Using Effective Optimized Press Releases To Boost E-Commerce Sales and Visibility
As an e-commerce website owner, you’ll find that optimized press releases are an effective way to impact your e-commerce sales and Internet visibility.
Optimized online press releases can be very useful as part of a successful Internet marketing strategy. In fact, a well-presented optimized press release with good online distribution can typically be read by over 40,000 people in one week.
Press Releases: Then and Now
In the past, press releases were usually pitched by a PR person to a newspaper editor looking for a good story. Even if your press release was considered newsworthy and was picked up, your exposure was limited to the readership of that particular newspaper or trade journal.
Today, most people get their news online. News Engines like Yahoo! News and Google News have larger audiences than CNN. Now you get to skip pitching your press release to that cantankerous newspaper editor and to go straight to being read online, by millions.
Press releases are no longer only written by PR people for the media. These days, press releases have become a direct-to-consumer communication tool, which translates into a very handy tool for e-commerce website owners looking to increase their Internet exposure and the visibility of their products or services.
There are times when online press releases get picked up by traditional media. Journalists are still always looking for a good story and some businesses have found that their online press releases can trigger additional print press coverage.
Writing Effective Press Releases
Start with something worth announcing.
Be sure that your press release headline and copy doesn’t read like an advertisement. If you are announcing a new product, find an informative angle that makes the product news worthy.
Use your words…Keywords, that is.
Optimize your press releases the same way as you would a webpage by integrating your chosen keywords into the copy. Place keywords in the headline and whenever possible (some online distribution services will charge extra for this) use a keyword or keyword phrase as a link.
Direct the press release reader to your website landing pages.
Let’s say your e-commerce website sells assorted barware. Include a link to the keyword phrase “crystal bottle stoppers” in your press release and be sure it leads to the landing page that showcases your wonderful crystal bottle stoppers. (Don’t forget to make it easy to purchase them, too!)
Take advantage of alternative media sources.
By including different media, you can increase search engine visibility even more. You can add a video, pod cast or image to your online press release.
Focus on one topic.
Remember, you are the journalist. Your optimized press release has to include good newspaper writing style. Don’t use “I” or “we” unless it is in a quote.
Use quotes to add depth and a personal touch.
Let’s say your e-commerce site sells unique gifts. You could include a comment by the artisan that highlights something unusual about a new product or include a customer comment.
Add your optimized press release to your website.
Along with submitting your optimized press release to a press release distribution service, include the press release on your e-commerce website. It’s a quick and easy way to provide relevant, fresh content to your site.
Extra, extra! Read all about it.
If you’ve never written a press release for online distribution, spend some time reading them. Most of the press release distribution services include tips and examples on how to write press releases.
Submit your optimized press release for distribution.
There are many free newswires and/or press release distribution services, as well as quality service sites who’ll ask you to pay for their distribution services. PRWeb®, for example offers different packages.
An Internet Marketing Strategy That Lasts
With optimized press releases you don’t have to worry about all your efforts going into the recycling bin the next day.
Typically, an online press release can stay on various news portals for about 30 days. Add to that the fact that an optimized press release can enjoy top placement on search engines for up to 6 months and it’s easy to see that an online press release can generate a successful marketing strategy.
Whether you write your own optimized press releases or decide to hire a writer, you’ll find that the expense and effort can prove to be a valuable way of boosting your e-commerce sales and Internet visibility.