Q. I need a press release done. How does it work?
A. The charge for The Write Company to write and distribute your press release is $75 per hour.
A press release that announces a new product, an event or other important news about your business or organization is an ideal way to attract publicity without paying for advertising. The purpose of a press release is to entice the media to broadcast or publish your news to your target audience.
There are three main phases in the process. The Write Company will handle any or all of these for you:
- Writing
- Distribution
- Follow-up
Writing
The writing phase starts by gathering the information you want in your release. The interview can be done over the phone or in person and usually takes about 30 to 60 minutes. A typical press release contains about 300 to 500 words – one or two pages. The entire writing process usually takes about three hours, including interview/information gathering, writing and revisions, so a ballpark cost for this phase is about $225.
You may choose to add photographs, fact sheets or other supplemental information to your release. We can prepare these for you if you want.
Distribution
Once your press release is completed to your satisfaction, it’s time to get it out to the media. We can do that for you if you want us to. Our charge for distribution is the same – $75 per hour – as it is for writing, plus fees from a distribution service, if one is used. We distribute your press release in a variety of ways, depending on who your target audience is. Here are some examples:
If you want to reach a local general audience, you’ll probably want to send your release to the newspapers, magazines and TV and radio stations in your area. If you’re in Northeast Ohio, you’re in luck. We may just have the most comprehensive media database in existence. Generally, we use email for this type of distribution. Mail and fax are other alternatives.
If you are in a business that provides products, equipment or services to other businesses, you probably want to send your press release to appropriate trade publications – regionally, nationally or internationally, depending on where your market it. You can provide us with media list, or we can customize one for you.
If you want to target a wide, national or international audience, we suggest distributing your news release through a distribution service that will feed your release to print, broadcast and Internet media all over the world. We have relationships with several services, offering a variety of options that range in price from free to several hundred dollars.
Follow up
News editors and reporters typically receive numerous press releases. It’s usually a good idea to follow up the delivery of your press release with a phone call to inquire whether they have seen the release and to find out if they need additional information. This phase, again, is available at a rate of $75 per hour.
Payment
Generally, upon approval of your press release, payment must be made for the writing phase, and a deposit must be made toward distribution charges. For your convenience we take all major credit cards in addition to checks.
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