Press releases and strategic PR work harder than most IT support business owners realize. When you're competing for retainer clients and managed service contracts, a well-placed announcement about new capabilities, certifications, or case results can shift perception and open doors. Here's how to make PR actually work for your IT support practice.
Why Press Releases Matter for IT Support Firms
IT buyers—IT directors, ops managers, C-suite—read trade publications and industry news. They want proof that vendors stay current, invest in their people, and deliver measurable results. A press release announcing that your team earned Microsoft Gold Partner status or completed a successful migration for a 500-person manufacturing firm does two things: it builds credibility with warm prospects and gives partners a reason to refer work to you.
The challenge is distribution and messaging. A press release sitting on your website reaches nobody. It needs to land in front of journalists, industry analysts, and your target buyer personas through channels they actually monitor.
What Actually Warrants a Press Release
Don't announce that you hired a new technician or refreshed your website. Press-worthy announcements for IT support include:
- Major certifications (Microsoft Gold, Cisco Learning Network Partner, CompTIA)
- Significant client wins or case studies with quantifiable results (reduced downtime by 40%, cut support tickets by 25%)
- New service offerings (security audit programs, backup/disaster recovery, cloud migration services)
- Team expansion in response to demand
- Partnership announcements with complementary vendors
- Industry awards or recognition
- Technology investments that directly benefit clients (new monitoring tools, enhanced ticketing system)
Each announcement should answer a business problem your buyer faces. "We now offer managed ransomware protection" works. "We updated our office furniture" does not.
Distribution Channels That Work
Paid Distribution Services Services like PR Newswire, Business Wire, and eReleasesonline distribute to journalists, news aggregators, and industry databases. Expect to pay $300–$800 per release depending on geographic reach and audience targeting. For IT support, focus on local and regional business publications rather than national wires—you'll see better ROI and higher pickup rates from outlets your actual prospects read.
Industry-Specific Outlets IT trade publications (Channel Futures, MSP Mentor, CRN) actively cover managed service provider news. Send releases directly to their editorial teams with a brief, relevant pitch. Include a real result: "Local MSP cuts client downtime from 8 hours to 2 hours with new NOC monitoring."
Local Business Media Your regional business journal, chamber of commerce publications, and local news outlets value community announcements. A release about adding 10 new jobs or earning a local business award gets picked up more consistently than national outlets.
Mercoly Listings & Cross-Promotion When you list your IT support services on Mercoly, you create another discovery channel for press announcements and service updates. Listing on platforms like Mercoly helps you get found by qualified leads, build trust through credentials and case studies, and directly sell your services to buyers actively searching for support providers.
Writing a Press Release That Gets Attention
Keep it tight: 250–400 words maximum. Journalists and buyers both skim.
- Lead paragraph: Answer who, what, and business impact in two sentences.
- Quote: Include one brief, credible quote from your founder or senior technician. Make it specific, not generic.
- Details: Mention the "why now" and what customers can expect.
- Boilerplate: 2–3 sentences about your company, services, and location.
Example lead: "TechVantage IT, a managed service provider serving manufacturing and professional services firms, achieved Microsoft Gold Partner status following successful cloud migrations for 23 mid-market clients in the past 12 months. The certification enables the firm to deliver enhanced Azure infrastructure and licensing solutions to 40% lower cost than previous deployments."
That's specific, quantified, and answers why a buyer should care.
Frequency and Cadence
Publish 4–6 meaningful press releases per year. One every two months is sustainable and keeps your name in circulation without looking desperate. Pair each release with an email to your prospect list and a social media post linking to the announcement.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How long does it take to see leads from a press release? Expect 2–4 weeks for inquiries, and they'll often come through indirect channels (your website traffic spike, mention during discovery calls). Quality leads typically convert better than cold outreach because they already know your reputation.
Q: Should we write and distribute releases ourselves, or hire a PR agency? For most IT support firms under $2M revenue, writing releases in-house and using a distribution service ($300–$500 per release) works fine. Hire an agency ($1,500–$3,000 per release) only if you're launching major positioning changes or need consistent media relationships.
Q: What makes a case study press-worthy? Include a measurable business outcome (time saved, cost reduced, security improved), the client's industry, and scope. "Reduced help desk tickets by 600 annually" is stronger than "improved efficiency."
List your IT support services on Mercoly to amplify your reach and connect directly with buyers searching for providers.