How Small Companies Can Engage Reporters Using Social Media (PR)

Not all small businesses can afford an expensive public relations person, especially in this economy.  But, your company's news and assets are important, and the more they are presented through media outlets, the more free advertising your company receives!  Now, who doesn't want that?

To engage reporters without a PR firm, make press releases available online.

Submitting a press release to a paid distribution service is great, and if you can afford it, do it.  But you also need a permanent online press area where all your releases are posted.

This online press area should be called 'News' or 'Resources' and should offer a simple link from your company homepage and have a logical URL (something like www.yourcompanyurl.com/press).

Setting up this section on your website will ensure reporters have a place to go if they need news or further information on your company.  Reporters are always looking for leads, and coming across one of your press releases may be just what they are looking for...plus, it helps to have your name out there!

Just list the press releases in chronological order with a click through option to see the entire release.  If you send out a lot of releases, you should archive these into monthly folders to keep down the clutter.

Also, this section will become a huge asset for SEO purposes.  As your site acquires new content, search engines will crawl your site more often and move it up in its search rankings.

Finally, it is a good idea to offer a distinct method of contact for press and bloggers.  This will only give an ego boost to your company and make it seem important enough to need such a channel, it prevents email inquiries from getting lost in the noise of your business inbox and helps you get back to reporters in a timely manner.

So put your press releases online!