Amplify and Augment: A Framework to Get the Most Out of Every Press Release
Press releases are an investment. You find a story, chase approvals, wrangle quotes, dig up data, find visuals, and manage version control. Emblematic of the process, the resulting file name often resembles something like: press_release_v17.3_final-final-actual_final-2d_sent.
For all the effort that goes into a release, just hitting ‘publish’ and moving on leaves too much value and potential on the table. Ideal customers may not see the press release. Some who do read it may want more context. Others may consume industry information in a different medium than an article altogether.
Instead of a deliverable that stands in isolation, a press release should be a key instrument in a broader orchestra of activities and communications touches. Together, these deliverables should get people to do two important things: 1) read the release, and 2) take action.
To maximize the likelihood that those two things occur, we have developed a simple framework that addresses each one, called Amplify and Augment.
The Framework
The Amplify and Augment framework is designed to maximize exposure of the information covered by the press release, while also giving the depth to move prospects along in the buyers’ journey.
To illustrate, refer to the 2x2 matrix below with Augment (providing depth and substance) on the Y axis and Amplify (providing reach and awareness) on the X axis.
Image courtesy of John Lerch, Tigo Energy
To hit the sweet spot — “The Growth Engine” with many views and conversions — you need to tackle both sides of the matrix. Conversely, a press release that is deficient in either axis yields sub-optimal results due to a lack of views or lack of conversions.
The next two sections in this article dive deeper into each axis, starting with Amplify.
Amplify: Generate Reach & Awareness
If nobody sees your press release, it does nothing for you.
Amplify means pushing your announcement across channels and formats so it gets picked up, shared, and read — not just by your customers, but by media, influencers, partners, even your own employees. Each additional business or person with an audience that picks it up, amplifies the message.
But not all channels want the same type of content. So, tweak the messaging to more accurately shape the value proposition each audience segment:
- Media might care about your stance on industry trends or policy shifts
- Customers might care about a new feature that solves their problem
- Influencers might care about a unique feature they can talk about that looks cool
- Partners might want an angle on how this differentiates against the competition
Then, put Amplify into action by including pieces of information tailored to each audience group within the press release. Then, be proactive with outreach to those groups with targeted messages that resonate – this can be done across channels, including:
- Social posts
- Phone calls
- Sales materials
- Visuals
- Tradeshow floor talking points
The targeted messaging increases the likelihood of someone picking up the news item and writing an article, creating a video, reposting, etc. And err on the side of more - remember what famous copywriter David Ogilvy once said:
“You aren’t advertising to a standing army; you are advertising to a moving parade.”
You spent all that time creating core IP in the press release; use it in as many ways as is reasonable.
Amplify gets the message out, but the goal isn’t for people to just read it. The goal is for them to take action. That’s where Augment comes into play.
Augment: Create Depth and Substance
Once you have attention, you need depth. Depth gives people the information people need to take action and ultimately convert from a reader to buyer. Augment means creating supporting content that appropriately aligns with different personas and buying stages to move people along in their buyers’ journey. A few examples:
- New prospects? Give them a high-level blog explaining the topic.
- Decision-makers? Show ROI and real-world data.
- Installers or users? Give them how-to guides and checklists.
- Media? Give them assets and show them unique source data.
These materials and their supporting detail can’t all fit into a press release. However, the press release can serve as an entry point to the materials through mentions, links, and visuals that allow people to double click to get more information. This way, each stakeholder can choose where they want to dive deeper on the subject. As they dive deeper, the materials should help them convert.
Getting Content: Use Your Sawdust
To visualize where this content comes from, think of your press release like a carving in a woodworking shop. The release is the final, polished sculpture you display in the window. But to create that sculpture, you generated a floor full of sawdust—the research, the raw data, the customer interviews, the how-to-guides, and the technical specs that didn't make the final cut.
Don't sweep that sawdust away. That "waste" is gold. Gather it up and repurpose it into the blogs, checklists, and white papers that provide the depth your prospects, stakeholders, influencers, etc. need to make a decision. In addition to Augmenting your press release, snippets from all this depth should be used to try out new angles and insights in the Amplify phase as well. It’s dual purpose.
Example: The Tigo Energy IPOC Launch
To show how a press release plus the Amplify and Augment strategy all come together, we’ll examine a recent example from my company, Tigo Energy. Our task was to launch a new feature for our residential solar inverters called Inverter Power Output Control (IPOC) that allows solar installers to adjust the power rating of a solar inverter with software.
The release was kicked off with a press release. Here’s what we did:
Press
- Issued a national press release with Business Wire
- Connected it to a current market trend (a growing fleet of old solar installations need repowering, and for repowering they need adjustable power rated inverters) to assist with media pickups (trade publications)
Web
- Built a dedicated landing page (webpage)
- Created a digital case study (blog)
- Created a comprehensive technical guide (support page)
Video
- Created a video case study (YouTube)
- Scheduled a live webinar that would also be available on-demand after initial broadcast (webinar)
- Cut and clipped webinar footage for use internally and externally (video shorts)
Documents
- Created a checklist note to be shared with installers (list)
- Created a “how to” for the software (walkthrough)
Outreach
- Scheduled social posts with different angles (LinkedIn, X, Facebook)
- Generated email templates for our sales team (email template)
- Included the feature in customer onboarding sequences (emails)
- Added the information to corporate email signatures (graphic)
Every element created for this campaign helped increase the surface area for discovery (Amplify) and provided richer content and context on the subject (Augment). In addition, the press release links to the assets and the assets link to the press release.
Every asset was designed to give the various personas the information they needed to understand, trust, and act.
The Bottom Line
Press releases are more than announcements. When done right, they can be the launchpad for a wave of content that drives awareness and action. Amplify to extend reach. Augment to add depth.
Do both, and you’ll stop publishing one-and-done announcements and start building real momentum and conversions.
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