The first thing to establish is whether a press release is the right vehicle for the story. Press releases should only be used if you have a genuine news story to announce.
News stories are typically time-sensitive events that the wider market has no prior knowledge of. The story must feel timely and new.
Once you’ve established that you have something that can genuinely be considered ‘news’, a press release can be a powerful tool to communicate the story.
We’re not great believers in rigid templates for anything – including press releases – but the following basic structure is a solid guideline for what we think works best:
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A headline that tells the story succinctly.
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A short paragraph that presents the facts, often best structured as the ‘Five Ws’ of the story: Who, What, When, Where and Why?
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Short quotes from the key people involved in the story. The quotes are an opportunity to inject a bit of colour, personality and insight into the narrative
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Standard ‘boilerplate’ information for each of the businesses mentioned in the press release
- Links to images and contact details for further information and interviews