​Press Release Distribution


At one time most press releases were sent by snailmail. Today, most are emailed.



There are dozens of different companies that you can use to distribute your press releases. Some are free; some have different prices for different “packages,” typically between $100 and $1,000. You can spend more, but it should not be necessary.



Some PR distribution companies, and therefore the “news” they carry, have more credibility than others. The top companies are probably Business Wire, PR Newswire and PR Web. PR.com is in the second tier, and pretty good.


Self-publishing companies generally use the less-effective free distribution for their public relations and marketing packages, but they seldom reveal the details. The free press release services seem to get minimal “pickup” from the media. They may display ads for competing books, or for products that you don’t want to be associated with. If your publisher is going to provide publicity, learn the details be-fore you sign up.



I’ve used both PR Newswire and PR Web to distribute releases and have been quite pleased with the results. Both companies offer packages with different prices, based on distribution and the included photos, audio or video. PR Newswire can even display giant photos in Times Square in Manhattan. The prices at PR Web range from $80 to $360.



At PR Newswire, you can spend from $680 to several thousand dollars. You can pay just $399 with eReleases, which offers a discounted path to PR Newswire. You can pay less for state or regional coverage.

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I once chose the top-level package from PR Web and was amazed at the performance. Within an hour of the distribution, Google showed many news websites picking up the story about I Only Flunk My Brightest Students: stories from school and real life. After a week, there were about TEN THOUSAND links in media all over the world. The vast majority were the results of $360 paid to PR Web.



While the main purpose of sending out press releases is to gain coverage by news media, even a release which doesn't result in a story in the New York Times or an interview on NPR can still have value.



Press releases which are mailed or FedExed may go -- unopened -- into the shredder or waste basket. But online press releases -- even if ignored by the media -- remain online, and are SEARCHABLE. This means that a release for your book about rodent reproduction should be found by someone who Googles "chipmunk sex."