PR – PR, marketing, and film production | Alchemy On Demand

How to Write a Block-Rocking SEO Press Release

Admin — Sun, 20 Mar 2022 03:05:41 +0000

You know what a press release is:

A press release is the #1 tool in the publicist’s bag of tricks. A press release is what publicists send to media to let the public know what their clients are up to.

But what you may not know is that business owners (a.k.a. Those do-it-yourself publicists) rely on press releases too. It’s true – they send them out when they want to tell the world about a new product or service they’re launching; a store they’re opening; an event they’re sponsoring; an award they’ve won; or some other newsworthy milestone they’ve achieved.

Thus, press releases are popular and important for business.

So that’s a press release. No big deal, right?

So what the hey is an SEO press release?

SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization. An SEO press release is one that is written so that search engines–those robots employed by Google, Yahoo, Bing, and AOL–will read and rank your press release.

You want Search Engines to read and rank your press release because these days online media are as important as print and broadcast.

So how do you write a press release that a robot will read and disseminate?

The same way you write one for people.

Not so bad, right? Here’s why:

Search engines now want the same thing from a press release that readers want: interesting content clearly communicated.

Here’s what PRNewswire recommends about press release writing for SEO:

“Great content written with a specific audience in mind is good SEO and will increase your chances of being found.”

In other words, you write a press release when you have something newsworthy to say to a specific group of people.

Sometimes, however, that’s easier said than done.

How To Write a Great Press Release

Although most people can talk in clear straightforward sentences, too many of us get muddled when we’re saying something in writing. So here are eight easy tips for writing a great press release that both search engines (software) and people will want to read:

1. Decide what your lead is—the news you want to tell. Here are three examples from Malibu NoseRiding Championship, one of our actual clients:

Announcing the 2013 Malibu NoseRiding Championship:
World’s first timed, co-ed noseriding competition

—
Outside TV signs on as Malibu NoseRiding Championship sponsor

—
Win a GoPro camera in Malibu NoseRiding Championship’s photo contest

Why they’re great titles:

Each of these headlines states clearly what the “news” is. Either it’s the first of something, some big-name is getting involved, or there’s something people can win. Any way you slice it, someone will be interested and that, my friends, is the definition of News.

2. Tell who, what, when, where, and WHY—the five Ws. It’s important in a press release to get as many of the basic facts as you can into the first paragraph. Although WHY is the last on the list, it’s often important to say “why” even ahead of who, what, when, and where. That’s because attention spans are short; you need to let people know quickly why this matters. If readers care about WHY, they’ll stay with you to find out who, what, where, and when. Here’s out it played out for Malibu NoseRiding Championship:

“History’s first-ever timed noseriding competition, in which men and women compete as equals for cash and prizes, will take place “On One Perfect Day” in October 2013 at Malibu’s legendary Surfrider Beach.”

(It’s not often that you can claim a history-making event, and when you can, put it upfront.)

3. Fill out your press release with interesting details (content) as hyperlinks.

“The Malibu Noseriding Championship will bring together sixty-four of the world’s best longboard surfers to compete for ‘most time on the nose’ in an objectively timed event. The event will raise funds and awareness for the Malibu Beach watershed ecosystem—once a pristine environment named “Malibu” by the region’s first inhabitants, the Chumash.

“The event will attract some of surfing’s best, including (long list of championship surfers)…

“The Malibu Noseriding Championship will benefit three local nonprofits: Eco-Malibu, whose mission is to restore and protect the lower Malibu Creek watershed and historical wetlands of Malibu; the Bay Restoration Foundation, working to restore and enhance the Santa Monica Bay; and the Surfing Heritage and Cultural Center, dedicated to preserving, presenting and promoting surfing’s heritage for the appreciation and education of current and future generations.”

4. Include keywords in your press release. Keywords are terms that people will search for when they’re looking for a product or service you provide. If you’re a PR agency in Santa Barbara, “Santa Barbara PR agency” are likely some of your keywords, and so are “Santa Barbara” and “PR” and “public relations.” Anytime I sensibly include my keywords in my press release, I’m helping a Google bot rank it higher for those words.

If you’re the Malibu NoseRiding Championship producers, “Malibu NoseRiding Championship” is a great keyword phrase, but don’t forget that “surfing,” “noseriding,” “surf contests,” etc. can be equally valuable. Try to mix it up to get a more complete keyword profile.

Note: It can take some research and analysis to select your keywords, and we’ll say more about it in another post. For the time being, however, once you know what your company’s keywords are, use them in your press release.

Adding keywords can be as simple as including them in the headline: “Announcing the first Malibu NoseRiding Championship,” or in the first paragraph of the press release: “Alchemy On Demand, Santa Barbara’s PR agency, announces …” You can then add them, or variations of them, again in your press release whenever it makes sense to do so–from a reader’s (not a robot’s) point of view.

5. Include a photograph or video. You learned it in school: “A picture’s worth a thousand words.” In the Internet age, that’s an understatement.

Photos draw readers’ attention. If you have no other image to accompany your press release, quote someone—even if it’s yourself—and include a headshot of that person. Photos make editors more likely to include your story—because they know that readers will be more likely to read it.

6. Include contact info, including a link to your own website. That’s important for reporters, but also for readers who may want to know more about you than just the information available in your press release.

7. Include “boilerplate” about your company at the very end of your press release. A Boilerplate is a single-spaced paragraph that describes what your company does. It provides background information for living, breathing editors, and adds credibility/authority for SEO software ‘bots. It’s also one last place to legitimately insert your keywords. Here’s an example using Lucky Penny Press, another Alchemy On Demand client:

“Lucky Penny Press is a children’s eBook publisher founded by Melissa C. Marsted, author of Pablito and the Speckled Bear. Lucky Penny Press, whose motto is “Nurturing the creative spirit,” publishes books written by both adults and children. Each book has a professionally recorded audio version. As part of LPP’s cultural fabric, each book is connected to a non-profit organization, which receives a portion of book sale proceeds. LPP sells eBooks in numerous eReader formats including those for iPads, iPhones, Kindles, Nooks, MP3 players, and any computer. Every eBook can be downloaded in either eReader or audio format, or both.”

8. Use the Associated Press style. Associated Press (AP) wrote the rules for journalistic fine points followed by most written media. Since many editors will run your press release verbatim if they don’t have time, staff, or inclination to rewrite it, your job is to make it easy for them to do so. AP style includes rules such as spelling out numbers one through nine, but using numerals for numbers 10 and above (as I just did in this sentence). This rule doesn’t apply for dates, such as July 1, 2013, for which numbers are always used, or when a sentence begins with a number, in which case the number is always spelled out.

AP style also omits the “serial comma,” which is the comma before “and” in a list longer than two. For example, “dogs, cats and ponies”; not “dogs, cats, and ponies.”

(This omission of the serial comma upsets Hudson, and my son Noah, but we’ll leave the grammar nazis to fight amongst themselves, yes?)

Another AP-style guideline is to put the comma or period inside the quotation marks. When you’re quoting someone, it looks like this: “This is our first award,” the proud business owner said. “We couldn’t be more pleased.”

And that’s it. Follow these straightforward recommendations for writing press releases, and you’ll also be writing an SEO press release in no time.

Congratulations!

–Leslee Goodman
Alchemy On Demand

How to Generate Free Publicity (Part 2)

Admin — Wed, 09 Mar 2022 00:26:12 +0000

OK, so you’ve got a great story about your business you want your local media to cover. How do you get their attention?

Just like in fishing, we call it The Hook.

The Hook is an intriguing email subject line/press release headline that makes readers (and editors are readers) want to know more.

Here are some tips for “hooking” an editor with your press release:

Use numbers. I don’t know why; they’re like lists. Editors–and other readers–love ’em. “Fifty ways to leave your lover.” “Top 12 Films of 2012.” “Five flavorful ways to serve meatloaf.” “Thirty great gifts under $30.” “The 10 worst pick-up lines ever.” Except for the meatloaf one, don’t you want to know more?

Turn conventional wisdom on its head. It’s always interesting when someone goes against the grain. Instantly, observers start to follow that one and ignore the crowd. “Everything I need to know I learned in kindergarten” (not college). “Why working out won’t help you lose weight.” (Sorry; I made that up. Last time I got on the scale it still wasn’t true.) “Why raising test scores won’t fix society.”

Do both. “Five reasons nuclear weapons can’t keep us safe .” “Three myths about fluoride your dentist doesn’t want you to know.” “Three things your girlfriend wants besides chocolate, flowers, and a ring.”

See the world through an editor’s eyes. That means being sensitive to what’s timely in THEIR world (hint: what holiday is coming up next month?) and tying your news to it in ways that catch their attention. For local business editors: “Why Mother’s Day is a money-maker”; Lifestyle editors: “What NOT to give Mom for Mother’s Day this year,” or “When Mom is gone: How to remember Mom on Mother’s Day.” For Travel or Food editors: “Beyond brunch: 10 memorable places to take Mom on her day.” Politics and foreign policy: What would Mom do? (Threw that one in there to see if you’re still reading.)

Mind you: these topics are timely a month in advance for daily or weekly media; monthly media typically want six months’ lead time. That means if you want media to run a story on you before the holiday season, send them your press release six months in advance, using any of the above tips that appeal to you.

Share your success stories! What’s the most effective “hook” you ever used with the media?

— Leslee Goodman
Alchemy On Demand

How to Generate Local Publicity (Part 1)

Admin — Tue, 08 Mar 2022 00:22:23 +0000

It’s the holy grail of all small businesses – Free Publicity.

But how do you get it?

In this age of information overload, it can be hard for beginning businesses to be heard above the din of more experienced buzz-makers.

The good news is that the more media outlets there are–newspapers, e-zines, magazines, social media sites, and blog-talk radio shows, the more media outlets are looking for quality content. And local media outlets are hungry for LOCAL media content… meaning you and your business.

Sadly, local media producers are unlikely to come to you. If you want the media to report on your business, you have to let them know why they should.

The press release is a business’s primary tool for communicating with the media. A press release is a one- to two-page document that informs the media of a newsworthy event at your company.

What is a newsworthy event?

A new product launch; a new management-level hire; a new location; new store hours; new social responsibility initiative; new partnership – all are newsworthy events. Are you seeing a connection here? What’s newsworthy is what’s NEW. It’s really that simple.

Sure, not every editor is going to be interested in every new offering that comes out of your company, but tailor your news release to the appropriate outlet.

The business section of the local paper may be interested in your new product line, while the news and lifestyle editors will not. Perhaps there’s a trade publication for your industry? Send your new product launch press release to its editor. If your company makes the cover of the trade publication that news may warrant a story in the hometown paper or news broadcast.

Take, for example, Lucky Penny Press. They recently partnered with poet laureate emirata of Santa Barbara to co-create a picture book of poetry for kids and adults. We sent a press release to the Santa Barbara Independent arts editor, who found it pertinent because the poet, Perie Longo, maintains a following in the Santa Barbara area, and April is National Poetry Month. Lucky Penny Press got some good publicity out of the deal.

What are some other ways you can generate buzz for your business?

Do something for your community.

Partner with a local nonprofit to clean up the beach. Start an intern program for local teens. Conduct an office food drive for local fire or flood victims. Take a photo of any of these initiatives, write it up, and send it to the local press. Do it monthly. You’re doing something for the people the media serve and they are likely to cover it.

Create a contest.

This is one of the most effective ways of building social media followers and fans. Offer your product as the prize and give people a chance to win it for “Liking” or “Sharing” your page. Mashable wrote a great post about the creative ways businesses used contests to build their online community. One of my favorites is the Downtown Ithaca’s Alliance, which hides a garden gnome somewhere in downtown Ithaca, NY. People hit the streets in order to find the gnome and post their findings on DIA’s various social media channels. A great way to build community and a relatively free and easy way to drum up press.

Host an event.

Open your doors for the local art walk. Have a monthly open house with wine and cheese. Host a talk about something your business is knowledgeable in. People love free events–especially with food and drink–and most local media will list free events in their Calendar sections–for free.

These are just a few ways you can get the word going about your business. There are numerous other ways to get the media interested in what you’re doing… ways we call “hooking” an editor.

Do you have any creative ways to “hook” an editor?

Let us hear about ’em!

–Leslee Goodman
Alchemy On Demand