Press releases are a great way to get your company’s name out there. They’re a good way to show the media that you’re building your brand and have something worth writing about.
Press releases are also a good way to build new relationships with journalists, as well as build up your SEO (search engine optimization) ranking by having other sites link back to you through links in their articles or blogs.
| Takeaways |
|---|
| 1. Craft a compelling headline that sparks curiosity. |
| 2. Start with a concise and attention-grabbing lead. |
| 3. Highlight the most important information first. |
| 4. Incorporate relevant quotes to add credibility. |
| 5. Utilize multimedia elements to enhance engagement. |
| 6. Keep the language clear, concise, and jargon-free. |
| 7. Include factual details and avoid hyperbole. |
| 8. Emphasize the benefits and impact of your story. |
| 9. Tailor the press release to the target audience. |
| 10. Provide a clear call to action for readers. |
| 11. Proofread and edit for accuracy and clarity. |
| 12. Use a consistent format and structure. |
| 13. Distribute through various relevant channels. |
Make It Newsworthy
The best press releases are those that contain information that is relevant to your business, and newsworthy to your audience. This means you will want to make sure the information in your press release is relevant to both.
For example, if you run a restaurant that serves fish and chips, don’t write about how much you love eating fish and chips.
It doesn’t matter if it’s true or not it’s not relevant to anyone who isn’t already interested in eating them! Instead, focus on something newsworthy like oh I don’t know how many different types of fish-and-chips combos you have come up with (this could be good).
You’ll also want any information included in your press release to be as accurate as possible; this makes readers feel confident when reading it which is important because they’re usually looking for more information about what they just read so if someone finds something wrong then they might start questioning other things too!”
Building an effective press release requires careful consideration of various elements. To craft a compelling message that captures attention, follow these 17 tips for putting together a press release, ensuring your content stands out in the crowd.
Tell A Story
In many cases, your press release is going to be about a product or service. But that doesn’t mean it has to be boring. You can make a story out of anything, even the most mundane thing imaginable.
Think about an event, change, or development at your business. Or how you solved a problem for someone else. Or how you used that product/service in an innovative way that made an impact on your customers’ lives (or saved them time and money).
You can even tell stories about people–not just yourself, but also other members of your team who have been doing amazing things for years now!
Keep It Short
It’s important to keep your press release short and sweet. You want to give readers just enough information to keep them interested, but not so much that they get overwhelmed or bored.
This is one of the most common mistakes that people make when writing press releases: using too many words and too many quotes from different sources.
If a reader has to stop reading multiple times because there are just too many ideas being thrown at them at once, chances are they won’t be able to finish reading your entire release which means you’ll have wasted your time and theirs!
So don’t write long paragraphs, don’t include more than one quote per sentence (if any), don’t direct readers over 20 times within an article (this goes back to making sure everything is easy to understand), etcetera. A good way of keeping it short? Keep sentences under 25 words if possible!
The same goes for images; keep all graphics as small as possible while maintaining their clarity so that people aren’t distracted by them while trying to read what’s written underneath them (especially if those graphics contain hyperlinks).
Want your press releases to go beyond the ordinary? Discover the secrets to creating press releases that gain widespread attention with our guide on how to create press releases that go viral, and make your content a hot topic in the media.
Be Clear And Concise
Your press release should be easy to read and understand. The best way to do this is by being clear and concise.
- Keep your sentences short.
- Use short paragraphs.
Use short words instead of long ones (the “the” in “the quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog” is a single word, but it’s still too long). This applies in particular with technical or academic jargon; if you’re writing about something complicated, try breaking it down into smaller pieces so that other people can understand what you’re saying without having to look up every word first!
Bullet points are great for summarizing what each paragraph says (especially since they give readers something else to focus on besides just reading through words on a page).
It also helps organize your thoughts into logical groups so that everything makes sense when someone reads through it later on down the line like maybe when someone has questions about some specific point in your press release. You never know!
If there are any other ways we can help our readers better absorb information from our releases without making them sound boring then let us know!”
Use Active Voice
Use active voice. Active voice is more direct and engaging, which makes it easier to keep the reader’s attention. A good rule of thumb is that if you can replace “by” with “did,” you should use active voice instead of passive voice. (Example: The dog chewed up my homework was written by me becomes The dog chewed up my homework.)
Be concise. Concise writing is another way to keep readers interested in your press release, especially if they have other things on their plate than reading lengthy paragraphs about boring products or services.
Concise writing can be achieved by eliminating unnecessary words, phrases, and sentences from your text without sacrificing content quality or message delivery and without making editing mistakes! When editing your work for concision purposes, consider these tips:
Find synonyms for words that take up space but don’t add much meaning (e.g., use “good” instead of “excellent”). If possible remove any repetition in sentences (this will help reduce word count).
Use em dashes sparingly they tend to make sentences look off balance when overused because they break up sentence structure into unnatural chunks; try using commas instead for sentence-ending punctuation marks unless an em dash is necessary for clarity purposes within a sentence itself (e.g., when introducing new information into the narrative flow).
Writing press releases for startups comes with its unique challenges. Dive into our 9 tips for writing press releases for startups to learn how to make your startup’s story shine and resonate with your target audience effectively.
Include The Five W’s And One H
To keep your readers engaged, you’ll want to write a press release that includes all of the following: the who, what, when, where, and why. This is also known as “the who, what, when, and where.” The “why” should be implied.
Who? This is the person or organization that is doing the talking. For example: “Gilliam Construction Company will be breaking ground on their new 200-acre headquarters in downtown St. Louis this Friday at noon.”
What? This is what happened at an event or during a project phase. For instance: “The groundbreaking ceremony for Gilliam Construction Company’s new headquarters will take place tomorrow afternoon.”
When? Be sure to specify both date and time—even if it’s obvious from the context! For example: “Gilliam Construction Company’s groundbreaking ceremony begins promptly at noon, with attendees arriving no later than 11:15 a.”
Where? Include where something happened so readers can visualize it happening in real life (and not just in words). You might also include how far away from other cities or regions this event occurred; this indicates how much attention it should receive from readers outside of its immediate vicinity.
Don’t Overuse Hyperlinks
If you use hyperlinks, make sure they are used in a way that will help your reader. Don’t use them to link back to your homepage or product pages, but instead link to relevant content on your website or another authoritative site in the industry.
For example, if you are writing about an event and need to quote someone from another company as an expert on the topic, then use a hyperlink to refer readers back to their website so they can learn more about their company and services.
Also, remember that too many links can look spammy and distract from the message of your press release (especially if they are all underlined). Keep it simple by using only 2-3 well-placed links per piece of content–preferably at the bottom where readers can easily find them without looking too closely at what else is happening on the page!
Use Spell-Checker Before Submitting Your Press Release
It’s easy to forget that spell-checker is a very real thing. Before you submit your press release, make sure to run it through the tool and fix any typos, grammatical errors, formatting issues, and spelling mistakes.
Spell-checker can also be used for capitalization errors and punctuation errors. While these are just stylistic choices due to personal preference and not technically “errors,” they’re still good things to fix before sending out a press release (especially if the subject matter of your work involves an industry that’s more formal than usual).
Engaging your audience through a press release requires creativity and strategic thinking. Explore our comprehensive guide on 13 ways to engage your audience with a press release to master the art of captivating your readers and leaving a lasting impact.
Avoid Jargon And Vocabulary That May Be Unfamiliar To Readers
When writing a press release, you want to ensure that your writing is clear, concise, and easy for readers to understand. This means using language that even non-experts can comprehend.
Avoid jargon or vocabulary that may be unfamiliar to readers. It’s great if you can use industry terms in your press releases; just make sure everyone understands them first!
Don’t use buzzwords or acronyms unless they are very specific ones that only exist within your industry (and even then, don’t overdo it).
Stay away from unfamiliar terminology unless necessary—for example, if there is a specific term used by doctors regarding brain surgery procedures; avoid industry slang when possible as well
Make Your Paragraphs Scannable By Using Bullets, Numbers, Quotes
Paragraphs filled with bullet points are easy to read, so they’re the best way to break up text and make it scannable. Bullet points also help you organize your ideas and keep your reader on track as they read.
Just think about all those emails you receive from friends, or even strangers in email lists that look like this: “Hey! I’m going away for the weekend, let’s get together Saturday night.”
It’s easy to scan this email because each piece of information is separated by a bullet point (and if something isn’t important enough to be mentioned in the main paragraph, chances are it doesn’t need much attention anyway).
The same goes for press releases bullets help readers find what they’re looking for quickly without having to read the entire thing word-for-word.
Use An Attention-Grabbing Headline Or Subject Line
You probably know that writing a press release is not a one-size-fits-all activity. You need to consider the target audience, and how you can best speak to them. You also need to make sure your press release is written in such a way that it will be read by those who need to see it.
One of the most important things that you can do when writing your press release uses an attention-grabbing headline or subject line.
A strong headline or subject line will help ensure your readers will take notice of what you have written in your article before they read any other part of the text, including any other headlines or subheadings within your article (if you have them).
Put Your Best Content Up Front
Your audience is busy and has a short attention span. They’re reading your press release to get the gist of what you’re saying, so don’t make them work too hard! If they want more detail, they can read on.
Put your best content upfront. Your readers should know right away if they want to invest their time in reading through more of the document. As such, it makes sense to put all of the information that has an impact at the top of your press releases:
The first paragraph is often where journalists begin when writing about something.
Make sure it clearly states why your story is important by conveying an accurate summary of events with relevant details included but not so many details that it becomes convoluted or confusing for readers who won’t have time to read all three paragraphs straight through from start to finish before being interrupted by another task (e-mail alert!).
The first sentence sets up the context for what follows: Why did this happen? What does it mean? Who does this affect?
How does this relate to past events related to said topic/topic area? What questions need answering for people outside my local community/industry who may not already be familiar with these topics seem like legitimate queries worth asking when considering how best one might approach me as a potential resource (or target audience)?
These are all things that could potentially be answered within just one sentence; however, if those answers aren’t clear enough then perhaps consider rephrasing until they are!
Writing a press release that yields impactful results demands careful planning and execution. Learn the key techniques for success in our guide on how to write a press release that gets results, and watch as your well-crafted press releases drive your message home effectively.
Use A Quote From Someone In The Company To Enhance Credibility
A quote should be from someone relevant to the story, such as your CEO or president, but it also needs to be clear who said what.
If you’re quoting an employee and they aren’t part of your organization, make sure they are known for being credible and are willing and able to speak on behalf of your company.
For example, if you’re writing about a new product launch at Apple Inc., it might not be appropriate to use quotes from Steve Jobs or Tim Cook because there’s no way for people reading the article (or working at Apple) to know whether that person was talking about this specific topic.*
Use Your Keywords In Key Places Like Headline And Body Copy
If you want to write an attention-grabbing press release, you’ll need to use your keywords in key places like headlines and body copy. You can also use them in the title, URL, meta description, and link text. Additionally, when uploading images via FTP/SFTP or inserting images directly into the document you should also make sure they have relevant file names and alt texts.
Conclusion
Writing a great press release is not easy, but it’s an essential part of any successful marketing strategy. If you can follow these tips, you’re well on your way to writing one that will grab the attention of journalists and bloggers who want to know more about what you do.
Further Reading
How to Write a Press Release on Shopify Learn the essential steps to craft a powerful press release that effectively communicates your message and grabs the media’s attention.
Writing Tips: How to Write a Great Press Release on Proofed Discover expert advice and practical tips for creating compelling press releases that tell your story in a captivating way.
How to Write Press Releases: Examples and Templates on CoSchedule Dive into this comprehensive guide that provides real-world examples and templates for crafting impactful press releases.
FAQs
How do I structure a press release effectively?
A press release should follow a standard structure: headline, dateline, introduction, body paragraphs, boilerplate, and contact information. This format ensures that essential information is presented clearly and concisely.
What are the key elements of a successful press release?
A successful press release includes a newsworthy angle, a strong headline, relevant quotes, factual information, and a clear call to action. These elements work together to engage the reader and convey the message effectively.
How can I make my press release stand out?
To make your press release stand out, focus on crafting a compelling story, using engaging language, and highlighting unique aspects of your announcement. Adding multimedia elements like images or videos can also enhance its appeal.
Should I tailor my press release for different media outlets?
Yes, tailoring your press release for different media outlets is essential. Customize the content to align with the interests and preferences of each outlet’s audience, increasing the likelihood of coverage.
What is the best way to distribute a press release?
Distribute your press release through various channels, including online press release distribution services, your own website, social media platforms, and direct outreach to targeted journalists. This multi-pronged approach maximizes your reach and chances of coverage.
Costantine Edward is a digital marketing expert, freelance writer, and entrepreneur who helps people attain financial freedom. I’ve been working in marketing since I was 18 years old and have managed to build a successful career doing what I love.
