Bradley H. Smith >

Press releases are time-stamps of your company’s growth. And a sales conversation starter.

No matter what “we” like to think about our “own” news, most of our news releases are of no interest to the media (they are product updates, not “trends” news). But these releases are essential sales tools to send to clients, prospects and feature on your site. Write them with this is goal.

 

"Help" your clients and prospects read your PR. Simply convert  your PR into PDF's and highlight key areas you want them to notice. 

 

Repurpose your partner’s news to expand your own story.

You are known by the company you keep. Share your partners’ good news too, ESPECIALLY if it has a solid thread to your business. Be brief and self-centric, you are not their PR firm.

 

Our partner GlobeNewswire / NASDAQ OMX penned a relationship that, similar to MUNCmedia, works with public companies and retail investors.

eBook or white paper – call it what you it will - just write it well (and as unbiased as your "marketing drive" can) and it will have surprising long legs.

If your tone and voice is fair, even a eBook filled with just your clients can be an educational, unbiased industry paper. I first published this in 2003 - our industry's trade org requested copies for their members.

I released this version in January 09. It is still featured as key tool on NASDAQ’s IR products website.

 

Originally a hardcopy bound book, there are tens of thousands in print since its launch. Although very expensive to have printed, the hardcopy versions delivered a very "tangible" presence for our brand, essential for a small company. 

The media won't buy your product. But they will buy your opinion.

 Back off on the continual product pitch and help editors with niche opinions and insight. Stop selling and start telling. You'll win product opportunities in the long-run. Always give them a creative POV. 

 

LOL - This story came from my sending the editor my "Who's on First" bit in response to his webpost regarding incestual business relationship in the article. If gave his story a little kick. As we were mid-acquisition of a competitive newswire, I had to go marketing stealth.

Nothing like a little Monty Python to cheek up a boring white paper.

And - more importantly – to entice a magazine to publish it. Industry publications APPRECIATE a little levity and variety. Don't be afraid to use a little.

 

The "joke" will grab the attention, but the article must deliver material (helpful) content. This is especially important for "vendor" written white papers. We're already suspect to be biased. (Because we are!)

Speaking of proofreading, when was the last time you actually read your press release boilerplate copy?

We all tend to just ‘cut & paste’ that. A typo may have occurred seven releases ago and no one caught it yet. 

 

 

The only foolproof way to proofread your own copy (press releases, marketing text, etc.) is to read them outloud. Slowly and painfully.

Word. By. Word. By. Word. This works.

 

"And I'm floating in a most peculiar waaaAAAaaay"

Nice acclaim for being the first official blogger within NASDAQ.