The $7000 news release
A good news release can generate widespread news coverage—here’s one example of how a single release generated thousands of dollars worth of editorial space.
Our client was a residential developer with a large project encompassing more than 700 home sites. As we developed a PR strategy we looked outside the normal announcement information to find something newsworthy to report in hopes of garnering some publicity.
In this case, a major portion of the property was situated on protected wetlands, and the forward-thinking development team had created a conservancy to ensure the land remained protected. “Green” building was a hot topic in the news, so we centered our “story” around the conservancy and its impact on future preservation of the area.
We felt sure that we would garner publicity, but we didn’t anticipate the widespread coverage that was generated. Within a week, there was a prominent front-page newspaper article, followed a few days later by a positive editorial. Other publications soon followed suit including newspapers and magazines from around the area. Florida Trend reported the story as did the national magazine Green Builder. In all, the verified coverage was equal to more than $7000 if we’d purchased the same amount of paid ad space.
Remember that editors aren’t there to give us free advertising, and getting news coverage isn’t always easy. But if your story is newsworthy, your odds of getting covered are much higher.
