The art of writing a press release is a skill that every marketing and public relations professional must learn. Some people may think press releases are outdated, but they are essential to any marketing plan.
Journalists rely on press releases for timely news and article ideas that get noticed. It takes specialized and learned expertise to generate a press release of high quality that the media covers, and the public takes an interest in.
We can help you by providing our most effective press release writing suggestions! Writing an attention-grabbing news release is necessary to reach your public relations goals. Always make sure that your work stands out from the crowd.
Here are a few tips for writing a press release that engages readers and journalists:
- Get started with Recent and Newsworthy Topics
Your press release must have a news aspect that makes it worthwhile for people to pay attention to the writing. Consider the following before you start drafting:
- Why would someone pay attention to your press release?
- Is this story relevant to the target audience?
Remember that a press release is an official statement delivered to the media, including present and future clients. So, you should concentrate on writing about a relevant and newsworthy topic. Press releases are still a source of story ideas for the media. You’ll have a better chance of getting media attention if you highlight why the news is relevant. Here are some suggestions for topics:
- A new product or service launch
- Hiring a new executive
- Receiving an award
- Planning events
- Crisis management
Consider novel ways to address these typical press release subjects to increase relevance and newsworthiness for your audience.
- Consider using an engaging heading
The first thing journalists and readers observe is your press release’s headline. Thus, it needs to be more engaging.
8 out of 10 people will typically read your writing’s title, but only 2 out of 10 people will spend time reading your complete article. So, clarify to your readers why your press release is significant and relevant to them.
Set the focus on the key aspect of your press release by using powerful, action-oriented verbs. You may always create a subhead to include more pertinent details and keywords.
Catchy headline writing tips:
- Add numbers: In headlines, numbers make an impact. According to several studies, headlines that include numbers increase social media shares and engagement by 73%.
- Action words: Using action verbs in your headline builds an emotion of urgency and grabs readers’ attention.
- Use intriguing adjectives: Adjectives offer descriptors that boost your press release’s headline and get viewers’ engagement.
- Accuracy: Including figures and simple language only works if your news release’s headline precisely explains it. By crafting a misleading headline, you may be sure that readers will lose faith in you and won’t read your content again.
- Keep it clear and concise
Don’t feel compelled to provide every available information in your press release. Stick to the facts and avoid diverting from the subject or repeating yourself.
Journalists get dozens of press releases daily, so keep yours brief and to the point. Give journalists access to all the relevant information they need to produce their articles.
A standard piece of advice is to keep it to one or two pages at most, preferably one. When a reader clicks on a link you included in your press release, it improves your website’s search engine rankings.
- Include Multimedia
Whenever possible, try to demonstrate rather than write. Multimedia may help you tell a better tale while providing more details and visual references in your press release.
Press releases with a visual aspect receive three times the number of views. Consider using a video in your press release to engage your target audience on social media.
You need to make sure that multimedia is relevant to your press release content and of high quality. Journalists and viewers will not share blurry images or videos with poor audio.
You can utilize the following types of multimedia:
- Videos: Videos get more attention from viewers, so ensure they’re entertaining and brief.
- Images: Images are the usual format for most news releases. And you can use it for product launches, personnel announcements, new openings, and awards.
- Infographics: Place an infographic to explain the research and higher-level topics visually.
- PDFs: Use a PDF to link to longer-form information, such as a whitepaper or eBook.
- Add strong CTA (Call-To-Action)
Why are you releasing this press release? And what are you expecting the reader to do? A powerful call to action informs your audience about what they must do next.
Therefore, write a clear message for the call to action at the end of your press release, such as “Visit our website” or “Contact us for more information.” After reading your press release, this could inspire readers to act.
However, most readers won’t read your entire press release, so keep your CTA visible in the text, specifically between the first and third paragraphs.
A CTA must include the following elements to be effective:
- Stand out: The CTA should stand alone to draw the reader’s attention away from the rest of your writing.
- Formatting: To bring focus to the CTA, use bold and italics.
- Include a link: Use the entire URL so your audience knows where to go.
Final Thoughts
A well-written press release continues to be important today, even in the social media and instant communication era. Today, so many businesses and brands seek people’s attention that it may be hard to stand out from the crowd and spread the word about what your organization is up to.
Start following these tips; you can write a press release that gets noticed and supports your PR objectives. There will be a higher chance that your message will reach the target audience. After using these press release writing suggestions, you’ll require support for finalizing the content.
You can trust the expert team of Primex Media Services for this critical task. We have years of expertise in crafting error-free and completely crystal-clear press releases. To learn more about writing press releases, contact us now!