Many clients often ask me about how to write a press release and is it worth it. My answer is always yes it is!
A press release is like a news story so doesn’t need to be any longer than 300-400 words. You should always start your press release with a summary of the story and it should read like the opening of a news story. Within this introduction you should aim to answer the 5Ws – who, what, where, why and when.
The remainder of the press release can include sub-headings and lists especially if you are including statistics as this will make it easy for the journalist to read. You should always include quotes from at least two people and additional background information including contact details can be added to the ‘notes to editor’ section at the end of the press release.
How to write a press release
So to summarise, we would suggest the following structure for your press release:
- A clear, headline that summarises the story
- An opening paragraph (approximately 20 words) that introduces the story
- Some additional paragraphs that outline the story in more detail
- No more than two quotes from important people that provide more insight
- A ‘notes to editor’ section that includes more background information, contact information such as website/telephone/email.
Remember that the quotes included in the press release should provide insight and opinion and sound like a real person said them.
How to distribute a press release
When it comes to distributing your press release, we would always include a short email to the journalist outlining the idea and then paste the press release underneath. Not all journalists have the time to open attachments as they are usually sent a large number of stories each day!
When it comes to including images, then yes attach these to your email but avoid doing this if they are large files because these can clog up a journalist’s inbox.
Another top tip is to make sure your email subject line is attention grabbing. When a journalist gets sent hundreds of press releases each day, your email needs to stand out from the crowd.
If you would like any advice about how to write a press release or how to contact journalists, then please get in touch.
