📣 Press Releases

📡 Understanding Press Release Distribution Channels

📡 Two Kinds of Distribution Channels When submitting a press release through Signal Genesys, the channels available fall into two categories: - Single-site channels — a placement on one specific, named publication (for example, USA Today). - Multichannel distributors — a single submission that gets picked up across a network of many sites at once, rather than one specific outlet. These are grouped and named by network (for example, a "DA 80" tier or a "Local & National" network), not by an individual publication name. Custom or location-specific channel selection (for example, requesting a specific state-level or local TV channel by name) isn't offered — channel options are chosen from the existing single-site and multichannel options rather than built to a custom request. 🧭 Keeping This Separate from Other Search Atlas Brands Press release distribution channels are a Signal Genesys concept. Signal Genesys is a separate product from Search Atlas's own Authority Building / Digital PR feature (which uses Signal Genesys as its backend distributor), and it's unrelated to Link Laboratory or Publication Media, which are backlink/guest-post marketplaces rather than press release distribution. Don't mix distribution-channel terminology into a Link Lab or Publication Media conversation, or vice versa. If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be instantly connected with a member of our team.

📋 Press Release Content Guidelines: What Gets Approved and What Gets Rejected

📋 Why Releases Get Held or Rejected Every press release submitted for distribution goes through an automated quality check, with manual review for anything flagged — typically within 24 business hours. Understanding the rules below explains most rejection or hold cases customers ask about. ✍️ Format Requirements - Headline: under 80 characters, with an active verb and subject, accurately reflecting the content, and genuinely newsworthy. - Summary: 1–2 sentences, distinct from the opening paragraph. - Body: 400–2,500 words, written in third person with an objective, news-style tone — not written like an ad or sales letter, and not posed as a series of questions. - Images: up to 3 per release, each under 200KB, in jpg/png/gif format only. - Links: capped at 1 per 200 words, must resolve correctly, and no more than what's needed for a natural news piece — no link stuffing, hidden links, or affiliate/cloaked links. - The release must state the originating city (usually the company's HQ location), and email addresses cannot appear in the body text. 🚫 Common Rejection Reasons - Reads like an advertisement rather than genuine news — promotional language, discounts/coupons/sales language, or a "why you should buy this" angle. - Duplicate or near-duplicate content — submitting the same release (or a lightly reworded version) more than once. The original must be removed before resubmitting, and duplicates already sent into the system are still billed. - Unverifiable or misleading claims about the company, a sponsor, or a third party, or content alleging illegal/unethical behavior or threatening legal action against another party. - Topics that are restricted outright, including: loans, cannabis/CBD/vaping products, gambling, escort/adult content, political or religious advocacy, cryptocurrency promotion, unregistered stock tickers, device unlocking/jailbreaking, and pure opinion/speculation pieces. - Non-newsworthy announcements — a plain website or blog launch with no real news angle typically won't qualify. ⚖️ What Happens After Submission - Content must be legal to publish in all 50 US states. A release that's denied for a content violation still incurs its distribution fee — there's no refund for a rejected submission. - Once distributed, content can still be removed later if it's found to violate guidelines, and individual distribution partners may also remove it independently. - Repeated rule violations can lead to account suspension, and unused credits aren't refunded in that case. 🧭 Keeping This Separate from Search Atlas's Own PR Feature These content rules apply to press releases distributed through Signal Genesys — which is also what powers Search Atlas's own Authority Building > PR Distribution feature behind the scenes, so the same standards apply whether a customer submits through Signal Genesys directly or through the Search Atlas dashboard. If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be instantly connected with a member of our team.

🔒 Can You Edit a Press Release After It's Published?

🔒 Once a Press Release Is Published, It's Locked A press release distributed through Signal Genesys cannot be edited in place once it's live. This applies to the content itself as well as any linked entity/brand information — once distribution begins, that version is treated as final. ✏️ When Edits ARE Possible You can still make changes to a press release, including its content, up until one of these points: - Before it goes through the review process, or - Before its selected publication date arrives. Once either of those has passed and distribution starts, the release is locked. ➕ Adding a New Distribution Channel Is Different from Editing If you want to distribute an already-published release to an additional channel, that's still possible — but it doesn't modify the original release. Adding a new channel creates a separate version of the content for that channel, so your original published release remains untouched. 🔄 If You Need to Change Something After Publishing If a published press release genuinely needs to be corrected or taken down, the option is to have it retracted rather than edited: - Support can submit a removal/retraction request to the distributor(s) that carried the release. - Once retracted, you can then publish a corrected version as a new press release. If a press release has an issue caused by a distribution error, quality rejection, or a distributor problem (rather than something you want to change yourself), let support know — those cases are handled case by case and can include a refund rather than requiring a full retraction/republish. 🧭 A Note on Signal Genesys vs. Search Atlas's Own PR Feature This locked-after-publishing behavior applies to press releases distributed through Signal Genesys, which is also what powers Search Atlas's own Authority Building > PR Distribution feature behind the scenes. If a customer is asking from inside the main Search Atlas dashboard rather than Signal Genesys directly, the same publishing rules still apply, since it's the same distribution system underneath. If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be instantly connected with a member of our team.