Lynott & Associates
Lynott & Associates is a full-service public relations firm specializing in media and analyst relations for technology innovators. Our clients include firms with web enabled services that focus on the enterprise, as well as businesses that target vertical industries including financial services, aerospace, telecommunications and consumer electronics.
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PR for the Rest of Us – Public Relations Tips for SMBs
PR for the Rest of Us – Public Relations Tips for SMBs
So, What IS News?
If you are thinking about writing a press release to create some buzz about your business or organization, make sure that what you are announcing is actually news. According to Wikipedia, news is “any single new information or information on current events which is presented by print, broadcast, Internet, or word of mouth to a third party or mass audience”.
News isn’t just reminding the public you are out there and thinly aligning yourself with the biggest topics of the moment. For example, the NBA Championships are underway and you want to announce that your disk drives are as durable as the ink in the players’ tats. Huh???!!!
News is advising your target audiences about something significant you haven’t made public before. Some examples include:
- New product or service offerings
- New technology
- Moving to a new location
- New customers/clients (Get their approval, first)
- Completion of a major project
- Speaking engagements (to a group, at a conference)
- Participation in non-profit events, such as sponsorships
- New executives joining your team
- Public demonstration of your product(s)
- Joint announcement with a vendor, partner
- Event that’s open to the public (open house, a sale)
- Recipient of an award
- A well-known luminary is visiting your facility
- Adopting sustainable business practices
When the media consider publishing your announcement they are deciding whether their readers would care. Remember, that they can research on the ‘Net anything you’ve announced before, so avoid re-announcing something because you don’t think it got enough “play” the first time around.
Send your news release to traditional media only and reach out to bloggers/twitterers when it’s relevant to do so. Ask yourself first: Is it part of the conversation? How would it add value?
Real news will lead to print and online articles in magazines, newspapers, journals and mentions in blogs and tweets.