Masonry Magazine September 2002 Page. 46
Marketing 101
What to Include in a Press Release
Linda Vande Vrede
Scottsdale, AZ
According to Webster's New World Dictionary, a press release is "a statement or story prepared for release to the news media." Therein lies the problem that many companies have when they prepare a news release. They write them as if they were designing marketing brochures to be handed to the end user, and forget that the medium is really intended for an editorial audience first, not a consumer audience. Sticking to the original intention of news release formats will help you write press releases that are picked up, not ignored, by the media.
You may see other companies going for the sensational, promotional type of press release writing style. Don't worry! The media won't pick these up and are more than likely going out of their way to ignore the company that practices this technique. Just because you see press releases written in this style does not mean the editors receive them with warmth and admiration.
Basic Press Release Components
In general, releases should include the following standard components:
Company logo, location, and contact information-Remember, many of the editors you send your release will not be familiar with your company or where it's located, so include that info on the electronic submission. If you still are using hard copy, print the release on company letterhead and just key in "News Release" across the top right hand portion of the page. There is no need to order special paper just for news releases.
Contact information that can be easily found - It's helpful to put the contact information at the beginning or top of the press release, including name, number and E-mail address of the person who is responsible for handling media inquiries. Some companies include the information at the end, but the editor may not read your release all the way through.
Headline Decide what you are announcing, and make the headline clear: "XYZ. Masonry Hires Susan Doe as President"; or "ABC Masonry Announced New Capabilities for Residential Builders."
Subhead that summarizes the focus of the release - This subhead should really hit the hot buttons of the announcement what are the implications, benefits and ramifications of the announcement? If you're announcing a new service, what succinct benefit does it provide the customer? If you have a new president, what is she or he chartered to do? Is your company taking a new strategic direction?
Dateline-Editors work on deadlines and like to compile information that is fresh. Include a "dateline" on every release, one that mentions the date and the city or town where your company is issuing the announcement. If it's from company headquarters, use the headquarters city. If it's issued during a trade show at which you're exhibiting, you can use the location of the trade show itself.
Body-This is perhaps the area that most companies trip up on. In the first paragraph, try to include as much as possible of the who/what/where/why/when so that an editor need only read the first few lines to get the "meat" of the announcement. If you're announcing a partnership with another company, or a recent customer win, it's helpful to include a brief, informative quote from the other partner or company. Try to make the quote meaningful and descriptive of what the customer's perspective is.
Remember, however, that most quotes are not taken seriously by editors because they suspect (and in 85 percent of the instances they are probably correct) that the vendor created the quote for the customer in order to make themselves look good.
Include straightforward detail about the announcement you're making. If you have a new service, when is it available? Does it replace other services? How much does it cost? What will it help cus-