Mat releases are consumer-friendly feature news stories that are pre-packaged/pre-formatted (headline, photo, article) and distributed to syndication networks of hundreds or thousands of media outlets. Marketers, public relations professionals and communications departments use mat releases to amplify the reach of their content. Newspapers, magazines, TV news stations and other news outlets use mat releases to augment and expand the content they develop in-house. 

The term “mat release” is actually a holdover from a pre-digital time when each page of a newspaper was designed, formatted and laid out by hand for printing presses. Mat releases were type-set, print-ready and circulated in standard sizes so that they could fill empty column inches that editors might be looking to fill. 

Shrinking newsroom staff and shrinking newsroom budgets have created a new renaissance for mat release content. Our mat releases are developed to look, feel and read like a feature news piece so they blend in with news sites without the disruption of advertisements.

Press releases are formal announcements from an organization, be it a business, nonprofit, etc. Press releases, also referred to as news releases, are written for distribution to journalists, many times using services like PRNewswire or Businesswire. The subscribers of these wires are journalists, who use (or not) press releases to decide what news to cover. Mat releases (also referred to as matte releases), however, are pre-written news stories for a consumer audience. With a mat release, you are not dependent on a reporter/editor deciding to “cover” your press release and develop an article. Rather, your article is pre-written, consumer-friendly and posted to the 2,500 news media sites within our subscribing syndicate.

Four reasons: 

First, our stories are written so well that almost every Top 100 daily has run them. 

Second, our credibility with editors is such that they know they can trust us to provide quality, credible content (i.e., we don’t let our clients circulate mat release stories that could be regarded as false or misleading). 

Third, media outfits are hungrier than ever for such trusted copy in light of all the recent newsroom layoffs. More and more newspapers and news outlets partner with NewsUSA and join our syndication network to use our matte releases monthly to supplement staff-written stories. They have content needs that we directly address. 

Fourth, our proprietary, uber-sensitive tracking tool finds “hits” (media pick-ups) that others may miss.

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It’s really a question of ensuring your article is written in a way that makes people want to read it. Doesn’t matter whether it’s on health, finances, food, home improvement or whatever. The key is providing useful information – tips always work, as long as they’re not all about your product – and remembering that these aren’t ads. The “secret sauce” is that they look, feel and read like a news story – one that just happens to include your brand benefits or educational messages. Attaining that desired goal is one of the big reasons you hire us. We have success with both “evergreen” pieces that can be used by editors year-round and time-bound stories tied to a holiday or awareness day (Valentine’s Day or National Women’s Health Week, for example).

Mat releases are typically 300-500 words, with a catchy headline and an accompanying photo.