The Ultimate Guide to Press Release Distribution
… But that doesn’t mean you’re ready to distribute your press release.
You’ll need to think about the day (and time) you hit the “send” button because certain days and times have better success rates than others.
For instance, 61% of journalists[18] prefer to receive press releases in the morning. That’s almost two thirds, so it’s probably worth getting your pitch out early to have the best chance of success.
However, remember that journalists have an average of 300 emails waiting for them in the morning[19]. It might be best to wait an hour or so, and send your release mid-morning for a better chance of your pitch standing out in their inbox.
Additionally, it’s important to consider the day of the week. While modern-day businesses are often active seven days a week, there’s still a traditional lull in pick-up rates when it comes to press release distribution.
So, consider the day you send your release — it might land more coverage if you pitch it midweek, as opposed to sending first thing Monday morning.
According to an analysis of over 100,000 press releases by Ragan[20], Tuesdays and Wednesdays are the best days to distribute your story. And a further study by Prowly recommends sending on a Thursday, with data suggesting over 26% of press release emails are opened by journalists on this day:
Both studies indicate that Mondays and Fridays are not as effective, and you should definitely avoid sending your story over the weekend.
However, there’s no one-size-fits-all rule — which is why you should test a few different days and times and see what works best for your industry.
Are you pitching a time-sensitive press release?
You can still send it ahead of time. Just make sure you embargo the information in your release until it’s ready to become public knowledge. You can do this by adding “Embargoed; not to be released before DATE” to the top of your distribution email.
5. Follow-up on your release.
An age-old question: Should you follow up on your press release?