How to Get Free Advertising

Most companies use advertising campaigns to promote or sell their new products. There are various avenues for advertising, such as newspaper ads, billboards and direct mail postcards, but these avenues can be quite costly, especially if the company has a small or nonexistent advertising budget. Rather than spend money on an expensive ad campaign, create a product launch press release to get free advertising.

Things You'll Need

• Paper
• Word processing software

Instructions

1. Write an outline on paper about the new product that is going to be launched.

2. Type an attention-grabbing headline with a specific angle on a computer word processing software program. Include a subheading, which contains two sentences to further describe the heading.

3. Type the first paragraph. Include the city and state and date in the first sentence. For example, Orlando, FL, August 18, 2011. The rest of the paragraph should quickly describe the who, what, where, when, why and how about the new product launch.

4. Type the second and third paragraphs. Include details about the new product, such as the benefits, how it works and what its purpose. Use direct quotes from customers and facts from published studies, if relevant.

5. Type the fourth paragraph explaining where the company is located, where the product will be sold, a telephone number and website address. Enter two spaces and type ### to signify the end of the product launch press release. Enter two spaces and type in contact information, such as the name of the company, the company's address, telephone number, email address and website address.

6. Create a media contact list to send the press release to by researching local and national editors from newspapers, magazines, trade publications and popular blogs. For example, if the new product is a garden hose, the list should include editors from the home and business sections of the newspaper and editors from gardening, home improvement, business and marketing magazines, trade publications and blogs.

7. Distribute the product launch press release by email, fax or regular mail to the appropriate editor and wait for a response. Contact the editor in two weeks if a response is not given. Avoid sending the press release twice to the same editor without further contact.

Tips & Warnings

• Keep records of who you talked to and when. If you don't get results from these sources, contact them again. Persistence usually pays off.

References

• "Home Business Magazine"; 10 Ways to Get Free Advertising for Your Home Business; Kris Aoki; July 2010
• "Entrepreneur"; 9 Free Advertising Solutions; Suzanne Driscoll; July 2009
• Polk County University of Wisconsin Cooperative Extension: How to Write a Press Release
• PR.com; Grayson Co. Wickless Candles Brings Healing Fragrances of the Garden into the Home; 2006