Companies can promote their businesses in digital media through a variety methods, including social media marketing, email campaigns and pay-per-click advertising.
This blog post will focus on media advisories and press releases, which are two options that companies have to increase brand awareness, drive traffic to their websites, and generate leads.
What is a press release?
A press release is a concise and compelling news story. It’s usually written by a public relation professional and sent to targeted media outlets to announce something important.
A press release’s goal is to get coverage in relevant publications and keep a company’s target market informed.
Important news can be covered in press releases, such as:
- A special report is released
- A company milestone
- An announcement of a new product/launch
- Funding for a new round
- Announcement of a new executive
- Plus, many other things
Press releases, no matter how big or small, should address the who and what, where, when and why of the announcement.
These are often referred to as 5 W’s + How and form the foundation of the Inverted Pyramid.
The inverted pyramid is an integral part of the press releases format puzzle. It helps companies reach their target audience and the media.
What is a media advisory?
An advisory to the media is not a complete story. It is a brief description of your event, inviting the media to attend it, and contains the most important details.
This event could include a grand opening, book signing or demonstration.
A media advisory can be a great way of creating buzz about your event and encouraging journalists and media from relevant publications to attend.
A media advisory should only include the most essential details, as we have already mentioned. Here are some tips for creating a media advisory if you have never done it before.
Media Advisory Must Have
Type MEDIA ADVISORY at the top of your page in a bold, large font.
Please include the date and contact information on the left side.
- Company name
- Your first and last names
- Email address
- Telephone number
The 5 W’s are the same format as a press release. They address the most important details.
Your media advisory should look like this when you combine these elements:
The 4 Most Important Differences between a Media Advisory and a Press Release
We now have a better understanding of the differences between a media advisory and a press release. Let’s look at the four key differences to help you choose the best approach for your next campaign.
Purpose
A media advisory is a brief overview designed to encourage attendance at an event.
On the other hand, press releases can be used to promote an event or share information about the company. Press releases provide important information and details about the company.
Length
A press release should contain between 400 and 500 words. Media advisory typically contains 100 to 150 words.
Timing
For example, you would want to send invitations to birthday parties with enough time to allow people to review their schedules and to save the date. This principle applies to media advisors, which should be sent well in advance of the event date.
Two media advisories should be sent. To serve as reminders, the first advisor should be sent five to seven days prior to the event. The second advisor should be sent one day prior.
Press releases don’t need to be tied to any specific event. This allows for flexibility in timing and distribution.
This is why the number of press releases that a company sends depends on its marketing goals.
To effectively distribute press releases, it takes consistency and analysis.
Audience
The wire distributes press releases. Media advisories are distributed via the wire to journalists and reporters in the relevant media.
Contact us to talk with one of our PR Strategists if you want to know more about press release distribution or the creation media advisories.
