Press releases are among the most important content a business puts out.  

They help get media coverage and communicate crucial information to the public.  

So, knowing how to write one is essential, especially if you don’t have an in-house PR team to do it for you. But how do you write a press release? This guide will provide everything you need in your quest to master the area of writing a press release.

Step-by-step guide on writing a good press release

Know your target audience

You can get everything right, but it all counts for naught if you miss your audience.  

You have to know your audience and choose an angle/perspective that appeals the most to them. But who is your audience? That would be the journalists and readers of the medium/publication you are targeting.  

Getting your press release accepted by a journalist is arguably the hardest part.

First, you need to research the journalist and see if their area of expertise matches the information on your press release.  

This ensures that you target a journalist (s) who will likely be interested in what you have to say. As for your potential readers, look at the medium through which the press release gets to them. Is it a local newspaper, specialist magazine, or digital journal? If you target different mediums, you should write different versions to cater to the difference in perspective.

The structure

A good press release structure makes you look like a seasoned PR pro.  

This, in turn, makes it more likely that the journalist will pick up your release. A good structure also ensures that journalists can easily find important information, allowing them to quickly determine whether they will cover your story. Press releases typically follow a common structure.

However, as you gain experience and trust in your abilities, you should be able to play around with the format and enjoy some flexibility.

The heading

The first rule of pretty much any type of content is to make the heading as catchy as possible.  

This is because it's the first thing your audience will read, and if they don’t like it, they won’t read any further.  

The same rule applies even harder to press releases. So, how do you go about it? You need to find a newsworthy heading- one that belongs in the headlines. It should be able to pick the interest of the reader. But as you try to do that, avoid using clickbait and cliche headlines. You should also make it fresh and short so that it's easier to read and looks appealing to your audience.

The lead

Next is the lead, i.e., content that follows immediately after the heading.

It is one of the most important parts of your press release. Here, rather than focus on sounding interesting, try to provide some value to your audience.  

This is done by answering the five W’s of press releases: what, who, when, where, and why. A good lead is long enough to provide the essential details but short enough to remain interesting.

This has been cleverly named ‘the miniskirt rule,’ and applying it allows you to pique the reader’s curiosity while providing impatient readers with answers to the most important questions. However, be careful not to give up all the details at once.

The body

Now, you provide the reader with all the information you want them to know. Go into the details of what happened, why it's significant, expected results, etc.

However, avoid filler information and go straight to the point. No journalist wants to read what seems like an entire chapter of a book just to find a few paragraphs of newsworthy content. The goal is to communicate and provide value, not fill a whole column and the ad space below.

Boilerplate and contact informaton

The boilerplate is how you end a press release. It may be the final part of a press release, but it still deserves as much quality as the rest.  

This is because the boilerplate is where you provide some additional info about your company and you. Think of it as the business card at the end of your press release.  

You should also provide your company’s name, your name, and contact information. These are important because journalists may want to reach you or someone else in your business to ask additional questions about the story.  

Thus, most journalists don’t publish press releases that lack the writer's contact information.  

Note that the boilerplate isn’t as rigid as the rest of the press release sections. So you can make it as fun and interesting as you want, as long as you keep it short.

Best practices when writing press releases

Here are a few things you can do to make your press releases more appealing:

1. Include different perspectives: Writers use quotes in press releases to integrate diverse perspectives into the text, making it more interesting and readable.
2. Use natural language: Remember that with press releases, you are writing for people more than you are for search engines. So, just follow a natural, conversational tone and avoid keyword stuffing.
3. Stick to the facts: If it didn’t happen, don’t report it. If it happened one way, don’t report it the other way. That way, you’ll maintain a good reputation among journalists, and they’ll run your story next time.
4. Provide sources: If your press release has information derived from external sources, make sure to cite them. This makes the text more credible, that is, if your source is legitimate and not full of fake news.
5. Master the story: If the journalist is interested, they may call you for more information on the story. And if you happen only to know what is in the press release, your news is as good as not-published. Thus, you must research well and learn as much as possible about what you are reporting.
6. Include an image: In the spirit of making your press release interesting, have a picture or two. Furthermore, images allow you to convey extra information without inflating the word count.

How to write a press release

Pitfalls to avoid

• Writing too much: A good press release doesn’t exceed 400 words. So, when writing, keep it short and straight to the point.
• Not knowing enough about the target they are pitching: Does the journalist in question work for a media outlet that covers the story in your press release? Unfortunately, some people don't really pay attention to the publication or media outlet they are targeting, which significantly reduces the chances of having their story picked up.
• Clickbait: As much as you want to make your headline tempting, clickbait is one of those things that should never be included in a press release. Your proposal will likely go straight to the trash if the journalist figures out that the content doesn’t fit the headline.
• Non-newsworthy content: Is your story actually worth reporting? Press releases are supposed to cover new and interesting developments in your business. If it's something that has happened before and it doesn’t seem like people will be interested in it, then putting out a press release is a big waste of time.
• Using too much business jargon: If you have a great understanding of your industry, it would be great to dumb it down a little bit for your audience. However, avoid using business jargon as much as possible, especially if your audience is average consumers who may not be familiar with such terms.

Releasing your press release

Today, most press releases are emailed to the target publications. What differs from one release to another is the format. Generally, you have the following formats at your disposal:

PDF

Plain text

Interactive press release

So…