How to tell your story – the role of PR

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The role of a press release and why they still matter

Press releases are short, factual news stories sent or given to the media to encourage editors, journalists, and broadcasters to feature the story in their publications or programmes. Your press release must appeal to both the reader and journalist.

With the advance of social and digital channels as a way of reaching and communicating with your audience, it would be easy to write off press releases as a media outreach strategy. However, there are limitless benefits to getting press coverage, whether that’s an article on a website or in a magazine.

Establish relationships with the media

First and foremost, a press release can be an excellent way of starting a dialogue with reporters. Journalists are often inundated with hundreds of irrelevant pitches each week, but if you’re reaching out with a well written article that is relevant to their industry and is straight to the point, they are more likely to take notice and appreciate it! Plus, even if they can’t offer coverage at the time, they’re still more likely to work with you in the future as you will have already established that credibility.

Control the narrative

A press release also allows you to drive the narrative around your brand. As well as publicising important company information, a press release can be used to mitigate an internal crisis or negative external press. By providing credible facts without spin, you can re-establish a positive brand image and public perception. In other words, you have a unique opportunity to flip negative press and bring to light the benefits instead.

Build SEO traffic to your website

When journalists share your press release on their website, they will generally link back to yours. If they’re credible reporters, they’re likely to generate a good amount of web traffic, prompting readers to find out more about your brand by simply clicking a link at the end of the article. Not only that but repurposing your press release to create additional information will help your brand rank higher on the search engine results page (SERP).

Increase customer engagement

Thanks to online media publications and the rise in social media, you can get your press release in front of a much wider audience than ever. Distributing a well-crafted press release provides the opportunity to rank high in search, catch the attention of current and potential customers, and even leads to direct engagement and sharing on social channels. Press releases give you the opportunity to reach an untapped audience that you may not have considered before.

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