It's all too easy to get caught up in the latest and greatest online marketing methods. But let's not forget the one marketing strategy that outperforms them all... the "Power of the Press."

In this article, we'll briefly talk about why the press is such an invaluable marketing tool:

• Even the smallest bit of press will advertise your company or product to thousands, if not millions, of potential customers.
  
  
• Anybody can write a press release and distribute it worldwide in a few hours.
  
  
• Editors welcome a relevant story. Give them a suitable topic and you're 99% on your way to free press.
  
  

When the press writes about your business, it's subliminally telling its audience to seek you out. In many cases this audience could be millions of people. Can you afford to buy millions of ad impressions? Not me!

Let's take a quick look at how we begin developing your press campaign.

Step 1: Identify Your Target Market and Media

'Shotgun Marketing' is a waste of valuable resources. Your product doesn't interest everybody in the universe, just a very small percentage of it. Learn what they read, watch and listen to, and you've targeted your media. Make a note of the address, fax number and contact, and you've got your distribution list.

Take a look at the online news resources available at:

http://www.crayon.net
http://web-source.net

Take note of the kinds of stories these publications feature and think about how your business can fit in. Does it have local appeal? Can you tie it to a recent current event? Is there a niche publication that reaches your target market?

Step 2: Grab a Pen and Write the Release

The press release is a sales letter, plain and simple. Create the headline and content in a way that makes editors want to 'buy'... that is, call for an interview.

Make it newsworthy. Ask yourself, "Why would the readers care?" Once you answer that question, tailor your press release around it. You may need different releases for different publications.

Remember, you're selling a story to the editor, not your product. Work your company's products or services into a news story. When you get the interview you can go into all the wonderful benefits of doing business with you, but save it until then.

For help on crafting a press release, see:

http://drnunley.com
http://www.free-publicity.com

Remember this about press releases: Your editor's audience doesn't care to hear about your company, they want to read news. Give the editor news and work your company into the interview.

Step 3: Include Additional Information to Help Develop the Story.

There are only so many hours in the day to dig up content. When you send journalists ideas that fit their reader's interests, you make their job easier.

They like this!

To further assist your new friend the journalist, you could include a one-page biography (to let the journalist know why you would be such a great interview), and a list of sample questions to help shape the interview.

Test your press kit with a few journalists and track the response. Once you find the one that gets the interview, that's the one you send to your whole distribution list.

Once your story hits the newsstand or airwaves, it could turn up anywhere. I recently sent a single page to a small local paper. They ran the story and submitted it to a wire service. Within 48 hours our website had topped 6,000 visits (and still counting) from around the country...

You Can't Buy that Kind of Advertising!

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Copyright 1999, Scot Dantzer scot@smarthomebusiness.com Scot Dantzer is a successful home based media consultant in Philadelphia. He wants to help you with your online marketing programs and welcomes your subscription to My SmartHomeBusiness.

"Online Marketing for The Technology Challenged"
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