Publishing and Distribution

Course Director Matt Peters

Press Releases“To the copywriter trained in hard-sell persuasive writing, the soft-sell touch of PR writing takes some getting used to.”- Robert BlyAuthor of The Copywriter’s Handbook

AgendaIntroduction to Press Releases

Class ObjectivesLearn about Press Releases, how they work, how to write them, and where to send them.

A Press Release is...A public relations announcement issued to the news media and other targeted publications for the purpose of letting the public know of newsworthy events or developments.

The Purpose of a Press Release

The point of as press release is to convey information, facts, NOT to sell a product or movie ticket.

Don't embellish or hype the information. Remember, you are not writing the article; you are merely presenting the information and showing why it's relevant to that publication in hopes they'll write about it.

The Purpose of a Press Release

Select a topic by thinking not about what you want to promote, but what is important to educate people about. Releases aren't for you. They're for your target reader.

What do you need to help others understand? When you focus on content that is important to educate your audience about, this will help you keep your focus on the facts, all while keeping the release material interesting and helpful for the target reader.

Reasons for a Press ReleaseParticipating in a philanthropic eventIntroducing a new productReceiving an awardAnnouncing that you're available to speak on particular subjects of interest

Meeting some kind of unusual challenge or rising above adversitySetting up an advisory groupAnnouncing the results of research or surveys you have conducted

Reasons for a Press ReleaseIssuing a statement of position regarding a local, regional or national issueAnnouncing a public appearance on television, radio or in personAnnouncing free information available

Announcing that you've reached a major milestoneSponsoring a workshop or seminarMaking public statements on future business trends or conditions

The Purpose of a Press Release

Who?What?When?Where?

Why?How?Who Cares?

Press releases convey:

The answers to these questions should be mentioned in order of their importance to the story.

Be sure you have a newsworthy reason for sending a press release.

Forming a new company, releasing a new product, or having a special event are all good reasons, but you have to find and identify the public interest angle.

The more newsworthy you make your announcement, the more coverage you'll get. And coverage is important because it earns the kind of credibility that advertising just can't buy.

Who Cares?

When writing a press release, your goals should be uniqueness, timeliness and awareness.

Someone publishing another video game or e-book is not news, so what makes you, your media, your media’s subject/topic, or your timing unique?

And this newsworthy reason can/will change depending on the targeted audience.

Who Cares?

Make sure your press release is targeted for the publication or broadcast you're sending it to. Many entrepreneurs make the mistake of sending press releases without considering a publication's audience. The editor of Parents Magazine is not going to be interested in the Sci-Fi RPG you just released......unless your development team is made up of work from home parents.

Targeting

And you can create multiple press releases for multiple target audiences. Each emphasizing a different aspect or point or reason why your audience should care.

Targeting

Who Cares?Organizations for the Blind/Sight Impaired.(Local, National, and State)

Libraries.

Schools for the blind.

Special Needs Blogs or Magazines.

Boat Girl transcribed into braille for the blind?!

Format

There is a fairly standard format for creating press releases. It will help your credibility and chances of being published if you present your material this way.

Limit your press release to one or two pages at most.

Pay close attention to grammar and spelling. Competition is intense, and a press release full of typos is more likely to get tossed aside.

FormatEach press release should include the following:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: These words should appear at the top left of the page, in upper case. If you don't want the story to be made public yet, write "HOLD FOR RELEASE UNTIL ...." instead.

FormatHeadline: Just like a headline in a newspaper.

Your title has to count, and needs to be short, fitting on one line while encapsulating the entire theme of the release.

A press release title needs to be factual, descriptive, as well as capture readers' attention so they want to read more.

Just as web users bounce off a page if it doesn't speak to them, the same applies to an online press release. You want a journalist, or customer, or whoever your desired reader is to be interested.

The press release title is often a larger font than the rest of the release, and bolded.

FormatCity, State/Country - Month Day, Year: These details precede the story and orient the reader. This is standard practice for most press releases. The city stated is usually the city of the organization.

Body: This is where the actual story goes. There should be more than one paragraph, each paragraph no more than a few sentences. If there is more than one page, write "-more-" at the bottom of the page.

FormatBody:

The body is the longest part of the press release. This is where you make sure your who, what, when, where, why, how, and who cares points are addressed. Always start writing a press release project with brainstorming. This step helps articulate what you want to say so your content creation is thorough and effective.

Keep it interesting and educational but don't fall into the common press release copywriting trap of using exaggerated adverbs or adjectives. This can really put off journalists, detract customers and negate credibility.

Be sure to close your release with facts to tie the text up, and always include a call to action.

FormatBody:

Quotes give voice and integrity to the release. The original intention of a press release quote was to give the media an approved statement so they could quickly and accurately paste content into their article. A press release quote still does that and more.

The best quotes put the press release into context, while putting a human face on the news. When you write a press release quote, think art, not science. A quote needs to support the release, provide authentic insight, and tell a story to create connection with the reader.

Quotes should be written to give the media an approved statement that they can use to quote, if they write a story based off your release.

FormatCompany/organization info: Include any background information about the company or organization featuring in this press release. Think of an elevator pitch. It should include who your organization is, what you do, whom you serve, while also having some value about your organization woven into it.

It's usually no more than five sentences. Often the same in all press releases from the organization. Can be slightly edited to support a specific press release topic, or to weave in specific search related key words. It is for the media to use if they want to tell more about your company in a story they are writing.

Also written so customers can read an educational description about the organization behind the press release.

FormatContact Information: Include contact person, company name, phone/fax, email, physical/postal address.

ENDS or ###: This indicates the end of the press release.

(xxx words): If you like you could include the total number of words contained in the press release.

Brainstorm!Before you start cranking out a first draft and get locked into what is on the page, brainstorm on the seven questions you need to answer to help generate ideas and material.

Who?What?When?Where?

Why?How?Who Cares?

Press releases have evolved from text content only to including logos, images, audio and video. If any visual assets are available for your press release include those in the brainstorm process.

Who?Clarifying whom the press release is about will focus your writing efforts.

Is the press release content going to be about an organization, an event, a person, product or a response to a current event?

You'll also want to define who the release is for. This is important so the release content best speaks to the target recipients.

Who is your target? The local media? Investors? Customers? A specific group of people?

What?

Define your What. What do you want to say? What message is critical to get across to the reader? Answering these questions in the brainstorm process can help make sure that you include all the critical points in your press release, either in the message itself, or the quote or both.

When?A release includes the date, usually just the month, which indicates how new or old a release it is.

Timing is very important to a release. Newsworthy content needs to be distributed to the media when the news is current. The media does not want to old news.

If a release is a product release, then the timing of that release needs to tie into the product launch. If a release is about an event, then the When will be the specifics, the date, the time of the event.

If the release is to educate about an event, then the release needs to come out in advance of the event to give people time to plan their attendance, or just the date it happened if to inform them about what happened at an event.

The media is less likely to take a release seriously that is old. If a release is date-centric or around promoting an event, defining this will help dictate any call to actions, content, as well as the timing of your press release distribution.

Where?

The Where is a point that you will want to clarify if the release is location specific, or if there is a place on-line where a reader can take action.

Why?Defining the "Why" of a press release, gives a press release meaning. It helps you determine if the press release is worth writing. And it also helps you bridge the science of the press release format, and the art of copywriting with heart. The why helps you market from the inside out. Really brainstorm this point, to help you create a connection with your reader.

Get clear on why you are writing a release. You may find in the brainstorm process that there are multiple reasons, which can help show all the different angles for the release. The Why brainstorm might also help you see that there is more than one release worth writing. Define the why from a marketing perspective that serves your goals, but be sure that you also define the whys that help sell your message to the target recipient.

Press releases are not about you or your organization. They were about serving the recipient.

How?

The How explains what was unique about the process of how your media was produced or distributed. If it is very unique, this might be the main reason for your press release.

The How of a release can weave an action component into the content. A press release should educate, while also helping to inspire action. The how can include things like attending an event, visiting a company website, watching a video, visiting a store location or making a call. Define your action request, your how, and make sure it is woven into your release.

The best place to put a “Call to action how” into a release is at the end, before the about the company part. A how is usually one sentence and is sometimes an isolated sentence within the release.

Who Cares?The Who Cares, is the most critical brainstorming point when writing a press release. Think of the who cares of a release, as the glue that ties it all together. You already answered why you were writing the release. Asking Who Cares helps your communications go that extra step. Make sure that you cover why should your target reader care.

The Who Cares? makes you dig a level deeper than the “Why?”, to get to the core of what you want to convey. Asking the right questions is the essence of effective communications and information exchange.

Read Other Releases

You can visit press release websites like PRWeb.com or PitchEngine.com or PRNewsWire.com to look at press releases written by other companies. You can search any subject you are interested in.

You will see well written press releases and some not very well written press releases too. The more releases you read, the more you will identify the components of a release and see things you like as well as things that might be missing.

There's no guarantee that any press release will ever be published, but by taking a consistent, professional and newsworthy approach with the reputable editors of respected publications, the probability is good that you'll get some coverage.

Press releases are also great for communicating with clients and prospects. Putting them on your Web site is a very effective means of promoting to your captive markets. It also further substantiates your marketing efforts, as well as your credibility.

No Guarantees

Learning More...The Copywriter's Handbook: A Step-By-Step Guide To Writing Copy That Sells by Robert Bly

For everyone who writes copy: copywriters, account executives, creative directors, freelance writers, advertising managers . . . even entrepreneurs and brand managers. It reveals dozens of copywriting techniques that can help you write ads, commercials, and direct mail that are clear, persuasive, and get more attention—and sell more products.

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