An effective press release will give you the attention of the general public through its media coverage. It isn’t, however, as simple as writing the first thing that comes to mind. Writing a press release is all about grabbing the reader’s attention and keeping it long enough to get your point across to them. It takes practice to get the perfect press release prepared for distribution to the 1.7 million journalists and social media influencers in E-Releases’ distribution database. Continue reading to learn what you need to include in your next press release with this press release example.
This will help to increase the odds of getting thorough coverage among media outlets for your big news.
What Is a Press Release?
A press release is a short document that works to grab the press’s attention to encourage them to pick up and then run your story. It’s a powerful form of communication used by businesses to reach their audience. It allows them to make announcements to a wider range of people. Once it’s in the reader’s grasp, it encourages them to go learn more about the company.
The first press release was written in 1906 when Ivy Lee took matters into his own hands. Rather than waiting to see what type of media coverage a train derailing along the Pennsylvania Roadway would receive. The accident tragically killed more than 50 people. Ivy Lee wrote up a notice and delivered it to the journalists. It ended up being published the way that Lee wrote it.
This gave them an insider’s perspective on the accident and told them the truthful story of what happened. Since then, press releases have become commonplace in public relations.
They have been used in crisis management as a means to avert crises, clear up rumors, or tell the truth about difficult situations. It can give the writer some control in an otherwise uncontrollable situation.
Why Do You Need Them?
As a business owner, you need press releases to reach the masses. You need to be able to stand out among your competitors in the eyes of the general public.
The main goals of submitting a press release include:
- Gaining traction in the media
- Having search engine visibility
- Being present in the reader’s minds
- Reinforcing the message that you are sending
- Increasing awareness about your company’s brand
Press releases are an excellent way to attract journalists to your story. Journalists spend their days searching for the next interesting story. If you present your announcement in an attention-grabbing way, you will find that more media outlets are willing to run your story.
Types of Press Releases
There are different types of press releases that serve different purposes depending on what their goal is. When something happens within your business, the first thing you want to do is tell your target audience about it. Distributing press releases to journalists looking for a story is the best way to get enough media coverage to reach all of your followers.
Press releases can be used to broadcast general news about the business. They can be helpful when it comes to announcing upcoming events. They can be ideal for launching a new service or company or even to tell people about an upcoming product reveal.
Broadcasting good news is another way to utilize press releases. They are ideal for letting the masses know that you’ve received an award. Press releases can let the people know that you are taking part in a new partnership or you are rebranding your company.
Press Release Elements
The first thing that you want to include with your press release is your company logo. This will help to let your readers know who you are. It will also help them to remember what to look for when they come across your company in the future.
The rest of the press release will focus on introducing your company to the audience, telling them your news, and leaving them with something to ponder (along with a means for them to contact you!).
Introduction to Your Reader
The headline of your press release is going to include 7 to 15 words that draw the reader in and make them interested in reading the rest of the content that you’ve provided.
The next thing that you will need in your press release is a sub-headline. The sub-headline is a brief overview of what is going to be discussed in the release. This is ideal for getting the main gist of the press release even if the reader is unable to read the entire thing.
Directly after the sub-headline, you should write “FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE”, in all caps, to let the media outlet know that they can run the story as soon as possible. Below this, you need to include the location and date. The location is usually going to include the city and state, along with the date at the time of the release.
The Content of the Press Release
The body of your press release will answer the readers’ potential questions through a newsworthy angle. The first paragraph will entail the most important details of the press release in the inverted pyramid lens. As the paragraphs go on, the information will not be as pressing and the reader won’t miss too much by skimming over it.
This is also where you might incorporate expert quotes and relevant facts into the content. It’s also crucial for SEO that you include keywords that your readers might search for. These keywords are short phrases, relevant to the topic, that they might type into a Google or Bing! search to find your content.
After you’ve completed this task, you are faced with adding a conclusion. Usually, the conclusion will include a call-to-action or a statement that makes the reader want to act. Sentences like learn more at our website or call today for more information are perfect for this.
Important Information Relating to Your Company
At the very end of the content, you want to include a boilerplate or a summary of your business. With this, you will want to add contact information that allows the reader to reach out to your business for more information. This might include
- Your name
- The organization that you represent
- The physical address of your business
- Your phone number
- Your website
- Your e-mail address (if applicable)
All of these elements work together to help you create an effective press release.
How to Draft a Press Release
The most difficult part of assembling an interesting, effective press release is the actual writing. When you are drafting your press release, you need to focus on pulling the reader in and letting them know about what’s going on with your company.
When you are deciding on a headline, it’s best to think of something catchy. If you are launching a new product, you don’t want to say We Are Launching a New Product. You would want to say [Product name] Is Making a Difference in the Lives of Consumers.
To get a decent draft, you need to jot down everything that you feel the need to mention to your readers. Each section of the template listed above is meant to answer all of the questions that your reader might have.
Once you have the main points written down, you will need to add facts relevant to the topic. You also want to incorporate direct quotes from that company that adds meaning to the press release.
You will want to keep it brief. Press releases are generally between 300 and 500 words. When you go back through the piece, you will want to make it simpler. To do this, you can trade complicated language for more simple words and then remove repetitive or unnecessary information that may have gotten added along the way.
Out of everything that you have written, gather up the main points and write a small snippet about what to expect. This will be your sub-headline.
Tips for Writing an Effective Press Release
If you aren’t sure if you can handle all of this or you are struggling with writer’s block, E-Releases offers PR Writing services in addition to being the #1 press release distribution service for small businesses. Have a go at it before handing the task off to us. We believe that you can come up with a good press release on your own!
Following the template that we previously discussed is necessary because there are certain requirements that must be met in order for media outlets to be able to accept your press releases.
Make sure that you start with the most relevant information first. This ensures that the reader gets the main points even if they can’t read through all of the content. Always keep the press release clear and to the point. It helps to use common language and shorter paragraphs.
If you want to get more media coverage, it is helpful to create different variations of the post so that more publishers will see it and be able to run the story.
Press Release Example for PR Success
Following this press release example will help you reach the masses with your company’s upcoming events, product launches, or rebranding. Once you have a press release that you are happy with, we can distribute it to make sure that you are getting the media coverage that you deserve.
Contact E-Releases today to get started.