Help! I Have to Write a Press Release but I’m Not in PR

There is Help-Lots of It

There is plenty of PR help (both free and paid) out there. In fact, if you Google "press release help" or "press release distribution" you'll probably be overwhelmed at the number of results, services and vendors that come back. In fact, searching through who's who and what they have to offer can involve more work than writing the actual press release!

The remainder of this article will guide you through (in my humble, professional opinion, of course) what is truly valuable as you work your way through the press release process of creation and distribution.

Press Release Creation
As with most press releases, time is critical. The faster you can get the word out, the better. So, having these items on hand is a major must.

1. A press release template. Get one if you do not have one. Always include your organization's "boiler plate" paragraph at the end of the release. Put a name and contact information on every release.

Quick Tip: The most important information should appear in the opening paragraph. If you don't clearly state your announcement within those first two to three sentences, editors will simply trash your release.

2. Key product details. Create a folder that contains key product/service information. When creating press releases, many people forget to include a few short sentences describing what their product/service does. Although you may know your product/company inside and out, the reader most likely doesn't. Compile a list of your most compelling and direct product/service descriptions and put them in an easily accessible folder. Then, when the time comes, you simply dump the specific content in where it's needed.

Quick Tip: If you're trying to create some elegant and thoughtful language, but are coming up short, try this quick tip. Simply look for similar press releases on the Web. For example, if you're writing a press release about your company's latest dog food product, try Googling, "New Dog Food Products, Press Release." Skim the press releases that show up and grab the content you like. Then modify the language so that it's consistent and accurate with your product/service/announcement. Of course, you'll want to quadruple check that you have eliminated any specific mention of the release you grabbed from.

3. Introductory e-mail templates. Create introductory e-mail templates that provide a very quick intro about your company. Use these templates when you want to send your release to a business or media contact.

Quick Tip: If you happen to have any direct media contacts, whether they be local or niche, it's wise to save all correspondence and use your previous e-mails with them as your template e-mails. If the last e-mail you sent a contact contained a press release about an award your company received, you could quickly re-draft that e-mail to say something like, "Hi Bill, I sent you a press release about our company's award in May. Please find our latest release about our newest customer attached."

Where You Can Go
If you need help with templates, there are several free and inexpensive options. Here are a few popular ones:

This press release template and distribution solution provides press release templates as well as media contacts and distribution services.

Duct Tape Marketing takes you through the creation process and allows you to create your press release online.

This is another good site that provides sample templates and tips

Press Release Distribution
Many press release distribution agencies charge hefty fees to distribute your press release to the mass media outlets. If your company has the resources for this, there is certainly nothing wrong with using such agencies. However, there are several less expensive (even free) options.

Here are some distribution tips, options and resources.

Bigger doesn't mean better. The logic is that the more places your release is posted the more chance it will have to get picked up by an editor. Although there is some truth to this, the fact remains that if you sell dog food (for example), your release is not likely to get picked up by CNN. The key to press coverage is specific and targeted placement.

Create a list of the publications/sites that you'd like to be featured in, and focus your efforts on those. If you know the top blogs, magazines or Web sites in your niche, see if they have press release submission guidelines, and submit it directly to them. Work on the bigger ones first, and submit to as many as you have time for.

Go local. It won't take more than a few minutes for you to add a local spin to the intro and / or headline of the press release. Send it to the most relevant journalists or editors at your local paper.

Post your press releases to your Web site. Customers, prospects, possible investors, etc. all visit your Web site to see what's new. Post a link of your most recent releases on your homepage.

Where You Can Go
Here are some sites that will submit your release to the Internet news sites, such as Google and Yahoo! News for free. Remember though, bigger doesn't mean better, so using one or just a few will probably be sufficient. Pick the one(s) that seem right for you.

• PR.com
• 1888PressRelease.com
• 24-7 Press Release
• PRzoom.com

If you're new to PR, you're probably quickly discovering that it's not an easy job (thus the demand for big and pricey PR firms!). Indeed, the free and less expensive options listed in this article aren't meant to completely replace or compete with the larger PR services and agencies. They are just some great ways for those of us without the time and resources to get our press releases out quickly and effectively.