I keep hearing the same question from entrepreneurs: “Do press releases still matter, or are they a relic?”

So I brought on Jeremy Fields from Newsmatics, the company behind EIN Presswire, to give us the real answer. What he shared changed how I think about content, visibility, and controlling your brand in an AI-first world.

Key Points From This Interview

• Press releases are not dead. They’re becoming more important because AI tools and large language models pull information from everywhere.
• Content today is being consumed by humans and bots, and smart brands write for both.
• A press release does not need to be a massive, once-a-year announcement. Smaller updates can work if they are written as real announcements.
• The biggest risk isn’t “no one sees your content.” The bigger risk is that AI surfaces the wrong version of your brand because you never published your own narrative.
• Choosing a press release service should match your goal. Public companies may need financial wire distribution, but most small businesses do better targeting audiences, regions, and industry verticals.
• AI can help repurpose ideas into long-form and short-form content, but it should be implemented intentionally so that it saves time instead of creating extra work.
• Virtual leadership works better when teams use video and prioritize human connection, not just task completion.

Why Press Releases Matter More in an AI-First World

For years, press releases were treated like something only big companies used for major announcements. Jeremy explained why that mindset is outdated.

AI systems are hungry for data. They pull from podcasts, videos, blog posts, social media, and yes, press releases. When you publish content anywhere, it can be transcribed, indexed, and absorbed by large language models.

That means your future customer may “discover” your brand through an AI-generated answer, not through your website homepage.

If your brand information is missing, outdated, or distorted by random reviews and scattered mentions, AI can still form a narrative about you. It just won’t be the one you’d choose.

This is one of the strongest arguments I’ve heard for taking content seriously. It’s not just about marketing. It’s about brand control.

Are Press Releases an Old-School Relic or Still Effective?

I asked Jeremy directly whether press releases are basically a leftover tactic from the nineteen-eighties and nineties.

His answer was clear: press releases are still effective, and in the last year, they’ve become even more important.

Historically, public companies used press releases for financial disclosures and shareholder communications. But over time, private companies and small businesses adopted them for visibility, credibility, and earned media.

Now, the game has shifted again.

Press releases are one of the cleanest ways to push structured brand information into the wider internet ecosystem, where it can be discovered, indexed, and reused across search and AI-driven results.

How Press Release Distribution Fits Into Modern Content Strategy

Jeremy made a point that applies beyond press releases: every platform is a data source now.

When you post a podcast on Spotify, upload a video to YouTube, or publish a blog post, AI systems can ingest that content. The same is true for Reddit posts and social media updates.

That’s why press release distribution can be powerful when used correctly. It’s not only about “getting featured.” It’s also about making sure your brand has accurate, publishable signals out in the world.

If you’re not publishing your own narrative, someone else will, even unintentionally.

A single negative post taken out of context can become a “first impression” if it’s what an AI tool surfaces first.

Should Press Releases Become Daily Blogging?

This part of the interview was practical, because it’s what many entrepreneurs actually want to know.

I asked Jeremy: Should press releases stay “news only,” or can they become a new form of blogging?

He explained that a press release should still be written as an announcement. But the definition of an “announcement” is wider than most people think.

If it’s something you’d post on social media, it can often be expanded into a press release, such as:

• attending an event
• adding a new service
• expanding into a region
• sharing a small internal milestone
• releasing a mini dataset, survey, or trend you observed

The catch is how you write it.

Press releases that are overloaded with hype, exaggerated claims, and “we’re the best” language tend to perform worse for media pickup. They can still be published, but they’re less likely to earn attention.

The better approach is to be clear, factual, and structured, while still sounding human.

What Journalists and AI Systems Actually Want From Your Content

Jeremy said something I think every entrepreneur should hear:

You’re writing for humans, and you’re writing for bots.

Humans want clarity and the gist. They don’t want to wade through a wall of text just to understand what happened.

AI systems, on the other hand, love structured information that can be reused, like:

• lists
• key takeaways
• clear claims with context
• simple explanations
• data points and practical examples

That doesn’t mean writing robotic content. It means presenting information in a format that is easy to understand and easy to process.

When your content is structured well, it becomes easier for people to trust it and easier for platforms to surface it.

Red Flags When Choosing a Press Release Service

I asked Jeremy about what to watch out for when choosing a press release distribution provider. He didn’t name names, and I respected that.

But he did give a smart framework: choose based on what kind of company you are and what you actually need.

If you’re a public company with investor relations requirements, you may need financial wires and specific databases.

But most businesses don’t need that. They may end up paying high fees for placement that doesn’t reach their customers or improve visibility in the channels that matter.

For most entrepreneurs, the better decision is to choose distribution based on:

• Your target audience
• Your region or expansion goals
• The industries you want visibility in
• Whether your focus is on consumers, business buyers, or journalists

In other words, match the tool to the job.

Best Practices and Mistakes to Avoid With Press Releases

Jeremy shared a simple truth: most problems come from being rushed.

Press wires generally don’t copyedit your release because it’s considered your official announcement. That means the responsibility sits with you.

His best practices were straightforward:

• Proofread for spelling and clarity
• Have someone else review it if possible,
• Double-check that you attached the right images,
• Be consistent with publishing, because speed and repetition can cause mistakes
• Maintain a steady cadence so your audience and the platforms see you as active and credible

If you publish regularly, you build familiarity. If you publish inconsistently, you disappear between bursts.

Leadership and Productivity in a Fully Remote Global Team

We shifted into leadership because Jeremy manages a broad portfolio across teams and works in a fully virtual company.

One point stood out: video matters.

He said their meetings are done with video so people can read body language and communicate more naturally. When teams are distributed globally, human connection has to be intentional.

On AI and productivity, he gave a grounded reminder: AI is everywhere, but that doesn’t mean you should force it into everything.

If you spend more time controlling AI output than doing the work, you lose the point. The smarter move is incremental adoption, where AI supports the work without taking over the process.

And even with all the tech, he brought it back to the basics: people still buy from people. Trust still matters.

Final Takeaway: Feed the Models, Control the Narrative

Jeremy closed with a message I want more entrepreneurs to hear.

Don’t get discouraged if you have a small audience today. You may have fewer human followers, but your content is still being read and absorbed by systems that can expand your reach globally.

The goal is not perfection. The goal is consistent publishing that makes your brand easier to understand, easier to trust, and harder to misrepresent.

That’s how you take control of your narrative.