How To Get Free Publicity For Your Business

By: Ben Needles

You dont have to spend thousands of dollars on advertising to build an effective campaign. In fact, you can get great publicity that will drive customers to your door absolutely free of charge!

One of the best ways to do this is to attract press coverage. You dont have to pay for advertising space to get written about in a newspaper or magazine, or on a website. All you have to do is interest the editor or webmaster in your story. Todays media is huge, and its hungry for news. If you present a publication with a ready-made story that will interest their target audience they will snap it up.

The way to do this is to write a press release, sometimes called a news release. Release writing isnt rocket science, but there are a few important tips and tricks to remember:

* Make sure the release is dated, and has a contact name, address, phone number and email address. The contact should be a single, named individual.

* Start off with an attention-grabbing headline that announces a piece of specific news. Atlanta Motorbike Store Launches New Line of Helmets is a good headline; Atlanta Motorbike Store Has Another Good Year is not. Your release should announce something specific and out of the ordinary.

* Always include a quote. Store owner Mike Smith, 44, says, were really pleased to be stocking X-Brand Helmets. Quotes bring news stories to life and give them a human touch, youll look a long time before you find a professional media story without one.

* Make sure your spelling, grammar and punctuation are one hundred percent accurate. If theyre not, the professionals in your target media will lose respect for you and trash your release. If you didnt get top grades in English, get a friend to check it over.

Once youve written your release you need to distribute it. There are plenty of free newswires that will do this for you, www.internetnewsbureau is a good example. Remember that to be successful a press release needs to be targeted at a precise market. If youre releasing on the topic of your new range of motorbike helmets in Atlanta, youd better make sure every bike magazine and local newspaper in Georgia gets a copy.

Its quite acceptable to email press releases. Just make sure that the text is included in the body of the mail, most sensible internet users are a little suspicious of mail attachments received from strangers.
So your release is out, and its getting you some coverage. What other cost-free means can you use to build your businesss profile? Well, the obvious place is the internet. Here are some suggestions:

* Build web links. Its a tactic as old as the internet and it takes time, but its still worth it. Make sure your businesss name is on every relevant free directory on the web. This can be pretty backbreaking work, but it will pull in the customers. Crucially, it will also improve your websites rank on Google and other search engines.

* Post to message boards. If you can find a web discussion forum related to your business topic, join in and post regularly. Dont simply push your product, get involved in the online community. This is a great way to establish contacts. Make sure that your username is the same as your business name and that your forum profile contains a link to your site

One rule of advertising hasnt changed since prehistoric times: nothing beats word-of-mouth. Ultimately the secret of getting free publicity is having a great product that people will talk about. If you can get folks talking about you and your business, youve beaten every single Fortune 1000 company, theyve spent millions on advertising and branding campaigns. If youre smart, and if youre persistent, you can achieve the same results without spending a single cent!

You dont have to spend thousands of dollars on advertizement to build an effectual campaign. In fact, you can get great promotional material that will drive customers to your door absolutely free of charge!

One of the best ways to do this is to attract press coverage. You dont have to pay for advertising space to get written about in a newsprint or magazine, or on a website. All you have to do is interest the editor or webmaster in your story. Todays media is huge, and its hungry for news. If you present a issue with a ready-made story that will pastime their target hearing they will snap it up.

The way to do this is to write a press release, sometimes called a news release. Release written material isnt rocket science, but there are a few important tips and tricks to remember:

* Make sure the release is dated, and has a contact name, address, phone number and email address. The contact should be a single, named individual.

* Start off with an attention-grabbing newspaper headline that announces a piece of specific news. Atlanta Motorbike Store Launches New Line of Helmets is a good headline; Atlanta Motorbike Store Has Another Good Year is not. Your release should announce something particular and out of the ordinary.

* forever admit a quote. Store owner Mike Smith, 44, says, were really pleased to be stocking X-Brand Helmets. Quotes bring news stories to life and give them a human touch, youll look a long time earlier you find a professional media story without one.

* Make sure your spelling, grammar and punctuation are one a hundred percent accurate. If theyre not, the professionals in your target media will lose respect for you and trash your release. If you didnt get top grades in English, get a friend to check it over.

Once youve scripted your release you need to distribute it. There are plenty of free newswires that will do this for you, www.internetnewsbureau is a good example. Remember that to be successful a press spillage needs to be targeted at a precise market. If youre cathartic on the topic of your new range of motorbike helmets in Atlanta, youd better make sure every bike powder store and local newsprint in Georgia gets a copy.

Its quite accepted to email press releases. Just make sure that the text is included in the body of the mail, most reasonable cyberspace users are a little suspicious of mail attachments received from strangers.
So your release is out, and its getting you some coverage. What other cost-free means can you use to build your businesss profile? Well, the obvious place is the internet. Here are some suggestions:

* Build web links. Its a tactic as old as the internet and it takes time, but its still worth it. Make sure your businesss name is on every relevant free directory on the web. This can be pretty hard work, but it will pull in the customers. Crucially, it will also improve your websites rank on Google and other search engines.

* Post to subject matter boards. If you can find a web discussion forum related to your business sector topic, join in and post regularly. Dont just push your product, get involved in the online community. This is a great way to establish contacts. Make sure that your username is the same as your business name and that your forum visibility contains a link to your site

One rule of advert hasnt changed since prehistoric times: null beats word-of-mouth. Finally the secret of getting free promotion is having a great product that people will talk about. If you can get folks talking about you and your business, youve beaten every one fate 1000 company, theyve spent millions on advertising and branding campaigns. If youre smart, and if youre persistent, you can reach the same results without disbursement a single cent!

.

Niche Article Directory: http://www.thatsmyniche.com

About the Author (text)

Please Rate this Article

5 out of 54 out of 53 out of 52 out of 51 out of 5 

Not yet Rated