Hello! I read 2 or 3 threads for Press releases.. as i can see, Press Release is a great marketing technique and i thought that i should try it with one of my best site. Though here in dp i can find a great amount of information about press releases, I feel confused, from what i read. i don't know where should i start from! Plz give me some tips, tell me how much money should i spend and where should i invest them! I am compeletely rookie in this and i want some instructions PS. I have no connections with journalists Thanx a lot
The best option would be to hire someone to write a press release for you. There are people here at DP who do a good job at press release writing and will also handle distribution for you. Best of luck.
I'm sure there are a ton of sites about the show. What makes your newsworthy, or at least moreso than all the rest? Do you have exclusive news no one else has yet? Do you have an exclusive interview with someone working with the show? If nothing, then you shouldn't write a press release. Having a mid-season premiere of the show isn't enough to make that a generally newsworthy topic either. Everyone would already know about it, so why would a journalist care? You need to give them something different. For example, if there were something particularly newsworthy (like some drastic change) with the show itself (especially something the general public doesn't already know), then you would focus the release on that, and bring your site into it by offering a quote from yourself, and citing it with your name and site's URL.
Press releases are easy, I use to do them for a living (and a whole pile of other spin). Just remember KISS and stick to roughly this format (and keep the paragraphs fairly short, say no longer than 3 lines if you can. Paragraph split. Intro short explanation. quote quote divider/ (further) explanation quote quote/ conclusion. The quotes should be essentially good sound bite, or in this case copy bites, something someone read will take in + more importantly a journalist will copy, paste and use. If you are targeting media it's important to remember that most journalists are lazy, and newspapers are generally written to a reading standard of a 10-12 year old. Make it interesting, have something to say, but don't over do it. Hope this helps.
I disagree. You don't need to hire anyone to write a good press release. You could have someone consult you on the issue, but if you have limited funds and some time on your hands I suggest trying it yourself first. Not only will you get an experience but you will also save some cash. I suggest you start by looking at sample press releases, which are plastered in abundance all over the interent. Specifically, try and find something that is akin to your website. It is always easier to see how other people do it and it should provide you with some ideas. Remember, press release is essentially a story that should catch an attention of a journalist. They are not interested in amazing numbers and great forecasts. They want to have a story that they can investigate and then pitch to the public and that is what you should give them. Don't be afraid to cold call and send e-mails into local news. If you don't have any connections you should start trying to make some. If you have any other questions feel free to PM me. I can give you more tips.
thnx very much guys! your tips are valueable! And you suggest that i should suggest distributing the relase by sending it via mail into local news? Is this the best method to spread the release?
You can format a press release to "look" right, but most people don't have a clue about how to actually write "for the media." That's why most don't get coverage for their own releases... that, and they don't know how to distribute effectively. A few can pull it off... many can't though. The sample above has too many quotes and not enough substance. You should never use a quote in a release unless it's something that actually needs to be in a quote. If it can be written in third person, do it. Many statistics or basic background don't need to be quoted for example. If something needs the backing of an executive to make it more "worthy" of attention, then use it. It's also missing a boilerplate (important - basically an "about us" kind of paragraph giving more general info beyond the news itself. It's often the same on every release a company sends out.). Also, make sure that you have a quality headline (it doesn't need to go on about your company name, site name, etc.... make the headline grab the journalist's attention, but without trying too hard to be "cute" or "catchy"). If you're distributing online, you also need a summary - 1-3 sentences giving the essence of what's to follow. There are two free templates at one of the sites in my sig (2nd link maybe) if you want to give it a go yourself - one if you're faxing or something for print distribution, and one for online distribution.
tnx a lot!! you re kind One more question: i have neither interviews nor news that i first post in in the net, but my news are fresh and most of the fans don't know some of these news.. do you still believe that i should write a press release?
lol Thanks Jeff. No... simply saying that you post news isn't newsworthy (would you see a press release put out by CNN saying "Hey! We're putting out news on such and such a topic!"). There needs to be something different. Like I said before though... If there's a particular news item that most people don't know yet, you could focus a release on that, and then introduce your site into the release through a quote or commentary that you give about that news.
Perhaps write one yourself as a learning experience and do some free online submission (like PR.com) but if there's nothing extra special or unique, I wouldn't put lots of money into it.