Michelle H.
Social Media Trainer, Speaker, Digital Marketing Expert and Entrepreneur
What is the best Press Release Service for results? Free or Paid
A lot of choices out there and I'm curious in your experience which service provided the best results. Please share your recommendations and any success stories.
Thanks!
Michelle
http://www.WebMediaExpert.com
Answers (25)
I love Webwire.com to get posted in Google. It shows up in Google News pretty quickly and if you have important keywords in the press release, the release will show up in Google Alerts for those people tracking those words. I love it since it's $20 to put out a release on Webwire.
I do use BusinessWire for their national EON service - for SEO results. It's better than PRNewswire. I use it for national distribution (for major announcements).
Then I'll still leverage PRWeb, MarketWire, FreePressRelease.com, etc. just to get more links out there. They're free. But I typically do a combination of all of the above for my clients.
Links:
Paul C.
Internet Marketing Consultant, Trainer, and Speaker
Best Answers in: Internet Marketing (4), Viral Marketing (1), Public Relations (1), E-Commerce (1)
Give me PRWeb.com any day. Great for SEO, plus wide-syndication, social sharing. Also PitchEngine.com.
If your goal is just to get your release onto the web, Webwire is a good option. PRWeb also works well. However, as a former journalist and editor, I can tell you that if you're looking to get your information into publications the best way is not to use a service. Press releases sent to a specific editor or journalist direct from you will be read faster than any release coming over a wire. It takes some research and effort on your part to target the publication and find the best writer to send to, but the results are worth the time. Additionally, once you create that contact list, you can cultivate a relationship with the writer that will not only make it easier to get future releases printed, but you can become a trusted expert on your industry that the reporter can turn to and quote in other articles.
U can submit your story here:
http://www.newdesignworld.com/press/
its free submission, and its result also good in google listing
Alex R.
Director of Marketing at Baywood Learning Center
Best Answers in: Internet Marketing (2), E-Commerce (2)
Hello Michelle,
I like using erelease.com it is a true PR service so it hits all the websites, news feeds, national distribution, as well as local.
And you will see results in 24 hours.
Price can't be beat and they have writing services as too.
Here is the link http://www.ereleases.com
We have had "Wonderful" success using their service
Alex Rodriguez
SEO\SEM web marketing consulting
RainUrbana.com
Depends on the results.
If you want to aggregate your search efforts, PR Wire is best. They distribute along a more automated model, utilizing crawlers and web bots to increase pickup. They have a premium service that also reaches editors.
I've heard some good feedback about RealMedia, but haven't used the service.
The most effective way to solidify media coverage is emails and calls to editors. That gives you a more effective way to increase your chances of getting to pitch your story. I think that gets less write-ups and more actual placement. I prefer a blend of both and use a PR person who has established relationships with editors. Unfortunately it is who you know. It also helps to have a service like Vocus that has current press contacts and areas of interest to narrow the search for appropriate editors.
Take care!
David Weinstein
https://www.adneedle.com
David W. also suggests this expert on this topic:
Nick T.
We deliver Connected Customer/Competitor Analytics via ManyCUES Predictive Analytics & BIG DATA solutions platform
Best Answers in: Search Marketing (4), Internet Marketing (3), Advertising (1), Guerrilla Marketing (1), Business Development (1), Corporate Governance (1), Computers and Software (1), Information Storage (1)
As a rookie at press releases I carefully looked at the answers here and became more confused that when I started.
Does every press release have the same objective and carry the same message at the same time of year?
As a storyteller I am very careful of the stories that I craft or select to add value to a product, person, event, space or place at a particualr moment in time.
Most of these perspectives seem to be missing here?!
Cheers,
Nick
Links:
Needless to mention, paid ones are zillion times more rewarding. I can say this from experience
Jay B.
Owner, TenGoldenRules.com, Keynote Speaker, Podcaster, Author, Adjunct Professor
Hi Michelle:
We use PR Web as the foundation of our web optimized PR. We also recommend using the other wires at least once a year because they generally provide different links. We use PR Web approx. once a month.
Best Practices to get Press Releases picked up on Google:
- select 2 or 3 keyword phrases to target
- add those phrases to the headline and subheadline
- add those phrases 2-3 times in the press release body copy
- ADD THE RELEASE TO YOUR WEBSITE FIRST! This is critical, you want your site to be the originator of the content in Google's eyes, not the wire service
- Wait 24-48 hours and link to the page on your site wit a blog
- Send the release out through PR Web, PR NEwswire, Business Wire or Marketwire
Check the results :)
We also addressed free press releases in this podcast, about 19 minutes in http://podcast.tengoldenrules.com/internet-marketing-podcast-Free-Press-Releases-SEO-Alt-Tags-Susan-Bratton.html
Links:
Mark N.
Senior SEO Manager at Cedars Online
Best Answers in: Search Marketing (3), Internet Marketing (2), E-Commerce (2), Advertising (1)
Having tried most, I recommend Marketwire.
Links:
PRnewswire...
Janette L.
Online Marketing, Social Media and Branding Strategies, Web Success Team
There are many out there. We use PRWeb.com for paid service but it has become very widespread and you have to pay quite a bit to get noticed. There is also http://www.prleap.com/, http://www.prnewswire.com/ and http://express-press-release.net/ and http://www.prlog.org that are free
Michelle -- offering a few links both from customers and stories written about our customers using PRWeb. Good luck in your decision!
Many thanks to all the PRWeb customers that have posted here -- we'd very much like to hear from you and perhaps write a case study on your use.
Cheers,
Frank
@Vocus - @PRWeb
Links:
I haven't used free services. From talking with other business owners and researching them myself, it seems that free services aren't actually effective at getting the message of your press release out to your target audience.
I'm a strong believer in you get what you pay for, so if I want to send out a press release, I focus on my local target market and hire a PR firm to put together the media distribution list and distribute it on my behalf. This allows me to use my time more effectively, completing tasks that will generate income. I'm not a PR professional, so to complete this task myself would end up costing me more in the long run - something a lot of small business owners fail to realize. After all, there's a reason we don't all do our own taxes!
As far as results go, as long as I focus on my local area, I feel that the results are worth the money spent. Because I work with a local PR firm that knows my industry and my market, the press release that is distributed is professionally done and consistent with industry standards, as well as interesting to my target audience. Most small business owners cannot complete these tasks on their own. They just don't have the time or expertise.
Jennifer L. also suggests this expert on this topic:
Petr M.
As an Internet Marketing consultant I will help you promote your company, products & services online. More then SEO&PPC.
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I am using the two services below and I see good results with them, I get click throughs to my site and often press releases get displayed in Google for particular key words that I target by the release (which droves traffic to the release and then to my site).
Links:
Maria M.
Strategic Business Advisor from Planning to Execution, Speaker, Trained Life Coach, For Financial Advisors & Accountants
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Michelle
I don't have a success story online. However, I can tell you that keywords are real important to put in the PR. But without it looking that way :)
Kevin L.
Digital Marketing Professional (Search Engine Marketing, Social Media Marketing & Web Analytics)
Hi Michelle,
I'm currently using the PRWeb for my clients, but I think the key of success for publishing your press release on the major news sites (Google, Yahoo!, etc) is "optimization":
1) Define your objective and identify your audience, then select the most valuable keywords (around 3 keywords) related to your story and most of your potential customers search online.
2) Make sure your selected keywords appeared on your title as well as the first half your content (but don't mention too many times... 3 times is ok)
3) Insert hyper-link which direct the user to your website
4) After publishing your press release, remember to check the analytics report on PRWeb, and then you may want to fine tune the content to improve the number of views.
I can't say PRWeb is the best tool but it can provide detailed analysis for your press release campaign, such as the number of views on your article by day, keyword and media referral, geographic data, etc, which can help me to evaluate the campaign and take the prompt action to improve the performance.
Hope my experience can help you.
Cheers,
Kevin
Links:
Alex G.
Marketing Ideas for Smart People
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Free vs Paid. El Clásico. Take a look at my blog article.
Links:
Danielle U.
Environment Manager I Social Media Marketing Manager I Sustainability, Standards & Compliance
Hi Michelle,
Sound advice from Eric Lopkin. I'd like to add that to get in touch with journalists looking for a story in your given field, you should follow services like:
1. http://www.sourcebottle.com.au/ and @sourcebottle
2. http://www.helpareporter.com/
Journalists looking to write stories, use these services to find someone in a given field to do interviews etc. I highly recommend following/using them.
Links:
Danielle U. also suggests this expert on this topic:
Jacqueline W.
CEO at The Fearless Factor | Motivational Trainer | Author | Speaker | Leadership Coach |
Have you looked at Fast Pitch. It's an online networking site with a great PR release dept. I use it all the time and it gets noticed on Google pretty fast.
Mark E.
Marketing Executive at Ajax Union
Best Answers in: Sales Techniques (1), Writing and Editing (1)
Michelle,
For PR online marketing, I typically use a mix of free and paid press release services for optimum distribution. Some of my favorites:
PR Urgent: Guaranteed inclusion for only $10 with 3 anchor links of your choosing. It's a good deal.
eReleases: Although each press release costs $399, eReleases is an exposure goldmine. You can also include anchor links.
24-7 Press Release: Their free service is hit or miss, but 24-7 Press Release gets you to some high-ranking sites, with anchor links, for $50 per release.
To avoid throwing my money away on paid services, I often leave it up to individual clients. I'll say "Do you like this press release? Would you like to invest $399 for enhanced distribution?" If they say yes, we do eReleases. If not, we stick to the cheap/free sites.
Hope this helps! I work for an internet marketing company, Ajax Union, available at the link below. Check us out if you need any more advice on online marketing.
Links:
Al S.
BtoB Marketing Guru specializing in Differentiation and Gaining Market Share – at Al Shultz Advertising
Best Answers in: Advertising (4), Internet Marketing (1), Public Relations (1)
I like eReleases.com. Not free, but you get what you pay for.
Al Shultz
http://www.alshultz.com/
Links:
Hi,
Business Innovative Article "Innovation Article in Advertising - Interactive Video Improves the Experience" is the Best Option for Internet Marketing Strategies and also It will give more information to you about Advertising, PRESS RELEASE DISTRIBUTION & Online Marketing.
Thanks,
Janaki
Links:
What I've found useful in the past is a combo approach. For really high-profile releases you definitely need to get traction on, a paid wire service is your best bet. I've used all of the big ones in the past and actually prefer MarketWire in terms of best cost for results.
For SEO purposes, PRWeb has been a great resource. It's fairly inexpensive as press release services go.
I'm also keen to try PitchEngine - it's interesting to see that other folks have also tried it. Curious to see the results.
But as someone else mentioned, if you want to get in front of your target journalists, a personalized pitch sent to those folks is always the best approach.
Links:
William D.
Brand Journalist, Blogger, Social Media, and Real-Time Digitial Marketing Specialist at La Posada Green Valley, AZ
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PRweb.com..
Also, I have had success with many of these free and paid located on the below webpage!
