The Internet has quickly become the default launch point for many
media pitch campaigns. Business owners have quickly grasped the ease
at which they can blast their news out through online newsletters,
email campaigns and online wire services. Essentially the Internet
has made getting your name in the media seem a whole lot easier. BUT
just because your news release happens to appear on a website
somewhere, does that mean it's actually being read?
A new survey has found that news consumption, our daily helpings of
local, national and international news, still comes predominantly
from the daily newspaper. Yes, despite the obvious increase in
Internet use, most of us still look to the daily printed tabloids and
broadsheets for our news fixes. 52 percent of us say the newspaper is
still number one and something that we are not going to part with
easily, despite the prognostications of many a digital futurist.
So just what does this mean if you are in business and trying to
generate some publicity for your company - start with the newspaper
first. Or that the very least when you are developing your priority
list make sure the local newspaper is at the top of your hit list and
that you write a version of your news release specifically for the
traditional print press.
It appears to come down to perception - when we see our company name
appear on the newswire, or on a website we are artificially comforted
in the belief that we have achieved some tangible results from our
news campaign. Our local customers may tell us otherwise,
specifically due to the fact that given their news reading habits
they probably missed our news announcement, even though it appeared
on www.lookhereformynews.com.
While newspapers still appear to be the logical first choice for news
coverage, the survey did find that the Internet has passed television
in the minds of business owners looking to get their news stories
covered. There could be several reasons for this including the fact
that most of us find it increasingly difficult to find time to sit in
front of our television sets for the evening news and the
introduction of instant news alerts and online news centers which are
making the currency of television news less attractive.
The newspaper appears to have remained king purely due to its
physical nature - it slams into our door in the morning, greets us at
the bus stop, fills our bird cages and reminds us we are part of a
bigger world as we carry out the recycling.
About the Author
Barry Forward is the Executive Vice-President of Reputations Inc and
has an extensive background in public relations. He has also launched
several companies, including high tech ventures and products. You can
read more PR related articles like this one at
http://www.prmadeeasy.com/freeforall/freeINK.asp.