20Jul 2026

The importance of press releases for business growth

Close-up of desk with press release drafts and laptop

Why press releases still matter for businesses today

Press releases remain a credible and cost-effective tool in business communication strategy. They give your organisation an official, factual voice and help earn trust from the journalists who shape public perception.

Here is what press releases actually do for your business:

Build credibility and trust with journalists, clients, and stakeholders by providing verified, factual information in a structured format
Serve as an official record of organisational news, giving media outlets accurate content they can publish with confidence
Maintain brand visibility through consistent messaging across multiple channels
Support strategic communication by aligning announcements with broader business objectives and PR campaigns
Boost search visibility through keyword-optimised content, backlinks, and improved domain authority over time
Control the narrative during a crisis by issuing a clear, accountable statement before misinformation takes hold

The press release has been the cornerstone of media relations for over a century, and its function has not diminished. What has changed is the distribution landscape and the expectations journalists bring to their inboxes.

Key benefits of press releases for brand awareness and media relations

Consistent press release distribution builds brand authority and cumulative credibility over time. Each release adds to a searchable, permanent record of your business that prospects discover when they research your company name. That is a fundamentally different kind of visibility from a paid advertisement, which disappears the moment the budget runs out.

The benefits span several dimensions:

Brand awareness through consistent messaging: Every release reinforces your positioning across media outlets, ensuring your story reaches audiences without distortion
Media relationship building: Reliable, timely press releases make journalists’ jobs easier, and over time they come to recognise your organisation as a dependable source of newsworthy content
SEO and backlink value: Published releases generate backlinks from news sites and aggregators, strengthening your domain authority and helping your wider content rank for competitive keywords
Third-party validation: Earned media coverage carries far more weight with consumers than paid advertising, because it signals that an independent editorial source found your story worth sharing
Integrated marketing support: Press releases provide verified content that can be repurposed into blog posts, social media copy, and media pitches, keeping your message consistent across every channel
Measurable outcomes: By tracking media coverage, website visits, and social shares, you can assess the real impact of press releases on your communication objectives and refine future campaigns accordingly

Pro Tip: Four strategically timed, well-crafted releases per year consistently outperform twelve rushed, weakly newsworthy ones. Prioritise quality and timing over volume.

Corporate reputation now drives £841 billion in UK market value, with reputation accounting for 25% of total market capitalisation in the FTSE 350. Press releases are one of the primary tools that shape that reputation.

Infographic highlighting key press release statistics

What makes a press release genuinely effective?

The difference between a release that lands coverage and one that gets deleted within seconds comes down to a handful of qualities. Journalists receive dozens of releases daily. Most are poorly written or irrelevant. A well-crafted release stands out immediately.

The qualities that separate the two:

Answers the five Ws immediately: Who, What, When, Where, and Why must appear in the opening paragraph. If the news is not in the first paragraph, most journalists will not reach the second
Clear, concise, and factual writing: Aim for 400–600 words. Longer reads like a feature article, not a news document
A compelling, jargon-free headline: Under 12 words, written in the present tense, communicating the impact rather than describing what your organisation did
Multimedia elements: Images, infographics, and short videos significantly improve engagement and shareability, and in 2026 journalists expect visual assets as standard
Data-led narratives: Backing claims with statistics, research findings, or proprietary data dramatically increases coverage potential. Journalists rank the inclusion of compelling data as the most important factor after relevance when deciding whether to cover a story
SEO optimisation: Use a target keyword naturally in the headline and first paragraph, add image alt tags, and link internally to relevant pages on your website
Targeted distribution: Sending to a small number of relevant journalists consistently delivers better results than mass distribution to an untargeted list
Professional, non-promotional tone: A press release is a news document, not an advertisement. Strip out superlatives, internal language, and anything that reads like marketing copy

Are press releases still relevant in the UK media landscape?

The short answer is yes, and the data makes a compelling case. 72% of journalists named the press release as their preferred format for receiving PR content in 2025, and 50% used press release content with minimal edits before publication. That is not a format in decline.

89% of journalists consider official press releases their most trusted source of organisational news. That figure alone explains why businesses that invest in consistent, quality releases build stronger media relationships than those relying solely on social media or direct pitches.

Digital distribution has extended the reach of press releases well beyond traditional media. A release published on your own website and distributed via a newswire gets indexed by Google, generates backlinks from aggregators, and can surface in Google News for months or years after publication. Unlike a paid advertisement, that value compounds rather than expires.

Press releases also serve a specific function that no other format replicates: narrative control during a crisis. When misinformation spreads quickly, an official statement gives journalists verified facts to work with and demonstrates that your organisation is acting responsibly. That combination of speed and accountability is what supports reputation management when it matters most.

The strategic goal of a press release is not simply to generate coverage. It is to support communication objectives that shift stakeholder awareness, attitudes, and ultimately behaviour. Coverage is an output; changed perception is the outcome.

Real-world examples that show what press releases can achieve

The most instructive examples are not from global corporations with unlimited PR budgets. They come from businesses that used well-targeted, data-led releases to achieve results that far exceeded their investment.

The Later Life Happiness Index

SEO agency SEOMG created a press release for the independent care provider Agincare, built around a proprietary index called The Later Life Happiness Index. The index combined five factors influencing ageing well, drawn from Office for National Statistics and NOMIS datasets, into a single comparable score for every local authority in England. The agency then produced a suite of visual assets to support both national and local media coverage.

Overhead view of media monitoring tools and printed metrics

The result was widespread pickup across national, regional, and sector-specific media. The PR director described it plainly: “The PR wasn’t used to amplify a campaign, it WAS the campaign.” The release worked because it created genuine public value, used rigorous methodology, and gave journalists ready-made visual content.

Amadeus and the future of air travel

Communications consultancy Fire on the Hill produced a B2B press release for travel technology company Amadeus, covering a report on the transformation of air travel, including the eventual end of boarding passes and check-in. The release generated more than a thousand pieces of coverage, including over 100 national and broadcast hits. The storytelling focused on what the changes meant for everyday travellers rather than the underlying technology, which is precisely what earned it mainstream attention.

An Edinburgh retailer’s 300% traffic spike

An independent Edinburgh home goods retailer announced their expansion to online sales through a press release distributed to local media and lifestyle outlets. Regional newspapers covered the story, creating backlinks to their e-commerce site. Website traffic increased 300% in the following week, with 40% of visitors arriving through press release links or subsequent coverage.

What these examples share is not a large budget or a dramatic announcement. Each one identified a genuine angle, packaged it with supporting data or visual assets, and targeted the right outlets. That is the formula that works.

Key takeaways

Press releases remain one of the most credible and cost-effective tools for building brand authority, earning media coverage, and supporting long-term SEO value in the UK.

Point	Details
Journalist trust is high	72% of journalists named press releases as their preferred PR content format recently, with 50% using them with minimal edits.
Credibility drives results	89% of journalists consider official press releases their most trusted source of organisational news.
SEO value compounds over time	Published releases generate backlinks and improve domain authority, unlike paid ads that stop working when funding stops.
Quality beats volume	Four well-crafted, strategically timed releases per year outperform twelve rushed, weakly newsworthy ones.
Reputation has measurable value	Corporate reputation accounts for a notable share of total market capitalisation in the FTSE 350, reflecting substantial value in UK market capitalisation.

Ready to build your brand’s authority?

A well-crafted press release is only as effective as the digital presence it points to. If your website does not reflect the credibility your PR is building, you are leaving value on the table. Brainiacmedia works with businesses across the UK to create digital marketing strategies and web development solutions that turn media attention into measurable business growth. Get in touch to find out how we can help you build the online presence your brand deserves.