We have already seen it in a previous Badsender (The PR agency and press releases), press relations don't always make appropriate use of email. Yet what better way to spread the word quickly than to send a press release by email? There isn't. Email allows to be fast without being intrusive and to be complete without exorbitant costs.
Nevertheless, practices related to sending press releases by email vary greatly. Press relations agencies, whether small or large, do not pay much attention to email. Here is a series of tips to improve the practice of sending a press release by email.
What are the objectives of sending a press release by email?
Before we get to the advice, let's take a look at the reasons for sending press releases by email! Obviously, Badsender isn't going to tell PR specialists how to do their job (that's not really our speciality), but simply put the reasons for using email... back at the center of the village.
The first objective of a PR email (in short) is to attract the attention of the journalist, who receives dozens of emails all day long. The email (and, above all, the subject line) must arouse their curiosity and, above all... interest. Journalists don't have time to waste! That's why the goal of your email is to provide them with all the information they need to relay your CP. And most importantly, email is an opening to a dialogue, it must offer an immediately available point of contact.
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Best practices for your press releases by email.
Purpose and identification.
- Show in your object that it is a press release and not an advertisement... or worse, a spam. Don't hesitate to add at the beginning of the subject line : " CP ", " Communiqué :", ...
- Display the name of the company issuing the press release in the subject line or in the sender's name.
- If the journalist knows you, customize the sender name with your first and last name.
- If they don't know you, use the name of the company you're sending the release for.
- NEVER use "noreply".If the purpose of your email is to get in touch with the journalist, don't close the door from the start.
Targeting.
Does it make sense to send a press release about a major fashion designer's latest ready-to-wear range to a journalist specializing in new technologies? None whatsoever. In fact, it's totally anti-productive, since the journalist will not hesitate to classify your e-mail as spam, and thus degrade the delivery of your e-mails to the rest of your audience (which, we hope, is well-targeted).
Content.
Your number one priority: comfort for the journalist. The content of a press release is intended to be reused by the journalist. To achieve this goal, try to keep content integration methods simple. Here are a few tips:
- Offer the possibility to copy/paste: do not send emails with a large image in which it is impossible to copy/paste the text.
- Try to attach a printable document: yes, some people still print documents to read them, so you might as well satisfy them, it doesn't cost much more.
- Add a call to action: where do you want to take your reader? Whether it's to a video, to images, to a site, to a point of contact, keep the focus.
- Define the objective of the CP at the beginning of the email, in just a few lines!
- Don't forget a complete signature with several points of contact, email addresses, phone numbers, etc. (and not in an image!).
Ok, now how to send the press release by email?
This is a very good question. And we're here to meet your needs, you know! Badsender specializes in email marketing. So we're more than happy to handle your request. Let's get in touch!
