Tips for Where to Submit a Press Release

So you have written your press release. Do you know where to submit a press release? In order to get some mileage from your news release, you should send press releases to a variety of sources. Below are seven sources to consider.

1. Local Newspapers: While this may seem like an obvious outlet, get specific. Don’t just send news to general information or press release email address. Instead, research the reporters who typically write stories on the same topic and reach out to them.

2. Industry magazines: These publications usually have a set email address to receive news releases. Check the online editorial calendar to see if the publication plans to cover your topic in a given month or if there’s an opportunity to tie your subject into a story that’s already planned. For instance, if a magazine is planning a story in three months about the product line expansion of office products companies, a logical tie-in might be your company that donates a portion of the proceeds from sales on that new line to a national charity. Since these industry publications tend to cover the entire United States (and sometimes more), your news often needs to have a national twist to it, rather than a local one. Remember: publications that run on a monthly or quarterly basis work on longer lead times (often three months in advance) versus daily papers (usually a matter of days).

3. Blogs: Keep in mind the online bloggers who follow your news topics. With the popularity of searching online, blogs allow another channel to share your news with a global audience.

4. PR Newswire or BusinessWire: Many organizations choose to pay online news distribution services, which is a good option when needing to reach a large number of outlets. It’s also a cost-effective solution if you’re limited on time before you need to get the news out to the public. If you choose this method, be sure to select the appropriate region for your news. (city, state, multi-state, national) and the focus area (political, special interest, educational, entertainment). Also remember to make a priority list of reporters to follow up with after the news is distributed. The human interaction is still important, especially when it comes to gaining repeated media coverage.

5. Your Web Site: People are often so glad that they’ve written a press release and sent it to reporters, that they forget to post it to their own Web site. Most companies have a News or Media section on their web site for press releases and articles. Individuals can follow that protocol. Days or weeks later, someone may find your press release online because it’s posted to your Web site. That, in turn, could lead to sales.

6. Social Media: Building on point 5, post a link to your press release from any social media tools you use. If your business has a company FaceBook and Twitter account, share the information there. Also encourage your employees to post it to their individual FaceBook, LinkedIn and/or Twitter accounts, especially if they are deeply involved in the announcement.

7. Associations: Do you belong to industry associations or chambers of commerce? Many have newsletters or magazines to share member news with other members. Send your press release to those associations as well.

Overall, a good strategy is to build a spreadsheet or database with your reporters so that you can contact them on related topics on an ongoing basis. Comment on their online stories to illustrate your shared interest in the topic and build a relationship with them.

If you have more inquiries about press releases or where to submit a press release, visit at TellYourTale.com.