COMPANY OVERVIEW


Michelle Damico Communications is a Chicago-based PR and marketing boutique specializing in public relations, strategic communications, influence and content marketing and social media. A team of former journalists, MDC’s goal is to generate exposure that introduces clients to their key target audiences and consistently exceeds clients’ goals and expectations.

CHALLENGE

Standing out amid a sea of experts

When launching the release of her debut book, Manage Your Financial Life: A Thoughtful, Organized Approach for Women, consultant Nancy Doyle turned to Michelle Damico Communications to get her book in the hands of personal finance and investment media, so they would write about the book and/or feature Doyle’s deep knowledge in their stories. (click to tweet)

“Standing out in the crowded field of personal finance experts is a challenging task,” said Michelle Damico, founder of Michelle Damico Communications. “I knew we would need a targeted approach in our communication strategy.”

Damico’s communication strategy focused on these three key areas:

  • Introduce Doyle as a highly credible source, an independent financial consultant with deep expertise and decades of experience
  • Attract personal finance reporters and influencers whose beats would align with Nancy’s message of helping women gain more control over their financial affairs
  • Drive web traffic and book sales by establishing Doyle as a national expert

APPROACH

Using PR best practices to create compelling content and reach audiences

Michelle Damico Communications turned to Cision and PR Newswire to send out Doyle’s launch press release announcement.

Damico used the following PR best practices to maximize the value of this tactic:

 

Use the right distribution for your needs

By sending the release to Cision Distribution by PR Newswire’s network, which includes more than 4,500 websites and nearly 3,000 media outlets, Damico made impressive improvements to online visibility. This initiative kicked off a spike in traffic to ManageYourFinancialLife.com and BarnesandNoble.com and Amazon.com. As an add-on to the newswire distribution, the press release was emailed directly to a targeted microlist of personal finance reporters. (click to tweet)

 

Add rich multimedia content to your press release

“When writing a story, members of the media want all the information they need in one centralized location,” said Damico. “That includes book information, photographs, graphics, and book review snippets so that journalists have easy access to downloadable, high-quality content.”

Damico included two photos with the press release – a headshot of the author and a photograph of the book cover. (click to tweet)

 

Optimize your press release with effective formatting

Damico used best practices to ensure the press release was effective in conveying its message. “First, it’s important to have a strong headline,” says Damico. “Be straightforward. If you’re announcing the release of a new book, include ‘New Book’ in your headline. Yes, that may be obvious, but sometimes we overlook the obvious in our rush to meet deadlines.”

Press release content should be easy-to-read. “The reader needs to be able to scan through the release and find the relevant information right away,” says Damico. “Adding images, bulleted points and writing short paragraphs helps reporters scan the release for the information quickly.”

Include relevant information that journalists might need when covering your story. Damico included helpful items with the press release: links leading to booksellers, a third-party review, some tips from the book to give the reader an idea of what to expect and downloadable multimedia assets in high resolution.

Finally, choose the right time for press release distribution. Damico decided to send the book announcement at the end of November, in conjunction with the book’s release and just in time for the holiday shopping season. “Journalists and influencers compile book recommendations and gift lists for that time of year,” says Damico. “Being included on one of these lists is a great way to bring more awareness to the book and boost sales.” (click to tweet)


RESULTS

Increase in online visibility, influencer pickup, and book sales

Since the launch of Manage Your Financial Life in late 2016, Michelle Damico Communications secured a total of nearly 20 interviews, reviews, byline articles or guest blogger requests. That’s roughly five per month.

  • Increased online visibility
    • Total online pickup: Doyle’s press release appeared on 219 global websites with a potential audience of 88.2M visitors/day
  • Lead generation to Doyle’s Web site, as Web traffic consistently increases whenever news stories appear.
  • Several personal finance reporters (including syndicated reporters from the Chicago Tribune) contacted Michelle Damico Communications directly to request book copies after the Cision release (delivered by PR Newswire) arrived in their inboxes
  • Press release pickup by influencers:
  • Securing several speaking opportunities