Does your web site work for the press and analysts that visit? How much time and money does your company spend promoting your web site, your business, your services, technologies and products to the world? What happens when an editor comes to your web site and tries to find information? Can they find what they need or instead, do they click away, instead going to one of your competitors' web sites to get the info they need?

Over my 25-year career as a journalist and PR consultant, I have seen many sites that just did not work for the press. Wearing my writer hat, I have experienced too many sites that made me turn away in frustration, unable to find the information that I needed.

Your Press Room site should be an important component of your PR, sales and marketing plans. Unlike your staff, your online press room is open and working for you 24/7. Editors and writers often work late at night, on the weekends and holidays when your PR and marketing teams are not available. Your web site and its press room have to be able to provide all the info needed.

So what are the Top Six sign up for news alerts to Have an Effective Online Press Room

First off, make your Press Room easy to find - you can put a link on it form the front page - labeling it as News, Press or even Press Room. I have seen too many companies that bury their press rooms three or four clicks away. The only reason that I as an editor persisted to find the press page was that I knew the info was there somewhere.

Press Releases - Obviously you want to include links to your press releases and announcements. However, make sure the list is up to date. As soon as the release goes out, make sure it is also up on your web site.

Please don't require an editor to fill out a contact form to retrieve your press releases. Not only does an editor not have the time for that, they will probably just give you a fake name and phone number anyhow. I have heard marketing folk say that they don't want the competition having access to the press releases. If you have distributed the press releases and got some coverage, (which is the whole point of PR), those releases and info should already be available on the web anyhow.