What do you do with junk mail? Are you like me? I toss this stuff without opening it – unless I see some benefit. Publication editors do the same. They toss news releases that don’t demonstrate a benefit to their audience.What’s the difference between a release that gets used and one that hits the editor’s circular file? Here are seven easy tips for writing releases that get picked up rather than thrown out.
- Make sure it’s newsworthy. What’s newsworthy, you ask. To be newsworthy your topic needs to be timely, of interest to the publication’s audience, benefit-oriented, and substantive (that is, not self-serving, hype or fluff.)
- Write a powerful headline. The headline is what will pull in the editor or leave her/him cold.
Keep it short and descriptive, but make it interesting. - Use journalist style. Editors are looking for the facts, not fluff. Be sure to include the essentials: Who, What, When, Where, Why and How.
- Keep it brief. Editors are pressed for time and inundated with releases. Keep yours to one page, 300-800 words. The headline and first two paragraphs are the most important parts of your release.
- Avoid jargon. Even if you’re sending a release on a technical topic to a technical journal, resist the temptation to use acronyms. Spell it out! Use common language. It will make your releases more readable and accessible.
- Proof it. The accuracy of your release – including spelling and grammar – reflects on your company. If you aren’t good at proofreading your own stuff, enlist someone else to do it.
- Include a photo. Okay. This isn’t a writing tip, but it’s good advice anyway. Publications are looking for good quality visuals, so including a photo, illustration, chart or graph (with a caption, please) increases your chance of getting picked up.
Follow these tips to improve your news release writing. But remember that the keys to a successful news release program are a good list of publications and a regular mailing schedule of newsworthy items. Persistence WILL pay off.
?Copyright 2005 Clairvoyant Communications, Inc.
