Press releases are designed to help your organization get free, third party news media coverage. Reporters rely on press releases to help them find stories.  So, you’re much more likely to be featured in the media if you send out great releases.

Grab the reporter
When you’re writing, let go of your marketer’s mindset, and put yourself in a reporter’s shoes. Reporters don’t care about your marketing goals. They’re looking for stories their readers will find interesting.

Timing is important. Your story must be recent news if the event has already happened, or not too far away if it’s a future event you’re promoting.

Headlines
Think about how succinctly newspaper headlines are worded, and craft yours to grab a reporter in as few words as possible.

• Put your most important and exciting information first.
• Include your organization’s name in the headline.
• Be bold, but don’t go all “used car salesman” (our apologies to Crazy Eddie). If your story sounds “too good to be true,” you’ll undermine its credibility.

Subheads
This is your opportunity to explain a little more of the important details of your story without watering down the impact of your headline.

Lead paragraph
In the first paragraph include the who, what, when, where, how, and why of your story. Reporters get tons of press releases. If they don’t get why yours matters in the first paragraph, it’s likely your release will wind up in the trash.

The body
Here’s where you can include whatever support you need to back up what claims you’ve made in the lead paragraph.

• Avoid using “I” or “we” unless it’s in a quote.
• Use powerful quotes from people who are involved in the story or from an expert on the subject to make your story more interesting and credible.
• You’ll have more success getting your stories published, if a busy journalist doesn’t have to spend a lot of time editing your release. Write your releases to match their editorial style.

The boiler plate
Conclude with a sentence or two about your organization. This language will be the same in every press release you send.

• Keep your press releases short. Two pages are okay, but one is better.
• At the end, center three pound symbols, so the reporter will know that’s all there is of the story.

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After the pound symbols include information on how the reporter can contact you for more information or schedule an interview with someone involved in the story.

Emailing your press release
Use your short, attention grabbing headline as your email subject line. That should help your press release stand out in your reporter’s inbox.

• Craft your message to each media outlet and send it to the reporter who covers that type of information.
• After sending the press release, a follow-up call can help keep you and your organization fresh in your reporter’s mind.

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Posted on December 15, 2010 at 7:36 am
Filed under: Creative Process,Creative resources,Marketing,Resources