How Internet Press Releases Make You Money

This is a story of a startup company with just a small budget and how they created huge success for themselves on less than $100.

There are many, many people who will tell you that internet press releases are, "Stupid, a waste of time, useless, nobody reads them, and you're crazy for wasting your money."  Does that about cover it?  And you know what, in many cases, these expert naysayers are right.  WHAT?? Randall, did you just lose your mind?  You actually agree with the naysayers?  OMG!

Don't panic, calm down... I said they are right in many cases because too many people simply throw a press release on the net and hope that it creates some traction.  They almost never do unless you know how to write the release in such a way that it gets the exact exposure you want.

For a lot of people they think (and hope) that a free press release will cause an avalanche of business, hits, page views, and money to come their way.  Nope - not gonna happen... At least not all at once.  It all depends on what you want the outcome to be from your efforts.  In my experience there are two things that make the internet work for you; time and money.  In general, the more money you throw at the internet (in a well coordinated effort) the less time it takes to achieve your goals.  Conversely, if you do not have that much money, it will take a bit longer to achieve your goals, but achieve them you will. 

Having said that, you can also be the next “flavor of the week:” in the viral world, which can be great, but only if you have something for the viewer to do after they see the video of your cat driving a Greyhound bus and singing God Bless America at the same time.  Just to have something viral is fun and attention getting, but if you are in business attention without sales = bankruptcy.

So to the point…  When you send out a press release or media advisory you need to have your goal in mind.  To do this here are THREE easy steps to follow:

Note:  For this blog I am talking exclusively about internet press releases because the real world press release strategies are similar, but also very different in many ways.

1.     Determine BEFORE you send the release out; who the target audience is, what do you want them to do when they read it, and how do you plan on tracking the success of the release.

2.    On the internet the headline is even more important than in the real world, because so many systems on the internet search the headline and make the decision to send it on, use it, or discard it.  That means that your headline has to have the right key words, the right language, and the right flow so it is picked up by as many outlets as possible.

Now that you have determined what your goal is, who your audience is, and what you want them do AND you have really thought about the headline you need to…

3.    Write the best story you can in the release.  Far too many internet releases are simple pitch pieces that have lots of facts, but are cold and unemotional.  The better story you tell to the reader, the more it gets passed around to others.  Add information for people to not only read, but that they can understand and finally they think you are the solution to the problem they are having.  This sounds easy, but it’s not.  In Hollywood, where I have spent over 30 years of my life, there are very few truly great stories.  Think about it. 

You may have seen some good movies that were even worth the $10 you spent on them, but when was the last time you came out of the theatre and were moved, really moved by what you saw?  For most of you, I will be willing to bet it’s been a while.  Make your press release a great story that involves the reader and you will see better results.

How do I know this? Okay, it’s a fair question.  I have used this same system when I did a five-part television series on Madonna that was broadcast on multiple networks.  I have use this same strategy when I created a sales program for a national brand, and I have just seen this system work for a startup company I am consulting with that has saved over $3miilion dollars and in now going for its IPO.  The best story wins and wins big.   

Starting using the narrative as well as the factual in your internet press releases and you, too, can see the results you want, which is more exposure and more money in the bank.

I am yours in success,

Randall

Comments

[Jeff Paul Scam]

I started internet marketing for the last four months and still looking for material that can help my marketing.