A press release is a written announcement that seeks to draw media attention as a claim to being newsworthy.
A news release or press release is a public relations announcement issued to the news media and other targeted publications for the purpose of letting the public know of:
- A newly published article
- An upcoming workshop or seminar
- That you won an award
- A new service offered
- That your store is now open for business
- New company developments
- A specific event
- A new product launch
- Latest art works, shows, gigs
- and much more endless ideas on news worth writing about!
Here’s the Basic Information Needed to Write a Press Release
1. When writing a press release, write it in the third person as if you are writing an article.
2. Information that needs to be included within your press release are a headline that will grab attention, an introductory paragraph that has full details in a concise manner (this is vital because only a part of your press release may be used).
3. The details of the first paragraph should include who it’s about, the location, what it’s about, when, how and why is it important. The paragraph summarizes these important details in a manner that is interesting.
Take a look at your local newspaper for examples of how the first paragraph is written. Compare the different news releases to see which ones make you want to read more and which ones you stop reading after the first paragraph. Write sample releases to emulate the ones that make you want to read more.
4. The remaining of the press release should go into more details and include testimonials, quotes and statistics.
5. The final paragraph is a summary.
In closing, you can mention where to go get samples, product availability, acknowledgments. You can then add your contact information which is key to getting business – include a contact name, address, phone number, email and website.
How to Distribute Your Press Release
Typically, a press release is emailed, mailed or faxed to editors at newspapers, magazines, radio stations, television stations, and/or television networks.
Commercial newswire services are also used to distribute news releases. There are free online services while others are inexpensive to use. Here’s a list of the top internet services for Press Release Marketing:
1. PR.com
2. PR Web International, Inc.
3. PRZOOM / Limelon Advertising, Co.
4. Market WIRED
5. PR Leap
6. PR Newswire
The process of creating a Press Release has been made very simple with a Press Release Template. For those of you with a very tight budget, you can download just the template that you need. If you want to give back to the person giving the resources at the website, it only costs $19 to download all the templates.
By the way, I don’t make a commission for referrals I give in this article. The resources work and that is what Help 2 Succeed is about: delivering real help that has been tried, works and thus suggested to you.