Smart Start: How to Build on PR Momentum

This guide will provide you with three actionable steps businesses of all sizes and industries can use to build on the momentum created from a successful press release.

Are Press Releases Right for Your Company?

The short answer to this question is “Yes.”

No matter the size or industry of your company, consistent and strategic press release distribution can improve your search engine optimization (SEO) performance, help you reach your target audience and relevant media publications, turn your owned media into earned media, build brand awareness, and much more.

In fact, clients that are part of our Media and Marketing Guided Tour program have experienced these benefits first-hand, as the combination of our robust SaaS platform and team of strategists effectively communicated their messaging and gave them an advantage over their competitors.

When our clients land earned media mentions in publications such as The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Cheddar, Bloomberg, TechCrunch, and more, we don’t stop there.

We build on that momentum and double down on these earned media mentions to cast a wider net and reach their target audience.

Press release distribution is one cog in the overall media and marketing communication wheel and in this Smart Start, we share how you can leverage other marketing initiatives to amplify the success of your press releases.

3 Tips to Build on PR Momentum

Tip #1: Promote Your Story on Social Media

Around 4.48 billion people around the world use social media. That’s 57% of the total global population.

Don’t let a high-performing press release lose steam once it hits the news circuit.

Use your press release as pillar content to create additional pieces you can promote on your social media channels.

But before you hit “publish” on a post, consider the following:

• Respect the platform - When crafting a social media post, make sure your content fits the platform. Don’t make the platform fit your content. For example, what works on Facebook might not work on Twitter and vice versa.
• Make it interesting - Social media is meant to be social. Infuse your brand’s voice and personality into the caption to catch people’s attention enough to stop their scrolls, click on your content, and engage with your brand.

With this information in mind, here are some content ideas you can use today:

• Create a branded image of an important quote from your press release.
• Share a statistic in the caption and encourage people to read your release in full.
• Film a quick video clip that highlights the topic of the press release, and in the caption, include a link for users to read more.
• If you earned a media mention, share the link to the feature and tag the publication in your post.

The purpose of using social media is to build on your momentum is to amplify your message to your followers and, through the use of strategic hashtags, a broader audience.

Tip #2: Email Marketing

According to Campaign Monitor, 64% of small businesses use email marketing to reach customers.

Is your business one of them?

Whether you have a growing subscriber base or are just starting out, email marketing should play a major role in amplifying the success of a press release.

Here are some high-level tips to create an email that highlights your earned media mention:

• Subject line - Keep it short, sweet, and to the point. A study by Adestra showed that email open rates begin to decline when a subject is longer than 130 characters.
• Segment your list - Depending on the topic of the earned media mention, it might be beneficial to segment your list. Demographics, engagement, and where a subscriber’s at in the customer journey are all viable segmentation options to consider.
• Nurture leads - Sharing news about a feature in a popular publication is a great way to build credibility with someone who’s just getting to know your brand.
• Tell a story - A successful press release might speak for itself, but taking the extra time and effort to leverage a new angle with a compelling story can keep your subscribers engaged and interested in your brand.
• Timing is everything - Studies have shown the best days to send emails are Tuesdays and Thursdays. However, it’s important for you to dig into your own email marketing data to uncover the optimal day(s)/time(s) to send emails to your subscriber list.

Tip #3: Double Down On The Topic

If your newsworthy press release topic generated a buzz and created earned media mentions, use it as a signal to double down on that topic.

When doing so, you want to infuse a layer of originality into the future pieces of content.

Ask yourself the following questions to get started:

• Can I approach this topic from another newsworthy angle?
• Can leaders in my company provide additional insights?
• Can I create an educational resource such as a white paper on this topic?

The answers to these questions and more can act as prompts to create additional content for future press release campaigns, blog posts, and more.

The more you write about a particular topic, the more you’ll be seen as a thought leader, which in turn will build your authority and credibility within your respective industry.

TIP: When possible, link back to your initial press release. Creating backlinks is a great way to improve your ranking on the search engine results page (SERP).