Press Releases - Five Things You Must Know
Posted on March 14, 2008 - Filed Under Business
The press release is a great way to get your news out to your target press and media. The key is to understand what journalists want and expect. If you can get in tune with that and have a good knowledge of how they work then it can help to ensure your press release has impact. If you are going to take on the task of doing your own PR then it’s essential that you are aware of the following five points. There are, of course, many others, but these will help you to get your messages across in a way that ticks the boxes for journalists.
- Remember that your focus must be on news. A press release is not an alternative method of advertising with the aim of getting in as many mentions of the company as possible. That is a big turn off for any journalist even if you have a news story to tell.
- Get your news up front in your press release. You have very limited time in which to get the journalist interested. Lose them as they are reading the first paragraph and all your effort will have been wasted. It’s also a good way to test the story. If just the first paragraph was used would the story hold up?
- Check how your target journalists want to receive press releases and notification of news stories. Tailoring your approach will give you a much greater impact.
- Ensure any quotes are reasonably high up in the release. Editors edit from the bottom of a press release up.
- Less is more. Only write enough copy to get your points across – there is no room here for masses of copy. If you are tempted to do that then you need to question whether this is a news story or a feature.
Following these rules is just your starting point. You also need to research and build a strong press and media target listing, identify news opportunities and create ‘hooks’ for stories. Following up is also important as is ongoing monitoring of your target press and media.
Using PR to build your profile and protect your reputation can help you influence the audiences that are important to you - I invite you to access more free articles, tips and information on this and other subjects by visiting the ‘free stuff‘ section of the website - http://www.profilematters.co.uk/resources.php
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Debbie Leven - Profile Matters
Tags: journalist, media, news, newspapers, PR, press, press release, public relations, publicity, radio, TV
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