Alan Weinkrantz PR Web Log

How To Save Money on PR During A Downturn - Revisit your Wire Service Strategy and Expenses

Just because you may need to reduce costs, it does not mean that you have to disappear from the radar.

Here's some tips: 

1.  When using a wire service like PR Newswire or BusinessWire, don't buy the national circuit.

Buy a local circuit.  In fact, buy the least expensive local circuit you can buy.

It will save you hundreds, if not thousands of dollars depending on the scope and reach you are going for.

2.  Going global?  If you need to reach the UK, buy the metro London only circuit.  In general, try to buy capital cities only.  You'll get the local translation and major media outlets where they tend to be located.

3.  Is this really newsworthy?  Ask yourself if what you are about to announce is really newsworthy, or in need of compliance.  If not, reduce the number of press releases you issue, but don't kill the outreach.  If you have five releases scheduled through the end of the year, pace them out a bit more, consolidate your news and reduce the number to three.  

You stay on the radar.  You are visible on the search engines.  You communicate to your publics.

Yes, Wire Services Are Effective and Worth the Money

I highly recommend wire services.  Even in times of budget cuts.  The main thing is that you need to get on to the search engines in ways that only the major wire services can get you on.

Alsbridge Announces Outsourcing 'Tour of India' for Corporate Executives

Our client, Alsbridge, today announced that it plans to sponsor site tours of the leading offshore outsourcing providers in India for corporate executives Nov. 1 - 12.

The tours and hands-on educational program focused on outsourcing strategies, will examine the capabilities and methods of several outsourcing providers in major centers in India.

In announcing the tour, we used PR Newswire for domestic distribution in the U.S. and also put it on the PR Newswire / India national circuit for $350, which includes translation into Hindi.

There are times when it makes sense to to use a foreign wire circuit, even when your target audience is in the U.S.

PR Newswire Offers Search Visiblity Services

Last week, our rep from PR Newswire, Jennifer Miller, and her compadre Cyndi Baumgartner came by our offices to update us on 'waz up with her company. 

They are now offering a news service called "Search Engine Visibility" (SEV), will Jennifer says will give you the ability to see exactly what phrases Web users use to arrive at customers' news releases. 

These reports, generated by their partner, icrossing, will help can help you tailor future messages by providing relevant feedback on the most- used keywords and actions taken by Web users viewing the news release.

"One of the biggest challenges facing PR professionals and marketers in the Internet age is, 'How do customers and influencers find my news release online?'  This service not only helps to place PR Newswire members' news releases in higher rankings on leading search engines, it also tells them how much traffic they are receiving from these engines, and reports on which search phrases were entered.

We'll be testing the service this fall.

Look for updates on my take on this.

Photo of me on a glacier in Iceland trying to 'search.'  (c) Alan Weinkrantz - 2005 All Rights Reserved.