Ad vs. press release
For one publication I work with, I compile industry news as part of my assignment. I rely on professionals to send information about promotions, educational events and anything else they want their potential customers to know about. Some of these folks do their own media work and others hire agencies to do the work for them.
In the cases of the do-it-yourself-ers, I get a lot of people who are comfortable communicating their news and who understand how and why to write a press release. I'm also contacted by some people who don't understand the difference between an ad and a press release. After getting one e-mail that began, "Please place an ad that says...," I realized there are a lot of professionals who don't know the difference between an ad and a press release.
In short:
An advertisement is media space that you purchase. In magazines, ad space is generally measured by pages and fractions of pages. In newspapers, it's usually done by the column inches that your ad will occupy. In television and radio, it's length of your commercial time. And on websites, there are endless ways to purchase advertising. Banner ads—often the first thought of for website advertising—are measured by size and placement.
Press releases, on the other hand, are not paid media coverage—or they should not be run only on a paid basis in a legitimate publication, but that's the subject of another post all together. A press release is a short news announcement from your company. Press releases are how I gather my information for the industry news section I mentioned in the beginning. Several examples of press releases are on this blog and on my website: April 19: Lisa is speaking at the Clinton County FEST, Coming Attraction... and Nadia Heffner Chosen as Trainer for Midwest Mustang Challenge.
When the e-mail came in that asked to place an ad, I knew what that person wanted was a mention in the industry news section, not a paid advertisement. Still, I wondered if a check in my name would follow. Needless to say, I haven't received one yet.
In the cases of the do-it-yourself-ers, I get a lot of people who are comfortable communicating their news and who understand how and why to write a press release. I'm also contacted by some people who don't understand the difference between an ad and a press release. After getting one e-mail that began, "Please place an ad that says...," I realized there are a lot of professionals who don't know the difference between an ad and a press release.
In short:
An advertisement is media space that you purchase. In magazines, ad space is generally measured by pages and fractions of pages. In newspapers, it's usually done by the column inches that your ad will occupy. In television and radio, it's length of your commercial time. And on websites, there are endless ways to purchase advertising. Banner ads—often the first thought of for website advertising—are measured by size and placement.
Press releases, on the other hand, are not paid media coverage—or they should not be run only on a paid basis in a legitimate publication, but that's the subject of another post all together. A press release is a short news announcement from your company. Press releases are how I gather my information for the industry news section I mentioned in the beginning. Several examples of press releases are on this blog and on my website: April 19: Lisa is speaking at the Clinton County FEST, Coming Attraction... and Nadia Heffner Chosen as Trainer for Midwest Mustang Challenge.
When the e-mail came in that asked to place an ad, I knew what that person wanted was a mention in the industry news section, not a paid advertisement. Still, I wondered if a check in my name would follow. Needless to say, I haven't received one yet.
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