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3 Mistakes You Can't Afford To Make When You Write A Press Release
Copyright © 2005, Paul Hartunian
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You have the story of a lifetime. Editors are going to drop
their jaws in amazement. You just can't wait to get the press
release on their desk. You fire up the fax machine, hit the go
button and then rush over to your phone to wait for the calls.
And nothing happens.
You check your confirmation sheet, 500 faxes sent out
successfully, but still nothing happens. Chances are you've
made one of the 3 fatal mistakes people often make when sending
out a press release.
The first mistake many people make in writing a press release
is they allow their own biases to taint their story.
Who cares what you think? It may be important to you, but what
really matters is what the editor and the audience he sells to
believes.
Andrew Carnegie explains that he loves peanut butter and jelly
sandwiches, but he discovered a long time ago that when he goes
fishing the fish much prefer worms, not peanut and butter.
As you write the headline to your press release, be sure it
pulls at the needs, wants or interests of your intended audience.
Every press release needs to be either fascinating, shocking or
relevant.
Some stories may seem hard to frame for the general public,
but it's usually just a matter of looking for the proper spin
to frame it in.
The fact that the city mall installed an Automatic External
Defibrilator (AED) may sound incredibly important to you, but
most of the general public will only wonder how much of their
tax money was wasted keeping some doctor happy.
If, on the other hand, your headline read: "20 Lives Could
Have Been Saved If We Had Installed The Automatic External
Defibrilator A Year Earlier" now you have the world's attention.
Which lives could have been saved? Could it save my life? What
is this device?
Suddenly the "common folk" see a purpose for it.
The second deadly mistake many beginners make in sending press
releases is to package them in flowery colors. They want to
catch the editor's attention.
They hire a graphic artist to draw incredible artwork along the
borders, they mold their type into the shape of a tree. Anything
you do to set you apart from the crowd will do just that, set
you apart from the crowd.
Editors will realize before even reading your release that you're
a beginner. The old timers know better. The very fact that it's
being faxed as a news story gets the editors attention. He's in
the news business. He has to sort though what's going on to find
the information they need during their news breaks.
The headline of your news release needs to be in larger bold
type, something that gets their attention. Everything else
needs to look simple and tidy.
Delivering your release along with a dozen long stemmed
roses will probably get a smile out of the editor, but chances
are she won't bother reading it.
The final mistake many make in composing press releases
is to say too much. They're worried the editor won't find the
story interesting enough unless they get all the details.
If you can't make the story interesting in 150 words or less,
then you probably need to go back to point number one and
reframe the story.
A professional press release always fits entirely on one, single
spaced page. And that includes contact information and a bold
headline on top.
A cardinal rule that'll keep you out of a lot of problems is to
remember always that:
THE ONLY goal of a press release is to get the reporter to call
you.
You just need to convince him that there may be something worth
looking into here. If they're at all interested, they'll pick up
the phone and find out more.
Avoid these three deadly mistakes, and you'll be well on your
way. As you write your release, be sure you:
1. Give them what they're looking for, and not necessarily
what you think is important.
2. Keep it simple, don't use gimmicks,
3. Keep it short and to the point.
Then go sit by your phone and wait for the calls.
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