5 Tips for Writing Compelling Press Releases

Also called a news release, a press release is a statement written to be distributed to the media. Commercial organizations generally issue these statements to announce acquisitions and mergers, or introduction of new products.  Some people say that the rules of descriptive writing may be used while writing a press release. They feel that companies merely need to give the relevant information to the media and let the journos make the facts intelligible to the public.

However, this is not true. A press release that is written according to the rules of descriptive writing will not do a good job. It will be ignored.

How to write the headline?

The headline should be should brief. It should convey the key point of the statement. Like all other readers, journalists like headlines that ‘grab’ their attention. So write the headlines in bold and use a font that is larger than the font of the body text.

Usually headlines are written in the present tense and the 'a' and 'the' are excluded. It may be a good idea to use some of the most important keywords of the article in the headline because this will increase the chances of the news report getting visibility in search engines.

How to write the body text?

Present the information in such a way that the readers find it relevant. Merely following the rules of descriptive writing will make it a bland narration of facts and events. For example, if you are reporting a merger of two mobile phone service providers, do not merely say that the so and so company has been merged with so and so company. Try to figure out why readers should be bothered about the merger. You could tell the readers that they will enjoy enhanced network availability because of the merger.

What should be the tone of the press release?

A piece of descriptive writing is factual but rather deadpan. Mention facts about the projects, goals, services, events, and products in an interesting manner. The easiest way to make sure that the press release has all the relevant information is to convey the H and the 5 Ws: how, and who, when, what, where, and why.

Never repeat anything in a press release. Editors and journalists are always overworked. If you give them a press release that they have to edit, they may fling it aside and move on the next one. Jargon should also be avoided because of this.

What else should be mentioned?

Generally, a press release has a separate section that gives information about the company which generates the statement. Never promote your company while writing about it. In this it is advisable to follow the rules of descriptive writing. Remember that the difference between promotional writing and descriptive writing is that the latter should be as objective as possible.

If the journalists are interested in the press release, they may wish to seek more information or interview the people involved. Thus, the contact details must include the company's name, the complete address, the email address, the telephone and fax numbers, the name of the contact person, and the company's website.

Conventions:

To makes things easier for the scribes, also mention either 'IMMEDIATE RELEASE' or 'EMBARGOED UNTIL (date)' on the left margin above the headline. End the release with '# # #'. This is a convention followed by journalists.

And always keep your releases as short as possible. Extraneous words always reduce the impact of releases.