iRlease: the Social Media Press Release

The social media community (bloggers, podcasters, online forum participants, Facebook users, etc.) is not a big fan of old school news/press releases in which companies issue news about themselves, usually only from the marketing and/or sales point of view, in a manner of one-way communication.

The social media community demands news/press releases to prioritize values to viewers without trying to directly promote or sell. Thus, the releases should be communicative, interactive, educational, inspiring and sharing.

That's where social media press release (SMR) comes into play. It takes into consideration their particular demands for information. In nature, it's a two-way dialogue that the readers can engage in. Some of the characteristics of SMR are --

1. Headline is optimized for search.
2. Formatting is attractive.
3. Has a precise to-the-point writing style.
4. Includes how-to information to guide and help readers.

In fact, Tod Defren from Shift Communications has introduced the first-ever template of the social media press release in 2006 and the social media press release template version 1.5 in 2008. Some other very helpful FREE resources regarding this topic include-

1. PitchEngine offers a full suite of Web 2.0 tools for PR professionals and journalists (i.e. links to your social network profiles, video and audio capabilities, etc…). Readers may opt to receive a release on any social networks they belong to.

2. Pressitt is a free service that allows you to create, publish and share your news to an online, socially connected audience.

Like any other communication approaches in the era of Web 2.0, SMR is about telling good stories, and having good conversations with the key publics to establish meaningful connections. I'd like to hear your thoughts concerning SMR. Thanks!