Last updated on February 26, 2024

Press releases published on the internet are increasing day-by-day. In fact, there are more than 25000 press release publishing sites globally.

To help you better understand the current landscape of press releases, we’ve compiled these press release statistics and trends. We update these statistics a couple of times every year, so you can trust that these statistics are up-to-date.

From the impact of different content formats, to business challenges, to the best days of the week to send a press release – this data will provide you with invaluable insights to help you optimize your PR strategy.

Here are the latest press release statistics and trends

1. 1 out of 4 businesses published more than 10 press releases every year.
2. 68% businesses report raised brand/product visibility because of publishing the press release. Although only 8% business reported that the press release attracted clients.
3. Reaching the right journalist is the biggest challenge with press releases for 42% businesses.
4. 30% of businesses reported that a journalist has indeed contacted them about a release they’ve sent over the wire several months – or even a year or more – after they’ve sent it. Press releases have a longer shelf life than we thought.
5. Press release is a powerful tool to share company’s news, according to 84% businesses.
6. 63% companies plan to include multimedia elements (photos, video, graphics etc.) when they send a press release.
7. Companies get 6x more engagement with press releases with multiple images.
8. Thursday is the best day to publish a press press.
9. “Unique,” “cutting-edge” and “exciting” are among the most cringe-inducing terms for journalists to read in a press release.
10. The median annual salary for a public relations specialist in the United States is $62,800.
11. The average pitch to a journalist is 100-200 words.
12. More than 1 in 4 journalists (28%) receive over 100 pitches per week
13. Journalists respond to just 3% of pitches.
14. 59% businesses express “getting responses from journalists” as their biggest challenge in PR, followed by 46% businesses claiming inability to measure business impact.
15. 67% of nonprofits say budget limitations is their number one PR challenge.
16. 57% brands want PR pros to tie PR activities to key business initiatives to increase their value in the organization.
17. 51% of PR pros use news monitoring and media databases daily. Conversely, 49% PR pros do not use news monitoring and media databases daily.
18. 5 out of 10 PR pros have never used project management software.
19. A third of press release professionals use email automation software weekly.
20. 5 out of 10 PR pros use social media tools weekly.
21. Less than 1 out of 5 PR pros think timeliness is important when pitching a story to a journalist.
22. Almost half PR pros say that relevancy of the story to the subject of the journalist is important when pitching a story.
23. 96% of PR professionals say individual emails are the most effective channel for pitching journalists!
24. Half the PR professionals have never pitched podcasts for their press release.
25. Only 13% PR professionals say newswire (PR Newswire, PR Web, Business Wire) is an effective channel for pitching journalists.
26. 7 out of 10 PR professionals have never pitched newsletters for their press release.
27. 90% of journalists say it’s OK to send at least 1 follow up to their pitch.
28. Half the journalists prefer followups after 3-7 days.
29. 8 out of 10 PR professionals use spreadsheets to store media lists.
30. A third of brands say that they spend the most of their PR budget on PR agencies.
31. The average PR team has 3 core key performance indicators (KPIs).
32. 73% of PR pros believe “public relations” will need to be redefined in 5 years
33. 1 out of 3 PR pros value written communications over verbal communications.
34. A third of brands do not work with outside PR agencies.
35. CEO is the most reported decision maker for PR teams.

Overall, it is clear that press releases remain an essential tool for businesses. Furthermore, the data presented in this article suggests that press releases are a powerful and effective way to get the word out about products and services, generate leads and increase brand visibility.

Sources

1. Cision’s State of the Press Release & State of the Media
2. MuckRack’s State of PR & State of Journalism