Google Advertising Tools, 2nd Edition

The Power of the Press Release

It used to be that putting out a press release was a big deal. It required special accreditation and membership in a wire service and could generally only be accomplished by large companies or by using an accredited public relations or ad agency.

As with many other things, the Web has disintermediated and democratized the process of publishing a press release—so much so that some large organizations don’t even bother with them anymore, figuring that their releases will be lost in the flood of information unleashed on the world by the “little guys.”

These days, publishing a press release that will be picked up by wire services is technically free. In reality, getting the distribution you want for the release will cost you about $30 per release. Although my general stance is not to pay for listings, this is usually well worth doing, provided you have the skills to write a good press release and you have an interesting story to tell. Not only will it produce inbound links, but some traditional media may pick up on your site and story.

There are several online services that exist to distribute press releases, including 24-7PressRelease.com, FreePressRelease.com, and PRWeb. These sites all work in essentially the same way: an online form is provided for your press release submission, and the service submits your release to wire services, web search engines, and anyone who subscribes to the service’s feeds. Free submission is available from all of the press ...