How to Write a Press Release | Public Relations

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First of all, let me explain to you, what is a press release. A press release is a piece of information that you distribute to the media in hopes that they're going to write about your story. It's one sheet of information explaining the message that you want to get out to the masses, basically. There's a specific way of writing a press release. It's a formula, basically, and it doesn't really change.

At the top, you have your contact information, but the most important thing is the headline. It needs to be catchy. It needs to be short and sweet. And it basically reads like a news headline would in a newspaper. Then underneath the headline is basically your tag line, kind of explaining a little bit more of what that catchy headline was. And then in the body of the press release its information. It's concise. It's not fluffy. It's basically the who, what, when, where, why in a paragraph format of what you are launching, what you're promoting.

Then at the end of the press release you have boilerplate. A boilerplate is about the company and it's basically something that you would have on the company website, just a small paragraph on what the company is. Not your company, not the PR company but the company that you're writing the press release about. Then at the end I always like to reiterate for interviews or to get in touch for more information, I again put my phone number and email. And then you get the three hash tags and you send it out.

One of things I think is press releases, you write them for everything that you're launching, but they're not necessarily going to get you that story. You need to be more creative than just a press release. The press release is there kind of like a fact sheet of information, so if you ever need to refer back to it you can send them the press release. What I'd like to make known is publicists that just send out a press release to mass media and expect to get that lead story, it's not going to happen. You need to work harder than just blasting a press release. You need to figure out where you want that story written and target a pitch specifically to that writer. Do I think press releases are not necessary? No. I think they still need to be creative, I just don't think you're going to get that huge story out of it. You need to be more creative, more strategic. But, a press release needs to be made for anything that you're launching.