Nicole Loepp is a marketing coordinator at WTWH Media, publisher of Solar Power World. For more marketing advice, visit marketing.wtwhmedia.com.
Press releases are an essential marketing tool in any industry, and solar is no exception. Still, it can be easy to fall into the trap of going through the motions and churning out news without stopping to consider if you’re really engaging your audience—or attracting the attention of editors who will share your news, for that matter.
Whether your company is announcing an exciting project or releasing a new product, it’s important to convey complete information with enthusiasm. Releases should be written with purpose and creativity. Here are seven tips to help you engage your audience and the people who will share your content.
- Understand your audience. Does your release appeal to you as a member of the solar industry? Great content is content that people will want to read. This may mean writing in a less “salesy” manner. For example, sometimes it’s more engaging to write about how a project will benefit the owner and mentioning all companies involved, rather than just your involvement in it. If you’re writing about a product, it may be more effective to begin with a problem your audience experiences, then explain how your product helps solve it. The deeper your understanding of your audience, the more you will find your work appreciated and shared.
- Focus your message. Great content is written in a concise, thoughtful manner. Readers often have short attention spans, so it’s important to convey your main message, or point, and capture the reader’s attention in the first paragraph. The remaining paragraphs should contain additional information in order of importance or interest. Using too many quotes, or quotes that are long and too “salesy,” can cause readers to lose attention.
- Provide access to more information. Even though your news should remain concise, providing links is an easy way to offer readers easy ways to learn more. One or two is plenty; too many links may make your release look “spamy.”
- Include multimedia. Graphics are absolutely essential when sharing a story. Not only are they more eye-catching than text, but they also provide the reader with a better understanding of your company’s capabilities. Include a colorful, attention-grabbing photo that accurately portrays what the release is about and, when possible, a link to a video (preferably one with an embed code so it can be shared directly in a post) for more engaging content.
- Use your social media channels. Your job isn’t done once your press release is published. Promote your news on social media. Post the link, along with your eye-catching photo to attract more readers. Since some sharers may choose to share through social media only, rather than posting on their own sites, it’s also important to make sure your release is available under the news section of your website as soon as a copy is distributed to editors and other outlets.
- Don’t forget your contact information. Editors and other sharers are busy people. They don’t have time to fish around for your information if they need a follow-up. Including a link to your company’s website and an email and phone number for additional information within your email and copy of the release is professional, courteous and could potentially result in more sales and editorial opportunities for your company. Including the email and phone number of your press contact under the news section of your site is also appreciated by editors looking for more information.
- Send .doc files. The days of mailed and faxed press releases are gone. Today’s press releases are shared online. For maximum audience exposure, make sure your content is as easy to share as copy, paste, post. Copying from PDFs can be difficult (those troublesome linebreaks!), but Word docs are easy to copy and paste into website posting platforms. Again, including a link to the release on your website is also useful in case the sharer wishes to distribute through social media
By Nicole Loepp, marketing coordinator at WTWH Media (publisher of Solar Power World)