Ever heard the phrase, ‘think outside the box?’ Well, if you haven’t, welcome back to reality, because this golden nugget of advice is absolutely everywhere!
And for good reason. Much of the good stuff goes down outside the box – including marketing tactics to get the word out about your store. Publishing a press release online is one of many innovative promotional tools at your finger tips – quick, easy and sometimes free!
Use a press release to benefit your business in a number of ways:
- Search Engine Optimization: When you include a hyperlink or general link to your store in the press release, you can greatly improve your SEO
- Build credibility for your business
- Direct more traffic to your store
- Raise awareness of your brand
How to incorporate press releases into your marketing strategy:
1. Write the press release (see below). Before you start writing, make sure you have a clear definition of WHAT you’re selling and to which AUDIENCE
2. Research PR wire services. These organizations will post your press release to thousands of journalists and organizations online. There are quite a few out there – and if you’re on a budget, there are free wire services that can help you get started!
3. Post your press release to your website and Issue it via the wire if your budget permits
4. Monitor search engines to find out where your press release was ‘picked up’.
While writing your press release, please keep in mind Zazzle’s press release policy (at the bottom of this document).
Here are a few tips on writing an effective press release:
- Remember your audience. Press releases are sent to busy journalists and other media members to use as a basis for writing their own articles. Language should be concise, clear and most of all, informative. Waste no time with flowery descriptions or prose!
- Cover your bases. Your release should tell your audience the; who, what, when, where, why, and how – and it should do so one page.
- Create an angle. You have less than ten seconds to catch the eye and hook the interest of a journalist – a headline with an angle is crucial!
- Follow the standard layout. PR documents follow a fairly consistent structure, and for good reason! Here’s an example release:
(FILL IN NAME OF COMPANY, BRAND OR BAND) Introduces Merchandise Line Available at Zazzle
City, STATE- Date – COMPANY NAME today announced the availability of x products at Zazzle (www.zazzle.com), the only on-demand retail platform to offer over 3 billion retail quality, one-of-a-kind products shipped in 24 hours. Products are available for purchase online at (fill in website)
Fill in paragraph outlining details of company and further information about what will be available at http://www.zazzle.com.
Add quote from representative of your company.
Infinite and Instant, Zazzle is the only on-demand retail platform for consumers and major brands, offering billions of retail quality, one-of-a-kind products, many of which are produced within 24 hours. Offering the largest library of customizable digital images from world-class brands, Zazzle enables content owners to unlock their entire libraries of content, making them available for purchase and customization by consumers. Through Zazzle’s innovative on-demand retail and technology platform, users can instantly create, customize to fit their personal style, purchase and sell a near infinite array of products online. For more information, www.Zazzle.com.
About (fill in your company name):
Add company boiler plate
Contact:
Add PR contact information
Here are some great places to start posting your press release:
www.prweb.com
www.prnewswire.com
Email, viral & general marketing best practices:
http://www.marketingprofs.com/
http://searchenginewatch.com/
Your customers are already looking for you – your press release will make finding them a whole lot easier!
Good luck!
Zazzle’s Press Release Policy
The following points must be followed for any Press Release that mentions Zazzle or any Zazzle product.
- When mentioning Zazzle, please use the following approved Zazzle language. We’ve provided a few example sentences for you to choose from that fit your needs:
- Zazzle is the only on-demand retail platform to offer billions of products that ship in 24 hours
- My online Zazzle store with on-demand custom merchandise
- No quotes from Zazzle
- You are responsible for costs involved and logistics for issuing over a newswire
- The final press release draft and suggested issue date must be received by Zazzle (ContributorPress@Zazzle.com) one week prior to your desired issue date for approval from Zazzle
- If the release is a last minute request to something timely in the media, please send it with HOT and announce date in the subject line so it will receive urgent attention
- Zazzle will consider your press releases for inclusion in the Zazzle press center