Are you relying on plain text press releases to communicate your news? Multimedia has the power to transform your releases, capturing audience attention at a time when this is increasingly more challenging. Traditional text-based news releases are giving way to dynamic, multi-dimensional messages enriched with multimedia.
Why are multimedia press releases so essential? How can visual assets help your organization stand out and engage both media professionals and your target audience more effectively?
Let’s explore the critical role multimedia plays in modern news releases, the myriad benefits it offers, and practical tips for incorporating multimedia elements to maximize impact.
- The Value of Multimedia in Press Releases
- Multimedia Press Releases: Dos and Don’ts
- Enhancing Engagement with Video
- Tell Your Story with Business Wire’s Interactive Media
- Partner with AP Content Services to Produce Photography and Video Content
- Don’t Forget Earnings Releases
The Value of Multimedia in Press Releases
Benefits for Organizations Issuing the Release
Multimedia content can significantly increase engagement compared to text-only press releases. Images, videos, and infographics grab audience attention more effectively, making key messages more likely to be noticed and shared. This enhanced engagement can lead to greater visibility and broader reach for your news.
Moreover, multimedia elements help clarify and reinforce the communicated message. Visual and audio components can illustrate complex ideas more clearly than words alone, aiding in better understanding and retention of the information.
Business Wire accepts several multimedia types with your press release. Whether it's a single file or a collection, whether it's a photo, GIF, video, slideshow, spreadsheet, or audio file, you have the flexibility to share the perfect asset alongside your news, enabling you to effectively communicate with your audience.
 Rust-Oleum's news release announcing Satin French Blue received 33% more views compared to a prior text-only news release. |
 HanesBrands' sustainability update featuring an infographic received 26% more release views and 10% more link clicks compared to a prior text-only release. |
Benefits for Journalists
For journalists, multimedia content makes it easier to visualize and understand a story quickly. Data from Business Wire’s Journalist Feedback Survey indicates that multimedia assets are among the most valuable features of a newswire service. High-quality images, videos, and graphics provide ready-to-use imagery that can be directly incorporated into articles, saving journalists valuable time and effort. This not only facilitates their workflow but also enhances the appeal of your story to their audience.
Journalists select multimedia for their stories based on several key factors:
- Relevance: Multimedia content must be directly relevant to the story and enhance the reader's understanding of the topic.
- Visual Appeal: High-quality, visually engaging multimedia elements like photos, videos, and infographics are more likely to be chosen.
- Credibility and Accessibility: Multimedia from reputable sources or provided by the company directly is preferred for accuracy and reliability.
- Narrative Enhancement: Content that helps to tell the story more effectively, such as charts illustrating key statistics or videos showing an event in action, is highly valued.
- Timeliness: Recent and up-to-date multimedia content that aligns with the current news cycle is more attractive.
- SEO and Social Media Compatibility: Content that is optimized for search engines and easily shareable on social media platforms is more likely to be used.
Multimedia Press Releases: Dos and Don’ts
DO
- Ensure relevance. Be sure all multimedia content is directly related to your news topic. Irrelevant visual content can confuse your audience and distract from your news.
- Prioritize high-quality media. High-quality, high-resolution images make a stronger impact and are more likely to be used by the media. Work with professionals to create well-produced videos with proper lighting and clear audio.
- Maintain consistent branding. Use your company’s color scheme, logo (sparingly), and fonts to ensure the look of your multimedia assets is aligned with your overall brand style.
- Include captions. A descriptive multimedia caption increases the likelihood of media usage. Use captions to identify products or individuals featured in your imagery.
DON’T
- Overload your multimedia. Avoid cluttered, overwhelming layouts, and keep text minimal. Your images and videos should complement your press release, not duplicate it.
- Include excessively long videos. Keep videos concise and to the point. A video that is too long can lose your viewer’s attention.
- Rely on stock photos. Avoid using generic stock photos that don’t add value or context to your news.
- Go overboard with logo placements. While some branding is expected, keep your logo to a minimum in your multimedia. Use your logo strategically and in a way that maintains balance in your visual content.
Enhancing Engagement with Video
The majority of adults in the United States get news from a smartphone, computer, or tablet. While most people seek news websites or apps, 12% prefer social media sites, where video content is extremely popular. From Pew Research:
- 83% of adults use YouTube
- 68% use Facebook and 47% use Instagram
- 33% use TikTok, increased from 21% in 2021
Video content is a powerful tool that captures attention and delivers impactful messaging. The demand for video is on the rise across various platforms. Incorporating video with your release offers a visually compelling way to communicate your news with your target audiences. Create videos to demonstrate products, share customer testimonials, or highlight key company milestones. This can lead to higher engagement rates, as people are more likely to watch and share short videos than read lengthy articles.
For journalists, a news release with video content:
- Enhances storytelling: Video content creates visual appeal for their stories.
- Saves time and effort: Ready-to-go video content provides journalists with material that can be easily incorporated into their work.
- Provides depth and credibility: Video adds authenticity and credibility to their story.
- Supports multi-platform reporting: Easily sharable across various platforms, video content is a versatile asset for journalists.
Adding videos within news stories not only enriches the content but also provides a more comprehensive news-gathering experience for both journalists and consumers.
 |
 |
Tell Your Story with Business Wire’s Interactive Media
Combine multiple content types into one interactive asset with Business Wire’s Interactive Media. While text-only releases typically capture about 30 seconds of passive attention, an Interactive Media release sees 88 seconds of active attention. Interactive Media can increase engagement by 30-50% and increase link clicks by 15%. The Design Desk at Business Wire collaborates with you to integrate hotspots and other clickable elements into an Interactive Media release. Learn more about Interactive Media and see recent examples.
Partner with AP Content Services to Produce Photography and Video Content
You want to produce high-quality multimedia content to share with your news, but you’re not sure where to get started. Enter AP Content Services.
Exclusively for Business Wire clients, enhance your multimedia press release with eye-catching, high-quality visual content produced by the expert creative team at The Associated Press. AP Content Services handles the logistics of your photo or video shoot, and video content shared with Business Wire-distributed press releases is published to AP Video Hub, a comprehensive library used by media organizations, broadcasters, digital publishers, and more.
Don’t Forget Earnings Releases
Incorporating multimedia – especially infographics – in earnings releases is increasingly popular, and for good reason. Infographics add a visually appealing element to earnings reports, which can help the investment community retain important details. As attention spans continue to shorten, assets like infographics are essential for grabbing attention and making key information memorable. Infographics cater to diverse learning styles and varying levels of financial literacy, making earnings releases more accessible and engaging for a broader audience.
Including an infographic with your earnings release not only helps drive media interest but also enhances the chances of coverage. Infographics are easily shareable on social media, providing another channel to connect with analysts, media, shareholders, and other stakeholders. This increased visibility and engagement can lead to more effective dissemination of your financial updates and a stronger connection with your audience.
 |
 |
The inclusion of multimedia in press releases and earnings updates is no longer just an option; it's a necessity. Multimedia elements such as images, videos, and infographics play a vital role in capturing audience attention and delivering impactful messages. By incorporating multimedia, you reach broader audiences and drive more meaningful interactions.
For journalists, multimedia assets streamline the storytelling process, saving time and effort while enhancing the appeal of their articles.
Whether enhancing storytelling with compelling visuals or providing valuable insights through interactive content, multimedia has become an indispensable tool for modern communication strategies.
Learn More
- Optimize Images and Videos for Your Release
- Amplify Your News with Social Media
- Tips for Writing a News Release
- Sample Press Releases
Get the latest PR, IR, Marketing, and Media tips on the Business Wire Blog. Subscribe today!
