Council Post: Six Ways To Write A Press Release That Gets Noticed

By Jon Clark, managing partner at Moving Traffic Media, a digital agency in Westchester, NY offering PPC, display and SEO services.

A well-written press release is an introduction to your company and increases your visibility as an industry expert within your community and beyond. You can create a brilliant press release even if you didn’t do great in your composition class. 

These are the six facets of a well-written press release. Falling short on just one could have a negative effect on your success. Luckily, there are simple steps to follow.

The Most Important Question

Does this really deserve a press release? A press release highlights the story. It’s newsworthy and contains information with wide audience appeal. It probably isn’t about your brand, and it isn’t geared toward a niche market segment. It also has facts, figures, findings and a hook

Press release-worthy events include breaking industry news, an industry or community event, or the launch of a new product or service. They can also the publication of original research, winning a prestigious award, partnering with another company on a project, a change in your executive staff or even sometimes company rebranding.

If you don’t have these things, then you probably don’t have a press release. 

The Big Three

A great press release starts with a strong, attention-grabbing subject line, an opening paragraph that summarizes the subject and language that cuts to the chase (this isn’t creative writing).

Many press releases are skipped after a simple glance at the subject line. To write a subject line that will get your email opened, you should personalize when possible. Be casual but professional, and avoid tired attention-grabbing tactics like all caps, exaggerated claims and emoticons.

The Power Of Paragraph One

The first paragraph needs to contain the most important information because chances are your audience is only going to skim the rest. If there are current statistics or recent findings that support the subject of your press release, get them in the first paragraph. It’s easier to skim, so use bullet points of key takeaways to make the press release easier to read and to hold your audience’s interest. 

The Background Work

You’re more likely to create a mutually beneficial, ongoing relationship with the press if you’re viewed as a credible source. Always source your facts and statistics using credible citations because it makes it easy to check the validity of your claims. It also saves journalists and your general audience time and builds a reputation of credibility.

If you’re the source of the data, make that clear, and briefly define how your facts and numbers came about.

The Funnel Of Information

If you’re struggling to come up with a press release template, don’t worry. You can find plenty of them online. Some are even tailored to specific industries. But if you keep the “funnel of information” in mind, you have everything you need to format your press release. 

The funnel, or inverted pyramid, is the outline of your press release. Think of the top of the funnel as the largest, most important part of your press release. The information that’s found there pushes everything else through the funnel. 

The top of your press release should answer who, what, where, when, why and how. The middle section is filled with information that supports the opening paragraph. The bottom of the funnel, the smallest portion of the press release, should be reserved for additional information, such as contact information and times or dates of an event. 

The Send-Off

So, you’ve taken all the advice and written a winning press release. The only thing left to do is send it off, but who do you send it to?

Don’t put all your eggs into one basket. Your press release might not be newsworthy to one outlet but may generate a lot of excitement in another. Start with local and industry-specific publications. News sites are great, but don’t underestimate the value of bloggers, especially those known for covering newsworthy stories. 

Finally, don’t get discouraged. If you don’t hear back, follow up and make yourself known. 

The Bottom Line

Now you have all the tools you need to get your business noticed with a great, well-written press release. Following these simple steps alone is enough to help you stand out and build your reputation as a credible media partner.