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* The press release distribution service should be able to target email press releases to those media outlets covering your preferred market.

Newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations, and websites all depend upon a steady stream of press releases in order to provide content to their readers, listeners, and viewers. They want to hear about new products, services, and businesses, and they prefer to obtain the releases electronically. When you select a press release distribution service that has a proven track record, you can be assured that the media will turn to the press releases distributed by that service, knowing they are trustworthy.

If you have a small business, chances are that you're struggling to establish or maintain your market niche. To grow your business to the next level, you need to get the word out to your target audience. You probably don't have the budget to place prominent print advertising, much less television and radio advertising. As it turns out, the best advertising - and the most effective advertising - is free advertising, in the form of media interest generated from a press release. But, even if you write a press release, how do you master the art of press release distribution?

1. Targeted press release distribution is one of the most powerful forms of marketing and advertising available. The value of the exposure your product or business will receive as a result of a television segment, a newspaper or magazine article is exponentially more than you'd receive as a result of paid advertising. That's because, although the media doesn't explicitly endorse products and businesses, it has an objectivity that provides consumers with a perception of credibility and legitimacy. In other words, consumers know that the media isn't being paid to cover your product or business, so they trust that writers and producers will provide them with unbiased information. The bottom line is that, if you get press attention, your business is bound to grow.
2. The trick is getting the word out to the media. In days past, this would involve countless of hours of research and lots of postage stamps, then crossing your fingers and playing the waiting game. But in this day of sophisticated Internet marketing, press release distribution can be accomplished instantaneously through press release services. When selecting a press release distribution service, follow these guidelines:

* The press release distribution service should be able to provide online distribution to thousands of media outlets. * The press release distribution service should be able to provide you with press release writing services for an additional fee.

* The press release distribution service should be able to provide you with fax distribution and audio distribution, in addition to online print distribution.

* The press release distribution service should have a proven track record, with clients who have been featured in major daily newspapers, major consumer or trade magazines, major Internet portals, and on television shows and radio stations.