The ultimate PR & Marketing guide for IT companies

Introduction

A press release is a short yet informative briefing on any event, related to your product or service. It is vital for IT businesses, as it can serve as the information source available for many people at the same time, allowing you to inform the relevant community about your business news, new partnerships and product/service launches.

Tips and tricks for a good press release

1. Title is key

Before choosing to read your press release, the audience and the publicists have to be attracted to it, and this is done by scanning the subject lines. So what should a good title look like?

The title needs to be short and inviting
Has to have main keywords that are relevant to your business
Subject language and words have to be simply understandable – you never know who the reader may be
Eye-catching and educational/unique

2. Content

A lot of people imagine that pitching and writing press releases require a lot of effort. However, the secret behind any successful press release or pitch is probably unexpected: keep it simple.

The first 4-5 lines are the most important
The whole press release shouldn’t be longer than 800 words, because audiences tend to not read information about one subject that’s longer than that
Use the timeless who-what-when-where-why scheme.
Make sure there is a focus on only one event or one launch, or partnership per press release:
- If you have several exciting things coming out: time them and create several press releases (this gives you the opportunity to run several marketing campaigns!)
Quotes of relevant company people, such as CEO or the manager of the project, always make the press releases more interesting
Include hard numbers – it’s easy to get lost in the creatives, but hard numbers always catch the eye
Try to add a link to your company website in the release. This will improve your SEO score.
Try getting an external opinion for your draft version (you may be affected by biases of your work)
Make sure it’s all grammatically flawless

3. Design

It is important to stick to the standard design of the press release, as not only will it give you more chances to get published, as the publication will be easier, but it will also look more professional.

When sending an email with your press release pitch, is usually has a standard Word file document with the text, as well as all pictures/logos attached as separate files
- The same content should be copied into the email text
Use pictures or infographics if relevant – this way the audience will remember the information better
- Make sure you let the publishers know that they can use those for publishing purposes without copyright restrictions
Keep it simple and modern, the reader should be attracted to the text at first.
Don’t forget to include the logo of relevant company/companies!
Always end with ###, it signs the end of the press release. This way you are demonstrating your awareness about the processes of press releases.

4. Distribution choices

The way you decide to distribute your press release will have a direct effect on its success. A good quality press release distributed in a few, perfect fit channels, will have a stronger returning effect, than dozens of publications on irrelevant channels.

Choose the most relevant news outlets
- Make sure that the outlets where you are sending your press release to be published to have the same or very similar audience to what you are looking for.
Make sure that the used chosen channels are the most appropriate for the desired target audience
- For example: usually, SME or large enterprise CEOs don’t have time to watch webinars, so it would not make sense sending an invitational webinar press release to a CEO-focused channel.

5. Publishers

Usually, the most challenging part of a press release is finding the publishers. Here is our main advice:

Even when your business doesn’t have an upcoming press release – make sure you always build connections with journalists and editors

Networking through Linkedin, during events or through shared connections
If someone in your network knows a good interesting journalist – ask for an introduction!

Make sure you get to know the publishers on a personal level – this will get your message to be better seen among other press release submissions
Offer something in return, if possible

Maybe you have a connection they would want to write an article about?
Maybe there is an upcoming event organised by you that they would want exclusive rights to?

Make sure you chose WHEN AND HOW you reach out

Best days for reaching out to publishers are Tuesdays and Thursdays
Be polite, not too pushy, and your email subject line is catchy
All of the information attached is correct, and you are always available if they reach out:

Common industry mistake: sending out a press release with no contact details/contact details of an employee who is on holiday. If a publisher reaches out and gets no response – that is an opportunity lost.

To help you kick-off your publisher network, we have combined some of the best IT and Tech journalists and editors information*.

*All contact information was found through publicly accessible online sources.

Conclusion

PR for IT companies can be described as a combination of strategy and art. Any business must find the middle ground where their ideas are not too dry as well as not too extensive – basically, realise the exact location of that catchy golden spot.

Cloudsuppliers has years of experience in the field of press releases, so our PR experts are sharing their most valuable advice for a successful press release. We will be focusing not only on tips and tricks for your press releases but also on your potential list of useful PR contacts – this is pretty rare across similar guides!

Cloudsuppliers can help you with all stages of PR and Marketing for your product or service. Whether it is an announcement, an important update or an interesting event, we are always here for you, holding years of experience in IT.