A press release does not end when it goes live.
Distribution starts the measurement window. Did people visit your site? Did journalists mention you? Did leads come in? Did other sites link to your announcement?
The goal is not to collect a pretty report. The goal is to learn what worked so your next release performs better.
Start with traffic
Traffic is usually the first signal you can measure.
Look at your analytics for the first few days after distribution. Compare the release date and the days that follow against your normal baseline. Did direct traffic rise? Did referral traffic increase? Did people land on the page you linked to?
Do not stop at visits. Track what people did after they arrived:
- Visits to the linked landing page
- Referral traffic from news sites
- Time on page
- Form starts or completions
- Clicks to pricing, contact, demo, or order pages
Ten people who request information beat 1,000 people who bounce.
Watch for mentions
Mentions show where your story traveled.
Some mentions come from syndication. Your release appears on news sites through distribution feeds. That visibility can help with credibility and search discovery, but it is not the same as earned coverage.
Earned mentions happen when a journalist, blogger, newsletter writer, or industry site uses your release for original coverage.
Track both, but label them clearly.
Ask:
- Was this syndicated pickup or original coverage?
- Did the article add reporting or commentary?
- Did it quote someone from the company?
- Did it reach the audience you care about?
A short mention in the right trade publication can beat dozens of generic pickups.
Measure leads
This is where many companies get too vague.
If your release points readers to a landing page, registration page, download, contact form, or product page, connect distribution to action.
Use tracking links where possible. Google’s Campaign URL Builder can help you create trackable links for landing pages, signup forms, and other calls to action. Create a simple landing page if the announcement needs one. Make the next step obvious.
Good lead metrics include form submissions, phone calls, demo requests, email signups, trial starts, event registrations, orders, and quote requests.
Do not expect every lead to arrive the same day. Someone may see a mention today, search your company next week, and contact you later.
Ask new leads how they heard about you.
Track links carefully
Links are useful, but often misunderstood.
Many syndicated press release links have limited SEO value. That does not make them useless. They can still send referral traffic, help people verify your announcement, and create a public record of your news.
The links worth watching most closely are earned links from original articles, industry blogs, local news, partner sites, or resource pages.
Track which sites linked to you, whether the link sends traffic, whether the page is relevant, and whether the link appears in original coverage or syndicated text.
Do not chase links at the expense of the story. A better release earns attention first. Links follow when the story is useful.
Build a simple scorecard
You do not need a complicated dashboard. A spreadsheet is enough.
Create columns for release topic, landing page, traffic lift, syndicated pickups, original mentions, leads, referral sources, earned links, and notes.
After three or four releases, patterns emerge. For a deeper look at what those patterns may reveal, eReleases has a helpful guide on measuring online press release success. Customer stories may produce better trade coverage. Local hiring announcements may drive community mentions. Research-based releases may attract more links.
Measurement should make you smarter. Track what matters. Ignore the vanity numbers. Then use what you learn to make the next release easier for journalists to care about and customers to act on.
Mickie Kennedy founded eReleases.com in 1998 after watching PR firms charge small businesses a $20,000 minimum for a single press release. For 27 years, he’s been closing that gap — distributing 150,000+ releases via Cision PR Newswire, serving 30,000+ clients including Manscaped, Squatty Potty, and 40+ Shark Tank brands, and generating $132M+ in earned media. A sought-after podcast guest and two-time Amazon bestselling author of Beginner’s Guide to Writing Powerful Press Releases and The PR Strategy Manifesto. Mickie holds an MFA in Creative Writing from George Mason University. Based in Baltimore, MD. LinkedIn