Press Coverage and PR Basics for Real Estate

This blog post is for real estate professionals who are interested in getting their name published in the local newspapers and other online news sites. As ActiveRain publishes infographics and other industry statistics, we encourage you to reach out as the local export to reporters in your area!

Getting press coverage is a great way to generate leads for your business, but it also builds up your Google Author Authority which means that your blogs and other content will be given preference in the search engines.

If you haven't already done so, we encourage you to join the ActiveRain Media Team so we can send you press release templates and other tools to simplify this process.

 

Rules of the Road for a Press Release
Journalists get bombarded with hundreds of press releases every week, so it is important to understand what they are looking for.

1. Is your story newsworthy? Most of the stories journalists receive are promotional garbage! As you customize your press release, try to think about why this would be interesting to somebody outside of the real estate industry.
2. Make it local and personal.  They don’t want a story from ActiveRain, they want the inside scoop from a local professional (YOU!) in the industry.
3. Make writing the story as simple as possible for the journalist. In theory, they could copy and paste your press release directly into their newspaper.
4. Customize each email you send out with the journalist’s name. “Dear Sir or Madam” can be an instant killer.
5. If a reporter contacts you, reply immediately. Their business is deadline driven, if you are seen as unavailable they might move on the next story.

 

Maintain a List of Press Contacts

As you develop your media and PR strategy, make sure you maintain a list of your local press contacts. You will want to create a document where you store each reporters:

• Name
• Publication
• Email address
• Website
• Twitter handle
• Notes

You are building a relationship with your local reporters. It takes time, but it will get easier as you send them great content and they begin to trust you.

A great way to give back to reporters and build the relationship is by engaging with them on Twitter.  Help to promote the articles they write by retweeting them to your followers and  mentioning that reporter by name.  If your name is familiar to them the trust factor goes up.

 

Who to Approach
There are a number of local news sources that you can reach out to as ActiveRain releases data on the real estate industry.  In the coming pages you will find information on how to start developing your own press contacts through:

• Small Local Newspapers
• Local Online News Sources
• Regional Newspapers

 
Connecting with Small Local Newspapers

Examples
Woodinville Weekly, Kirkland Reporter, Bothell Reporter
Tip: Google “CITYNAME Newspaper” for a quick list of local resources

Who to Contact
The staffs at some of these smaller newspapers are quite small, and some of the articles aren’t even attributed to a specific reporter.  With good content, your odds of getting printed in these small papers are actually pretty good.  Here are two ways to find a contact:

• Find the something similar to a “Contact Us” page on the site.  You may have to send the press release to a generic email address like editor@newspaper.com.
• Look for a local reporter by searching the term “Real Estate” on the newspaper website. Click the reporters name to see if it leads to their contact information.

Sample Introduction Email
Dear Heather, (or “Dear Editor” if you don’t have a name)
I work as a real estate agent here in CITY and would love to partner with you on a story covering the “Biggest Mistakes Home Sellers Make.”  I am part of a professional real estate network that just released survey data and an Infographic on this topic.

These tips are really important for people who are preparing to sell their home or have a listing that has been stuck on the market for awhile.

Attached you will find:

• A press release that summarizes the findings and includes my local angle on the story
• An Infographic highlighting the top six home seller mistakes

Please feel free call me with any questions you have.

Best regards,
Your Name
Company
Phone
Email

 
Connecting with Online News Sources

Examples
Patch.com, Television Stations, Radio Stations
Tip: Google “CITYNAME News” for a list of local news sites

Who to Contact
When it comes to local online news websites, it can be tough to find a real person on many of these sites, so utilize the “Contact” page on their websites as a way to submit your story.  If you get a response from a reporter, be sure to save their name and contact information so you have it on your next go around!

Sample Introduction Email
Dear Editor, (or “Dear [Name]” if you have one)

I work as a real estate agent here in CITY and would love to partner with you on a story covering the “Biggest Mistakes Home Sellers Make.”  I am part of a professional real estate network that just released survey data and an Infographic on this topic.

These tips are really important for people who are preparing to sell their home or have a listing that has been stuck on the market for awhile.

Attached you will find:
•    A press release that summarizes the findings and includes my local angle on the story
•    An Infographic highlighting the top six home seller mistakes

Please feel free call me with any questions you have.

Best regards,
Name
Company
Phone
Email

 

Connecting with Regional Newspapers

Examples
Seattle Times, Denver Post, Sacramento Bee

Who to Contact
Here are a couple of suggestions to find a local news contact.  It is always better to submit to a specific reporter than to a generic email address.

• Find the Real Estate section on the site and look up a couple of real estate articles.  If you click the reporters name it should link to their email address.
• Head to the newspaper website and scroll to the bottom of the page.  You are looking for a link to the “Newsroom Staff”, “News Tips”, “Editorial Staff”, or “News Team.” Aim for a reporter with “Real Estate” next to their name.

Sample Introduction Email
Dear Sanjay,

I am part of a professional real estate network that just released survey data on the, “Biggest Mistakes Home Sellers Make.”  These tips are really important for people who are preparing to sell their home or have a listing that has been stuck on the market for awhile.

Attached you will find:

• A press release that summarizes the findings and includes my local angle on the story
• An Infographic highlighting the top six home seller mistakes

Please feel free call me with any questions you have.

Best regards,
Your Name
Company
Phone
Email

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