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How to Write a Press Release Format

January 1, 2021September 25, 2013 by Adam Oakley

If you’re marketing a new project, promoting a product, or driving awareness to an upcoming event, learning how to write a press release format is critical. A press release is a treasured tool that, when created correctly, can have a massive impact on the success of your upcoming merger, project, or launch. Unfortunately, however, many writers don’t know how to craft a great press release! If you’re in this boat, you’re not alone. While press releases are essential marketing tools, they can be difficult to write. Learning the ins and outs of creating great ones can help you differentiate yourself from the competition and make all your marketing efforts more successful – across the board. Here’s what you need to know. What’s the Purpose of a Press Release? Press releases are educational documents that, when done correctly, answer the five W’s: who, what, where, when, why? Designed to inform the press and the public about changes to your company, new and noteworthy products, goods, and services, or major mergers and acquisitions, a press release is a concise, informative piece of media. Unlike sales copy, press releases don’t try to sell something or approach anything from any angle. Instead, they only lay out the facts, use some quotes from influencers, and move on. How to Write a Press Release Format: A Step-by-Step Approach When it comes down to learning how to write a press release format, ALWAYS remember that a press release should be brief, go straight to the heart of the matter, and should contain only the necessary information. Bear in mind that a press release is meant to intrigue journalists and editors first, and your audience second. The media professionals who will read your press release are not looking for fancy formatting, industry jargon, or shiny graphics. They want the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. Here’s how to deliver it: How to Write a Press Release Format: Working from the Top of the Page to the Bottom! If you’ve never written a press release before, tackling the form can feel intimidating. Here’s a simple, step-by-step breakdown to help you: At The Top Of The Document The top of the press release is what people see first. As such, it’s one of the most critical portions of the PR. To make it instantly recognizable, include your brand’s logo and a headline that tells people what the press release is about and what they can expect to learn from it. For best results, your headline should contain target keywords. Headline. The best headlines are brief and to-the-point. The headline should not exceed 65 characters or else you risk losing reader attention and having the headline truncated by Google. Ensure you capitalize each word in the headline – making exceptions for words that have fewer than three characters or prepositions. While a press release is a more informative document than many you might be used to writing, the headline is no less important. This means attractive, attention-grabbing headlines rule, just like everywhere else. Sub-Headline/Summary. Your sub-header or summary should be a maximum of two sentences, and should provide a bit more detail about the “meat” of the press release. Again, keep it brief and intriguing. Contact information. Some press release writers input their contact information directly beneath their company’s logo, in line with the left margin of the document. Others place it after the body copy. This is up to you, just so long as the contact information is highly visible! Release Date. Release date helps people interpret the relevance of your press release. More recent = more relevant. With this in mind, include the release date at the top of your press release, just below the logo, aligned with the right margin of the release. Dateline. The dateline tells readers where and when your press release was published. It goes right before the body text and follows this format: CITY, STATE, Month, Day. The Body of the Press Release The body of the press release is the place where you can go into more detail about your chosen topic. For best results, you’ll need to use a minimum of 300 words and a maximum of 600 words. While it’s tempting to dive too deep and tell readers everything there is to know about your event, merger, or product, remind yourself that press releases lay out all the needed information, and nothing else. With this in mind, follow these tips for great body copy: Keep Paragraphs Short. For best results, the paragraphs of your body text should be between 2-4 sentences. No longer. Include Relevant Back-Up Information. If they’re available to you, use statistics, hyperlinks, quotes from professionals, and media content (like videos and images) in your body copy. This will enhance the reader’s experience and make your press release more valuable. Separate Block Quotes. If you do use block quotes, separate them to highlight them and draw them out from the rest of the text. To add depth to the press release, pull in quotes that offer a perspective that’s different from the writer’s. The Boilerplate Information Boilerplate information lives at the end of your press release and presents information about your brand or company. Designed to be used in various press releases, and picked up by journalists to provide additional context about your business, boilerplate information should provide some details about who your brand is, what you do, when the company was founded, and where people can find you. Include relevant social media links to connect people with your business across the web. End Notation At the end of your press release, signal to readers that you’re all done with the following symbol, centered in the middle of the page: ###. After that, you can input a final sentence inviting people to reach out to you or your company head with a name, phone number, and email address. Common Press Release Mistakes to Avoid No lesson on how to write a press release format is complete without pointing out the … Read more

Organizational Teamwork Is the Way to Cook Up A Press Release

January 1, 2021September 24, 2013 by Adam Oakley

Business owners and writers these days are agog over when to release a press release, what with internet information allowing seconds-speed access to an infinite sea of readers, critics, bloggers and business competition; it’s understandable to be somewhat overwhelmed. There is one thing that could help manage the tides and keep your press release on the right track: organizational teamwork.

How to Write a Press Release for a Band

January 1, 2021September 11, 2013 by Adam Oakley

In order to get the attention of new fans, it is important to learn how to write a press release for a band that is relevant and informative. A well-written press release for a band, whether they are brand new or established, can increase attendance at a concert, improve attendance at an album launch or gig, and gain faithful fans who otherwise might not have heard of them. A release that does not contain accurate or adequate information will be ignored and the crowd might be sparse for their next performance.

How to Write a Press Release for a Movie

December 31, 2020September 10, 2013 by Adam Oakley

Need to boost your press and learn how to write a press release for a movie? You’re in the right place – and the right direction. A well-written press release for a movie will significantly ramp up its viewership by helping spark interest in its production or by generating media buzz about a particular aspect of the film such as a reclusive indie director, a controversial actress playing a cameo role, or an ingeniously crafted screenplay. But, you have to know how to write a press release for a movie. Like everything else these days, a movie—however exquisitely produced or complemented by big-name stars—will make a terrible mistake if it solely relies on its internal merits to boost its bottom line. In fact, a few critically acclaimed films performed poorly in the box office, while movies with less artistic or technical credentials unexpectedly raked in millions of mind-blowing dollars in gross sales. In many cases, well-written press releases spell the difference between a movie that attracts high viewership and one that miserably misses its revenue targets. Knowing the secrets of the trade in how to write a press release for a movie will boost your PR readability and power. How to Write a Press Release for a Movie Raindance, an international organization of filmmakers, has recognized the importance of marketing and public relations to a film’s success, clearly stating that a movie—even one that has bagged major cinematic awards—is worthless without a viewing audience. This is from an organization that helps train directors such as Christopher Nolan (Batman Begins), Guy Ritchie (Sherlock Holmes) and David Yates (Harry Potter), as well as produce brilliant and strongly marketed films such as Pulp Fiction and The Blair Witch Project. Press Releases vs. Ad Copies That said, what factors should you consider when how to write a press release for a movie? Press releases represent the main tool outside advertising, which movie publicists and marketers can use to generate viewer interest about a film. Unlike true-blue ads, press releases are deemed more objective and are far more affordable. Strictly speaking, press releases are pseudo news articles that aim to showcase the newsworthiness of an event, service or product—a film in this case—to a decision maker in media such as a reporter or an editor. Failing to pique the interest of these decision makers will prevent the publication of the press release in credible and widely used channels such as established newspapers and online media portals. Compare the impact of a press release published in The New York Times and the effect of one just wallowing among thousands being hosted by a PR aggregator, and you can see the importance of why press releases should be written and deployed by trained professionals. You can read a related post to get more insight on how to create effective press releases. Six Key PR Writing Tips for Films As has been established, the process of writing and distributing press releases is very important in the box office success of a newly produced movie. If you are tasked to create one, here are a few tips to help you achieve your PR objectives: 1. Recognize your role. Trained press release writers for films are aware of the potential impact of their output on the overall profitability of the movie they are handling. Remember that press releases can backfire instead of propelling a movie’s gross receipts, and failing to get published on widely read channels is not the worst outcome a press release can generate. At their worst, badly written or deployed press releases can create negative publicity for a movie, which often results to a major dent in its box office revenues. Poorly crafted press releases can also damage the PR agency’s reputation and—knock on wood—ruin your credential as a press release writer. The key is to take your role seriously and to deftly navigate the potholes that block the development of good, effective press releases. 2. Package the message. A movie has a message. For PR purposes, the message could be one that is not intrinsic in the film but in the process of making it. However, the best message a movie can communicate is the movie itself. This means that writers tasked to craft a press release for a movie should have a panoramic view (pun intended) of the material whenever possible, including attendance at prescreening sessions whenever there is one. If there are limited prescreening sessions, make do with the information the filmmakers are willing to share and use your ingenuity to package the message. To do this, you can showcase the film’s major draw such as its director, cast, story, or special effects. Remember to be especially creative, original and clever when deciding on the press release’s title. The first few sentences should also deliver your message in a way that readily catches viewer attention and entices readers to wait for the film’s theatrical release in eager anticipation. If you are new in the trade, it’s a great idea to snoop around the Internet for excellent press releases for films that you can use as models. 3. Follow the standard formats. Press releases for films generally conform to a more or less standard template and it’s good practice to follow industry-accepted formats in knowing how to write a press release for a movie. Doing so not only reflects professionalism but also lends the press release with a sense of credibility. Commonly, a press release for a movie has the following major elements: Company name and contact info of press release agency Date of PR publication (this can either be for immediate release or for a specified date) Press release title Location and date of the press release (usually a major city followed by a dash, the date, and a final dash) Press release body (should not only showcase the film’s major merits but answer the standard questions of Who, What, Where, When, Why and How in the journalism parlance) Boilerplate (this is where information about related … Read more

How to Write a Press Release for Audience Engagement and SEO

January 1, 2021September 4, 2013 by Adam Oakley

Press releases are a thing of the present, so how to write a press release is imperative for you to know. Google loves them, people notice them, and they are the perfect candidate for sharing around on all social platforms in existence. If you are considering a press release for your company, join the crowd investing in one of the top ways online to get your name out. With a high quality press release boosting your brand and audience, it’s time to learn the name of the game in PR.

How To Write a Press Release That Rocks Your Audience

5 Effective Press Release Writing Skills That You Should Apply to Deliver a Compelling Message

January 1, 2021August 27, 2013 by Adam Oakley

Because the structure of a press release is pretty standard, numerous content writers erroneously think that creativity has nothing to do with first-class press release writing skills. While the format of a press release leaves very little room for surprise, its content should make your announcement truly stand out. After all, your main goal is to capture the attention of numerous media channels; to deliver a meaningful, compelling message; and to create buzz around your product release, upcoming event, and any other newsworthy element that you plan to put on full display. Are you worried that your press release writing skills might be a little rusty? Start implementing these 5 amazingly effective tips to craft informative, attention-grabbing press releases, enabling you to get a significant amount of media coverage.

How To Write A Press Release: 7 Ways That Work

November 16, 2020August 24, 2013 by Adam Oakley

How to write a press release is a skill that writers who want to excel need to learn. Writing a good press release takes skill, and it is important for a company’s image to write convincing and evocative ones. Press releases are the key to piquing the interest of reporters, journalists and writers to interest them in reading or writing about your company. Gone are the days when press releases only meant articles found in newspapers. Today, press releases can mean anything from telling others about your company and latest developments to showcasing important information that will interest others. In this article, we discuss how to write press releases.

10 Tips for Writing a Solid Press Release

December 31, 2020June 24, 2013 by Adam Oakley

It has long been understood that a well-written press release with newsworthy appeal and relevance will get attention. But many businesses continue to write releases that don’t fit the bill, often hindering their image instead. 10 Top Tips To Guide You In Writing a Great Press Release 1. Make it relevant. A news release won’t garner attention if it’s not newsworthy. You have to craft it well. A good rule of thumb: does it read like a news story—is it factual yet engaging, and does it represent you well? If not, go back and re-sketch. Consumers can see the difference between credible news and promotional gun slinging. A sales pitch with lots of superlatives will go nowhere. So skip the hard sell. 2. Always incorporate keywords. You can’t underestimate the importance of search engine optimization. SEO is the fastest way to get your press release into the hands of your target market. You need to know which keywords best convey your service or brand and then incorporate it within the headline, summary, body, and even in the About the company section. 3. Know your audience. Keep your target audience in mind. Speak the language a consumer can understand and relate to. Is your product geared more to a particular audience than another? It’s better to pitch within your market than to be all over the board. 4. A short and sweet headline. When creating a headline, focus on two things: positioning for search (a keyword phrase) and creating a compelling-clickable title. The best headlines do both by conveying the content of the release. Though there is no standard limit on how many words to use in a headline, Google New’s guidelines suggest fewer than 23 words; and to be displayed on Google’s SERP use 67 characters (letters and spaces combined) or less. 5. Never write in the first person, or use the word “you.” Always write in the third person. Businesses who write in the “you” form potentially risk being targeted as spam. Moreover, it’s unprofessional. 6. Embed, embed, embed. Today’s press release is no longer the announcement of yesterday. Now you can include pictures, audio, video, and other multimedia components. They bring context to your content and give the consumer a chance to interact with you. So it just makes sense to become familiar with the new online template of today. 7. Use simple language. Now that everyone has access to your news release—from the everyday layman to industry experts—skip the industry-specific language, unless it’s essential to communicate your message. You could potentially turn away readers if they can’t understand your terminology. Brevity and clear writing is key. 8. Link it. Everything is on the Web today, so make sure you provide a list of clickable links to your brand website, blog, or social media sites. If you can, try to include anchor texts in three different keywords of the body text, with one linking to an internal page other than your homepage. It goes without saying that wherever you send your reader, it needs to enhance your brand or product. 9. Include quotes. Always include one or two quotes in the body text. Quotes give you authority, making you sound credible. Give reference to the person at the end of the quote, instead of in between sentences. 10. Don’t forget contact information. It’s important that people can contact your business. Besides that, many publishers will not accept your submission without contact details. Include media contact person, address, phone, email, and website. Hopefully, these tips can help you enhance your PR writing. But if writing a news release feels intimidating, let us take on your press writing for you. A knowledgeable press release writer can create press that will increase your exposure, putting you in a better position to be picked up by reputable media outlets and other well-established sites—such as bloggers, industry experts, or key-note organizations—thereby directing target traffic to your business, brand, or service. Get your press release services today!

How to Choose the Right Press Release Writing Services for You

August 4, 2022May 15, 2013 by Adam Oakley

Although many things have changed in recent years as far as how people choose to communicate with their clientele, there’s one thing that has emerged into the internet age virtually unchanged – the press release. Press releases still represent the quintessential way to make announcements to news outlets, journalists, bloggers, and more in a way that generates interest while preventing misinformation. If your company isn’t leveraging the power of press release writing, then it’s high time you thought about doing so. You might want to consider hiring today’s best press release writing services to help. Press release writing requires a specific skill set that not every web content writing provider will have as part of their arsenal. Here’s how to make sure you make the best possible choice for you: Relevant Experience Although there are many talented, worthwhile freelance content writers for hire out there, it’s important to recognize the fact that not all of them are created equally. Writing press releases isn’t the same animal as writing blog entries or sales articles. For that reason, make sure the press release writing services you choose come from a content provider who has extensive experience writing press releases in particular. Ask to see multiple writing samples – especially those related to products and services similar to yours. Request the writer elaborate on their writing method for creating press releases to make sure it sounds like a fit. A Proven Track Record Not only should press release writers be able to show you plenty of examples of previous work well written, but they should be able to point to evidence that their writing produces results. Ask for links to press releases written for other clients, as well as for testimonials from previous satisfied customers. You should request references, as well, and then actually make it a point to contact those people. The best press release writing services come from providers who jump at the chance to show you how good they are at what they do. Included Elements of the Service Before deciding once and for all on your choice in press release writing services, make sure you’re clear on what the provider does and doesn’t include as part of their service. Do the prices they quoted you cover any edits or revisions you might decide the content needs? Does the writer also submit the press releases to relevant outlets on your behalf or is that part of the task up to the client? Some service providers do include extras as part of the package, but others don’t. Neither way is right or wrong. However, you should make sure you know what you’re getting in advance in order to avoid disappointment. Hire a Team of Professionals Many entrepreneurs find they have much better working experiences hiring teams of writers, as opposed to sole providers. Writing teams are only going to consist of pre-evaluated professionals who have truly earned their positions, so you don’t have to take a gamble on a complete unknown. They’re more likely to be able to match your company with exactly the right individual for you. Best of all, teams are better able to accommodate you when it comes to rush orders, big bulk packages, and unusual subject matter. That said, ask a writing team about their options in press release writing services today! You’ll be glad that you did. [button href=”https://staging.expresswriters.com/contact-us/” colorstart=”#72B544″ colorend=”#72B544″ colortext=”#fafafa” icon_size=”” class=”slide-button1″ target=”” color=”” align=”” width=”” icon=”” ]Get Your Press Release Now[/button]