In a nutshell, a readMedia customer signs up for a low subscription price (more in a moment), selects the geographic region they are targeting, calls out the media offered from a readMedia-curated database, adds any they see fit to add, enters the press release in the system and the distribution is done. Releases are emailed (or faxed based on the media outlet’s preference … yes, some people apparently still fax) posted to the online news aggregation services and placed in an online newsroom. From there, media can embed the releases using an iFrame mechanism (see below for an example) and grab multimedia or other assets the customer makes available.

The client can then grab a widget of their own release headlines to use on their Facebook page, blog or website, embed the releases wherever they like or share across several social networks. The service is not yet set up to, nor meant to, replace your own website or even media page/news room, but gives you the tools to dress your website up with a newsroom feed and share mechanisms.

Now, I’m sure a few of you who are all social media’d up are saying, “Well, isn’t that what PitchEngine is?” No. PitchEngine doesn’t have a media database attached to it. (Although I caught wind they were announcing one today.) As of Friday on PitchEngine, you build a social media press release. Driving people to it is up to you (though they certainly have a community of readers and social tools baked in as well.) And even if PitchEngine adds a media database back-end to their offering, it won’t likely be built to be hyper-local in focus.

readMedia’s front page sells the service as good for State Agencies, Local Governments or Schools. But it’s as appropriate for local or regional businesses as it is for these type organizations. Still, as a former college public relations director, I can see how this can be mighty useful. (And that’s without the hometown press release program they have … more in a moment.)

I logged in to test the service and picked the Lexington, Ky. metro area, my former primary market when PR director at Georgetown College many moons ago. Turns out to use the readMedia service for that market, I only have to pay $29.00 per month for up to 50 contacts. The maximum fee would be $49.00 per month for 250 contacts and five user accounts. The per DMA, volume pricing automatically makes a cool, Web 2.0 PR service affordable for smaller market businesses.

When I reviewed the media list, I was impressed. They had all the main players, many hometown weeklies in outlying towns like Nicholasville and Winchester and even several local radio stations with news departments. For a company that doesn’t use a large media database company but rather builds and curates the lists themselves (with the help of client feedback, of course) readMedia impressed me.

I got hold of a client’s newsroom as well. The Nathan Littauer Hostpital “news room” is really just a list of release headlines. They have more graphically-driven information positioned on their website and use readMedia as a media utility. All readMedia “news rooms” are like this now, but they tell me a more designed, customizable presentation is on the way soon. Littauer’s most recent news, a story of a citation as being a progressive facility for energy conservation from Thursday, came up (as of Friday) as the top Google News result for “hospital energy conservation,” so the news postings are working well.

The embed-offering of the release is even strong because it’s branded, but in subtle fashion, making it easy to use on any website or blog with little awkwardness in design.

And since everything is digitally-driven, they deliver a nice analytics report that tells you how many folks view, embed and share  your news, plus where your stats rank against other releases in their system, etc.

So for local-based media relations efforts, readMedia is the real deal. Smart, easy to use, reliable database service that can be customized to your liking as well, all with smart Web 2.0 tools.

And then I looked at their offering for schools. Sure, this type of approach isn’t going to resonate with everyone, but not only are there tens of thousands of education public relations professionals in the U.S. alone, but in certain instances, this could apply beyond education.

readMedia’s pricing for schools is based on your student enrollment and geared toward hometown releases, a program that allows colleges to send press releases to the local newspapers of all their students (for Dean’s List announcements, etc.) regardless of geographic centricity to the institution. A college with a class size of 2,500 can run a hometown release program using readMedia for just $39.00 per month. I would have paid 10 times that amount when I was having to send 800 hometown press releases out each semester at Georgetown.

As you can tell, I really dig readMedia and what they offer. For the price and the service, I don’t know of anyone offering something comparable. The service’s focus on local press release distribution sets them apart. As one readMedia client told Amy Mengel, readMedia’s new inbound marketing director, using the big media database companies for local press release services is like using a 747 to cross the street. readMedia is a targeted service for people who need it. And well worth checking out.

Now, it would be remiss of me to not disclaim the hell out of this review. Press releases are a piece of your public relations arsenal. They should never be sent to media members who do not ask for them, in my opinion. Releases are tools for more information after the reporter has said, “Yes, I’m interested.” Blasting releases to your list should only happen when you have culled that list to ensure the media members on it write about the topic your release covers, their audience is potentially interested in the subject and they know and approve of you putting them on a distribution list.

(I’ll pause while some PR people curse me a few times.)

A press release is not a pitching mechanism. Your personal outreach to the media outlet is. Pitch first. Release if requested. Follow that framework and you’ll see better results.

And if you’re focused on local press release distribution, readMedia can help you get them, too.

The post readMedia Makes Local Press Release Delivery Easy appeared first on Social Media Explorer.

I met up with Maggie and Collin at South by Southwest (SXSW) last week to chat about Digital Snippets, SMPRs, the IABC and more.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xBiurDQBNho[/youtube]

The standardization effort from the IABC group is worth watching, but a little disconcerting to me. Standardization implies conformity and the output of each effort in the arena of social media press releases, and Digital Snippets for that matter, varies depending upon the audience, intent, client and more. My hope is that the group will not put the SMPR in a box and say, “If it doesn’t fit in there, it’s not right.” Judging by the panel working on the effort, led by friends and leaders in this effort Brian Solis, Chris Heuer and Todd Defren, among others, it’s in good hands.

More information about the social media press release can be found here, here and here. The IABC’s group work will be chronicled here. For more on Digital Snippets, visit them at digitalsnippets.com or learn about the Social Media Group and their work at SocialMediaGroup.ca.

[tags]Digital Snippets, social media press release, social media release, smpr, IABC, Maggie Fox, Collin Douma, Jason Falls, SME-TV[/tags]

The post Discussing Digital Snippets, Social Media Release appeared first on Social Media Explorer.

Thanks to Maggie’s work, the conversation about social media releases (and social media newsrooms) has rekindled. Chris Heuer, one of the originators of the social media outreach idea, posted an interesting video Utterz (very cool new feature, by the way) this week to remind those new to the conversation from where we’ve come. In it, he brought to light the consideration of renaming, or perhaps re-framing, the social media release.

Here’s a suggestion and the thinking behind it for consideration. These thoughts all converged this week as Heuer, Brian Solis, Geoff Livingston, Jeremy Pepper and Fox, among others, all reacted to my “not enough context” reaction to Digital Snippets. (Is Defren on vacation? Just asking … and kidding.) While I still hold the opinion that Ford’s Digital Snippets effort is a bit lacking in context, the reiteration of the conversation and reminders of the framework in which each effort resides has dusted off my thinking lobe. (Yes, I’m keenly aware client’s strategy and wishes precede our passionate principles, wholesome as they are.)

As Solis noted in his comments to my Digital Snippets reaction post, the term “social” tacked on to the “media release” or “press release,” in Brian’s words, “… implies conversation … whether hosted internally or externally.” By definition, he is certainly right. However, by perception, the term “social media” is often interpreted as “bloggers.” Sure, that accurately describes the general intended audience, but that excludes an all-too-important group that, in my opinion, is as apt to use and find value in the social media release: traditional media.

I’ve offered internally and to clients my belief that the elements of the social media release, even one without my community-principled context and reference, comprise all of the self-serve resources public and media relations professionals would ever be called upon to provide the “old” media. Because of this, I believe what we call the social media release (and social media newsroom) will become the method of choice for all media, new and old, moving forward. Sure, the need and usefulness of the traditional narrative approach will remain, but perhaps we add an editorial section to the social media release and incorporate it.

So where does this thinking lead us in terms of labeling (dare I say “branding”) what this thing is becoming? As Heuer asked, “What should we call this?”

We’re all producers of media. We all operate in the digital world. (What “old” media outlet doesn’t?) The dissemination of information, whether it is done via social media or the trusty (rusty) old newspaper or newscast, sparks conversation when compelling. So instead of putting a wall up to separate a social media release from a traditional press release, let’s define it as it is: a Digital Media Resource.

Digital – Technology-based, but not limited to technology or the Internet alone.

Media – Any person or entity that produces content.

Resource – A place to find information.

Thus, the DMR is a place for media producers utilizing technology to find information.

Does this cast too wide a net? Is my all-inclusive approach flawed? Are there synonym Nazis out there who will pick this apart?

There are answers to all those questions. Please offer yours here as we continue to define social media releases and social media newsrooms in the hopes of best serving us, our businesses, our clients and (perhaps most importantly) our on- and off-line communities.

Other conversations you’ll find interesting:

1. Social Media Release Criticism: Nine Points To Consider
2. On Digital Snippets
3. PR People Please Take This Quiz Before Sending Another Pitch Or Press Release
4. If I Could Change One Thing About The Social Media Press Release
5. 5 Social Media Trends That Will Impact PR

IMAGE: From Lucinda’s Sanchez Adobe.

[tags]socialmediarelease, socialmedianewsroom, social media release, social media newsroom, social media, public relations, PR, journalism, media[/tags]

The post Rebranding The Social Media Release appeared first on Social Media Explorer.

See their application of it with Ford Motor Company here.

The new version is being talked about by industry thought leaders like Geoff Livingston and Paul Gillin, among others, but no one seems to notice the void in what I’ve always considered one of the essential elements of the SMR: embracing context.

Yes, the template includes all the buzz words: del.icio.us, Technorati and “third party” but look closer and you see the references are all to outbound traffic. The template basically says you can share information about this product or company (Digital Snippits was developed in Social Media Group’s work with Ford Motor Company) but we don’t really want to make it easy for you to see an independent third party’s review of it.

Sure, there’s a “Community” at the bottom with links to “third party” websites, but embracing the context of your product or service within the community is a key element to building credibility there.

Todd And’s presentation on Defren’s original template clearly circles the purpose-driven del.icio.us bookmarks (third party, but brand selected), Technorati tags and Links To Relevant Coverage as methods of embracing context. The Digital Snippets template seemingly leaves those out.

While I certainly think the Digital Snippets approach is something to be applauded and will certainly be more digestable for the social media-nervous executives, in my opinion, it isn’t a step forward in the evolution of the social media release.

Other Links You’ll Find Interesting:

1. If I Could Change One Thing About The Social Media Release
2. The Unbearable Idiocy Of Brands: Ford Runs Over Its Fansumers
3. Not New, Not Even Improved (not about Digital Snippets, but related)
4. Elements Of The Social Media Release
5. Social Media Release Useless?

[tags]socialmediarelease, social media release, Digital Snippets, Ford, Ford Motor Company, Social Media Group, social media[/tags]

The post New Version Of Social Media Release Lacks Essentials appeared first on Social Media Explorer.

You can’t put the cart before the horse.

Anyone wise to the methodology of social media outreach will tell you it’s about the dialog and relationship. But what happens when Monday morning brings you a new client who needs outreach done immediately to a market segment you haven’t yet had the opportunity to dialog with?

We must touch the influencers with our client’s information, but at the risk of being perceived as disingenuous PR hacks trying to schlep corporatespeak and propaganda. Sure, a hat-in-hand approach can be effective, but the majority of the bloggers I will approach this week will likely discard what I send because they don’t know me.

Is a well-thought social media release and perhaps a comment or two on the person’s blog ahead of time enough to at least put the reason for your email in front of them for consideration? I don’t know, but am about to find out.

Are there other methods of outreach, keeping in mind the immediacy of the issue and the lack of front-end relationship building, you have found effective?

Related Stories You Might Find Interesting

1. Blogger and Social Media Outreach Code For Government by Colin McKay
2. How PR Professionals Can Avoid Bad Blogger Outreach in 3 Easy Steps by Scott Monty
3. Blogger Relations: Good Intentions, Bad Execution, Lessons Learned by Todd Defren
4. Creating a Blogger Outreach Code of Ethics — Take 1 by Kaitlyn Wilkins
5. Are Skateboarders More Savvy Than Social Media Experts by Colin McKay

IMAGE: From sparktography on Flickr.

The post Social Media Release Crux: When Time Prohibits Proper Approach appeared first on Social Media Explorer.