Anybody can write a press release
Anybody can come up with a well-written press release. If you are looking to write your own, here are some pointers.
The tone of a press release
For starters, make sure that you always stick to an objective tone. Sure, the goal here is to promote your business—which means sell, sell, sell—but that’s not how press releases work. You need to provide readers with basic information about your company or one of the products or services that you offer and steer them towards wanting to find out more – all while sounding objective at the same time. Seems challenging? It is. However, once you get the hang of it, the process is relatively simple.
Some press release writers use this trick: They draft up an article with all the sales-y talk, and then edit it down three to four times until an objective, unbiased, but at the same time positive angle and tone is achieved. Once you have your initial draft, review it, and then rephrase the hard-sell parts until they sound more neutral. If your company and products and services are as good as you say they are, then even the barest words will be able to convey their greatness.
Be factual and complete, but leave a little bit of mystery, too. Press releases are made as forms of ‘invitations’ for other people to write about you. If you already provide everything there is to know about you, then there’d be no reason to look you up further. No look ups mean no free promotions, and zero promotions can be very bad for business.
Parts of a press release
A press release has several parts. It has a headline, subhead, lead, body, boilerplate, and contact information.
The headline is essentially the title of your press release. If you can, try to limit it in as few words as possible, but at the same time, make it dramatic enough to hook your reader.
The subhead works as support for the headline, providing more information about the topic. While it is aimed at expounding the title, it must provide information without taking away too much attention from the title. The subhead is written differently to the headline, in the same format as the title.
The lead is your press release’s introductory paragraph. It centers on answering the questions who, what, when, where, and how.
The body provides additional information for the lead. To make your press release more credible, you can use quotes from authority figures on the topic or from the company.
The boilerplate is a short paragraph on the company, about one to two sentences long, containing basic information.
The contact information is the last part, providing readers with the necessary information to contact you or the public relations person in charge, should there be a need.
You have a press release. What now?
It’s time to submit it, of course. You can either choose to submit it personally to newswires or enlist the help of press release distribution services like FastPressReleaser.Com. The good thing about distribution services is that aside from submissions, they can also help you in crafting press releases. You can also read through published press releases from other companies and take inspiration from them. Read as many as you can and jot down ideas. You will be writing your very own press release in no time.
