press release will succeed at driving new traffic and prospects to your blog.

You might also want to submit your press release to any number of the following press release distribution services:

PRWeb - http://www.prweb.com
PR Urgent - http://www.prurgent.com
PRLeap - http://www.prleap.com -
PR Newswire - http://www.prnewswire.com
PRWeb Direct - http://www.prwebdirect.com -
TheOpenPress - http://www.theopenpress.com
Free Press Release - http://www.free-press-release.com
Pressbox.co.uk - http://www.pressbox.co.uk
I-Newswire - http://www.i-newswire.com/
PR Free - http://www.prfree.com/
OpenPress - http://www.openpress.com/
Press Release Network - http://www.pressreleasenetwork.com
Soft Press Release - http://www.softpressrelease.com
Market Wire - http://www.marketwire.com
URL Wire - http://www.urlwire.com/
Web Wire - http://www.webwire.com/
EMediaWire - http://www.emediawire.com
BusinessWire - http://www.businesswire.com
Canada Newswire - http://www.newswire.ca/
Press Release Network - http://www.pressreleasenetwork.com

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