How to Write and Distribute a Social Media Press Release

People who write for the web are always looking for new ways to gain traffic to their sites. Many have attempted to use traditional press releases but have found them to be unsatisfying in the traffic levels that they create. An alternative method which might be more useful to the web writer is the social media press release (SMPR), sometimes known as a social media news release or simple social news release.

What is a social media press release?

The social media press release takes the basic press release and alters it to be more suitable to the web environment. Like the traditional press release, the goal of the SMPR is to provide concise information to journalists and other web writers which will assist them in writing about your topic or business. In addition to the basics of the press release, the SMPR makes use of keywords and links to get the attention of a web-savvy audience.

Why use a social media press release?

The main reason that you'll use the SMPR is the same as the reason that you would use a traditional press release: to get attention for your website or business. The reason that you'll want to use a social media press release instead of a traditional press release is because it offers benefits to the online reader. For example, you can use keywords to optimize the SMPR and make it more noticeable to search engines which will get it more attention on the web.

How to write a social media press release

To write the social media press release, you will follow the same basic format as with a traditional press release. You'll want to have a catchy headline. You'll also want to focus on a specific benefit of your business or product and drive home several points emphasizing that benefit.

The main things that you will do differently with the SMPR are:

• Use bullet points which are popular online but not common to the traditional press release.
• Use links within your text to direct people to your site and to articles about your site.
• Make sure that you use SEO tactics such as keyword use in the article.
• Include your IM and VoIP contact information.
• Incorporate multimedia links like audio files or embedded videos.
• Use "add to" widgets for popular bookmarking sites like Digg or Del.icio.us

You can use a free template to design the basics of your SMPR. See the links below for templates.

How to distribute a social media press release

There are several different ways to distribute the SMPR. You'll want to try out different options to see which works best for you. Some of the common methods are:

• Use traditional web press release services such as PR Web.
• Use your online social networking and social bookmarking sites to distribute a link to your SMPR.
• Post the SMPR as a blog entry and promote it as a blog post.
• Submit it to article submission directories online.
• Promote it through related forums.
• Include a link to the SMPR on your email signature.
• Identify probloggers in your topic area and contact them with your SMPR in the hopes that they'll publish it or write about it.
• Send the SMPR to your favorite related online magazines through their press contact form.
• Create a video revealing the information in your SMPR and promote it through sites like YouTube.
• Use one of the new social media release companies which will distribute your press release for your.

Final Tips for the SMPR

The social media press release is a relatively new thing that people are still trying to figure out how to use well. You'll want to make sure that you stay on top of news about the SMPR to get new ideas about how to maximize its use for your own work. You will also want to try to get creative and come up with your own ways of tweaking the writing and improving the distribution of the SMPR. Keep the basic SEO and SEM principles in mind when working with this form of news release.