In this second part of our series on effective press releases, BizAssist looks at the anatomy of an effective press release: how to build one, what to include and what to leave out.
Once you’ve decided that you’re going to issue a press release, the next step is identifying the story you want to tell and starting to write the release itself. For the purposes of this article, we’re going to focus on two main elements: the press release headline and the opening paragraph. These are the two most important parts of your news release: if you manage to get these right, you’ll stand a good chance of an editor reading your release and potentially writing about it.
The Headline:
A good press release headline should immediately identify the relevant news, why it’s important and why your audience should pay attention. It’s important to remember that a headline should focus less on directly promoting your brand name, and more on clearly identifying the benefits of your product/service innovation or customer results. Using the example we developed in previous BizAssist articles (EcoGreen Energy Conservation), let’s have a closer look at an effective headline:
“New Energy Conservation Solution Helps Homeowners Reduce Energy Consumption Costs by 18%”
Why It Works:
- Notice that the headline does not include the name of the company (EcoGreen Energy Conservation). If you catch a journalist’s attention with a clearly written headline that contains a strong benefit message, they will be motivated to learn more about your company.
- The benefit is immediate: a reduction in energy costs of up to 18 percent. Rising energy costs are a big pain point for both consumers and businesses, so a strong proof point like this will resonate with the media. Your product or service might not have a similarly powerful benefit, but this is the type of message you should strive for: a measurement that can be backed up by customer experience.
A Bad Example:
“EcoGreen Energy Conservation Launches Version 3.2 of Energy Service That Will Revolutionize Energy Consumption”
Why It’s Bad:
- Journalists and editors hate this sort of thing: a headline that touts how amazing a solution is, and focuses primarily on the brand of the company making the announcement.
- Notice here how there is no proof point or benefit message that stands out. Instead, the writer has resorted to inflated, subjective language (“revolutionize”) that is difficult to quantify or prove.
- The headline also does not identify the customer or target audience (homeowners), and it makes a big deal out of a version release that means nothing to editors following your industry segment.
The Opening Paragraph:
Once you’ve captured the attention of editors and journalists with a strong headline, your opening paragraph is your chance to make your case. Don’t belabour your opening paragraph with too much information and detail: it needs to be simple and clear enough to sustain interest and encourage your audience to read further. If you need to include more detail, you can do that in the subsequent paragraphs of your release. Restraint should always be exercised: no journalist will read a press release that’s three pages long.
“Toronto, Ontario, December 18, 2009 – EcoGreen Energy Conservation today announced the widespread availability of a new energy conservation program that has been shown to reduce homeowners’ energy consumption rates by an average of 18 percent. With energy costs rising an average of four to six percent per year, homeowners are showing a greater appetite for solutions to help them control their energy consumption behaviours. The EcoGreen solution, known as EnergyConserv™, has been tested on a widespread basis throughout Canada’s most extreme climates, and is now available countrywide to homeowners.
Why It Works:
- The benefit statement is front and centre. It identifies the “what” (a new energy conservation program), its biggest material benefit (reduced energy rates of 18 percent), and who the solution is targeted to (all homeowners across Canada).
- Industry trend information can be very helpful in identifying the problem your solution is trying to address. In this case, EcoGreen has demonstrated that rising utility costs are driving homeowners to seek alternative ways to reduce their energy bill. This objective piece of data frames the customer need and answers the inevitable question – “Who cares?”
- Notice how the opening paragraph doesn’t contain a lot of information about EcoGreen – that’s best saved for a paragraph at the end of your release called a “boilerplate”.
So what’s next? Once you’ve nailed your headline and opening paragraph, you stand a great chance of further engaging the publications or newspapers you’re trying to reach. In additional paragraphs, you should consider providing additional detail about the product or service, how it works and how you arrived at your benefit claims. For example, in this case EcoGreen would want to defend its 18 percent reduction claim and explain how it came up with that number. Similarly, if you’re making a benefit claim, you need to demonstrate clear, empirical evidence to support it.
While there are a wide range of press release styles out there, do some additional homework to discover what works best for your company and your product/service. Visit any newswire website, such as Canada Newswire, to sample a wide range of release examples and how effective they are.