Legacy News Distribution Services vs. News Direct
Communicators are seeking out more control over how their most important news is being shared in a fast-moving media cycle. In times of crisis, minutes are critical and some traditional legacy wire services that require confirmation calls simply do not meet expectations. News Direct is a state-of-the-art news and content distribution service specifically designed to meet the demands of modern media outreach.
Have you ever wanted to have more autonomy over sending out your press release? Well, now you can and as a seasoned marketing professional, I’d like to share my personal experience with using legacy newswires v. News Direct. But first, a bit of history.
From 1860 until 1910, Britain enjoyed a “golden age” of newspaper publication with technical advances in printing and communication. Around this time, Paul Julius Reuter founded the Reuters News Agency.
Fast forward to 1994, as everything went online, newswire services began syndicating press releases more widely than ever before and across hundreds of sites simultaneously.
So, when I ask myself, what is most important to my company to get the timely news out to the masses, three things come to mind. Efficient Workflow, Micro Target who my release is going to and of course, cost.
A typical release that I have sent in the past went a little something like this.
- I had an approved word document which I ensured was the final version, signed into my account
- Uploaded the release
- Uploaded my company's logo
- Added all the parameters like distribution region, trade publications and,
- Time when the release would be distributed.
- I then generally had to wait about four hours before I got a call (especially if it was a release I was working on late into the night) and sometimes would not get a call or had to call the legacy newswire service to confirm the cost and distribution regions.
- Once that call happened, I crossed my fingers and hoped everything submitted and confirmed was 100% correct.
Let's pause and take that in.
Now, let me share my experience with using News Direct.
- To start, I started my release within the News Direct portal and had key stakeholders track every change and comment within the Content Studio.
- Once it was approved, I moved on to enter the parameters as I once did with a legacy wire service, added tags to boost its presence,
- Schedule when I want it to go out and see how much is left in my account for future sends.
Oh, and I forgot to mention, I have full autonomy to cancel or amend my release any time before it goes live, without waiting on the phone with customer service to do so.
What was even better was that I know exactly how much I am spending since it is flat cost for Domestic releases where the primary content—whether it's a news release or standalone multimedia is $500 followed by an additional asset for $250.
The ability to have more control over news in fast moving media cycle is important now more than ever and having tried nearly every legacy newswire service, I can confidently say that News Direct is a game changer and makes a big difference in how you share your news externally and precisely the reason why Investis Digital has chosen them as our preferred partner.
To learn more about News Direct, please visit https://newsdirect.com.