HOW TO WRITE A GOOD PRESS RELEASE

Newspapers, magazines and trade papers are hungry for good stories. But journalists and editors are basically lazy (I am both an editor and journo so I should know). Getting your company's story: a new product, an award, a new appointment.....this is the stuff of a press release. Here are some insider's tips on how to ensure your press release gets noticed and printed.


1. Do not write more than one page (or two at most)
2. Make sure that your story is newsy: something NEW and not just a PR puff
3. Put the new bit of news in the first paragraph
4. Provide a nice eyecatching title but don't try to be too clever (that's the sub editor's job)
5. Provide one (or at most two) quotes from the company and make it substantive - not just "I am so pleased with our new widget"
6. Keep your language nice and simple - short sentences are best
7. Provide a good hi res image (or a link to one). The image should be 300 dpi. A good image can make all the difference
8. Address your press release to the appropriate editor. A story about a new marketing campaign is not much use to the finance editor
9. Include your contact details
10. Put in note form at the end of the release any background points the editor should know: facts and figures or explainations of terms used.

KEEP IT SHORT, PUNCH AND NEWSY NEWSY NEWSY


_{c  Mike Levy 2006}