Have you heard the saying, “Timing is everything”? Well, it applies to not only relationships, but also the business world, especially when it comes to press and media releases. Once you’ve spent the time crafting the perfect messaging for your release, you want to ensure it makes the right splash. To do so, you definitely need to consider carefully when you send pitches and press releases.
Ragan.com recently posted an article on the topic, “The best (and worst) days, times to send press releases,” that highlights data gathered from wire distribution service, Marketwire.
Compare securing news coverage to meeting a celebrity: You have a better chance of meeting a celebrity and shaking hands if you are one-on-one, than if you see a celebrity in a sea of thousands of adoring fans where you’ll likely get lost in the crowd. The same is true for a press release. You don’t want to compete with thousands of other press releases going across the wire at the same date and time to grab the attention of a journalist or reader.
Marketwire’s data suggests that Mondays and Tuesdays are the most popular day of the week to send out a press release. Tuesdays attract the most releases, with Fridays being the least popular day of the week. Marketwire has also found that 8 a.m. and 9 a.m. ET are when the majority of press releases cross the wire. Most organizations that we work with typically select this timing because the belief is that the early bird gets the worm, but this means stiff competition at the editor’s desk. It can be hard to get noticed amongst the crowd.
Here are some tips to help you get the attention you need:
- Try a unique time slot. One of my colleagues at Communique shared that PR Newswire advised her to send out a press release at an odd time– for example, at 11:47 a.m. This can help elevate visibility because it’s not received in a larger flood of releases scheduled for typical times (like 9 a.m.).
- Change it up. If you have flexibility, test out different distribution dates and times and pay close attention to the analytics that many of the wire services offer. You can see when a press release secures the most pickup and tailor your distribution approach accordingly.
- Do extra work on the side. Don’t rely solely on the wire. Post the press release to your company’s website, spread the news via social media and email the announcement to targeted editors.
The right timing could help you make the splash you are hoping for. Anyone in the PR industry can appreciate the time and thought that goes into a press release—let it live up to its full potential by thinking through the timing it crosses the wire.