Press Release Writing – A Complete How-To Guide

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Press Release Writing Guide

• Writing An Effective Press Release

Version 1
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Contents

• Whats a Press Release
• Format of a Press Release
• Headline
• Summary
• Date Line
• PR body
• About US
• Contact Information
• Finding Newsworthy Topics
• Sample
• PR Checklist

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What Is A Press Release

• A Press Release
• Is an interesting way to announce a product or
  service and gain exposure online by capturing the
  attention of the target audience.
• Educates people about your product or service
  with the legitimate information
  possible.
• Gains visibility for a company by resonating the
  message with journalists, customers and
  strategic partners.

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Press Release Format

• For an effective formatting of a press release,
  its
• necessary that you need to include the following
• Headline
• Summary
• Date Line
• PR Body
• About US
• Contact Information

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Headline

• Your headline should be strong to reflect the
  news angle and captivate the readers to read the
  full release.
• Format Is NOT MORE THAN 100 Char with spaces
• Capitalize Each Word in the Headline
• Include Keywords Only If Possible
• Keep a Specific Headline Limit (since search
  engines use different limits for displaying)
• Wrong
• Atlanta Dentist Provides Teeth Whitening
• Right
• Atlanta Dentist Now Offering 199 Teeth
  Whitening Special Through July 2013

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Summary

• A Press Release summary is a short paragraph that
  follows your headline and summarizes the content
  of the PR Body. Adding a summary increases the
  effectiveness of your press release.
• Format Is 2-3 strong statements that keeps the
  readers interested
• It Should be Italicized
• Keep it Simple
• Example
• Leading Dental clinic recently introduced
  cosmetic dental implants at their Atlanta, GA
  practice for patients who have damaged, broken,
  or missing teeth. With this new procedure,
  patients no longer have to rely on dentures or
  cumbersome bridges to overcome the aesthetic and
  functional problems with missing teeth.

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Date Line

• Add a date line just below the summary in a
  format as given below
• Place, Date
• Example Atlanta, CA, 25th July 2013

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PR Body

• The PR body is the important part of the press
  release. It needs to be clear, crisp paragraphs
  explaining the information provided in the
  headline and summary.
• Length 300-350 words
• PR body should start in the same line as that of
  the date line
• A strong introductory paragraph that covers all
  the questions including who, what, when, where,
  why and how
• Should contain a minimum of 3-4 paragraphs
• Each paragraph should focus on a single idea
  expressed in a third person tone
• Include quotes from key staff or experts,
  statistics, survey results, etc
• Final paragraph should restate the key points of
  the press release

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About US

• This is the place where you can add some
  information about the company and their services.
  Make sure to include a few keywords if possible.
• Example XYZ Company is a leading distributor of
  widgets and has been in the business of building
  widgets since 2 decades. For more details, visit
  www.xyz.com

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Contact Information

• Contact information of the company which includes
  their address, phone number, email, etc.
• Example
• Contact Person
• XYZ Company
• Address details
• City and country
• T 971-4-555-6666 (include country and city
  code in contact numbers)
• F 971-4-555-6667
• http//www.YourWebAddress.com (if applicable)
• Contact e-mail address

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Finding A Newsworthy Topic

• Choose any interesting information to be reported
  in the form of a press release. It may be about
  or related to
• Website launches, new product/ service launches
• Announcing new employee hire or change
• Special offers and discounts
• Seasonal deals
• Announcing any recent or upcoming events
• Anniversaries and Awards
• Hosting summits

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Sample
Title
Summary
Date Line
PR body
About us
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• Your Press Release may get rejected by
  directories if they
• Are Plain advertisements for any company, product
  and/or websites
• Contain any duplicate content
• Are wrong or misleading
• Contain generalized and/or negative comments
• Use all CAP letters or have an improper title
  format
• Are not accurate
• Do not follow standard grammar and spelling

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PR Checklist

• Heres a quick checklist for the requirements of
  a press release.
• Your PR
• Has the minimum word count of 300-350 words
• Has the search engine keywords highlighted
• Has the news angle
• Is informational and accurate
• Follows the right format
• Is written in a focused way
• Includes quotes, key message and contact details

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