Business Wired
The requirements for a press release have changed since 2007, when Business Wire estimated a good press release would run $5,000, Fred Godlash writes. “The biggest change, in just 6 years, is the focus from pitching to media outlets to making a press release that is written for everybody.”
In today’s world the press release may be picked up by anyone that will write about your company – not just traditional media outlets, but bloggers, consumer groups, advocacy groups, social media users and more.
A press release today would take about “150 hours of collective work,” including “Hiring staff for keyword optimization, content creation, research, analytics, multimedia, embed codes for tracking, and legal fees for regulatory compliance,” Godlash writes. The total cost, he figures, would be up to $7,500.
Godlash includes a chart showing what he identifies as some of the differences in the work around lofting a press release six years ago, and getting one out today. In 2007, for instance, one step is “Follow up with journalists.” Nowadays, you need to “Follow up with journalists, outlets, and readers including answering user feedback posted on social sites — growing and extending the content — and adding value to users.”
Related: Fake press release exposes real problems in online news distribution | 6 ways journalists can use press releases effectively
