Begin by asking yourself whether you need to write a press release in the first place. During my time as a staff writer at Forbes, I was on the receiving end of a deluge of releases. I deleted most of them. One powerful alternative to a press release is a story. Instead of manufacturing news and quotes, tell an engaging story on the subject. Then use your distribution channels — website, blog, newsletter, social media, SEO — to get it out. Being able to tell a story about your news is a good litmus test of its worthiness. Reporting the story and talking to colleagues and customers will give you memorable quotes and make you smarter about the topic. Done right, reporters will be knocking on your door, rather than you on theirs.

We get so much spam, and "spray and pray" mail merge releases, that anyone taking the time to craft a personalized intro really stands out. Taking just a few minutes to see what a journalist has written, and explaining why they might be interested in your release, can really go a long way.

It is important to be deliberate about building a meaningful mutually beneficial relationships with all media outlets as well as desk reporters, editors and pundits on your areas of operation. One needs to nurture, grow and sustain those relationships and ensure releases and additional information and press kits are received in good time. One needs to be prepared for feedback and develop a rapid-response approach towards all concerns after releases are distributed.

Keep it as short as possible; your audience already has excellent news judgement and can quickly assess what they need and what they don't. Three sentences, a link to the news, and, when you can, clarify who is available to be interviewed and when to get the second part of the discussion started.

Para que un comunicado de prensa cumpla su objetivo, define la audiencia del comunicado. Esta audiencia no siempre debe coincidir con alguno de los públicos de tu organización. La cobertura aumentará al utilizar los medios preferidos de esta audiencia. Al redactar el mensaje, ten presente las características particulares de las personas, sus intereses y afinidades.

The critical part of media release distribution is in curating the right media to receive your materials. Otherwise, you may have the best content, but still dont receive pick-ups because you have shared with media who finds the news irrelevant to their focus. Another way could be to tailor and adapt the media release to target different media in your media list. Ultimately, it's to share the right info with the right proxy.

It has always been helpful to know what media outlets or expert topic journalists are covering that matches with your organization’s mission, values and purpose. Keeping them informed and inviting them to explore the narratives that will give community impact to your message is key. I have found this to be successful by devising editorial content on a regular basis and sending out media alerts regularly. It keeps the lines of communications open for dialogues, interviews and potential story features.

As well as a well-crafted press release, I think it's essential to have a network that you cultivate. You need to build up a working relationship with journalists who specialise in your field. When sending the press release, it's also a good idea to personalise the message for your journalist contacts.

Call me naive, but still, despite all the tools and tech at our fingertips, the best possible way to build a media list is to craft a list of people who remember your name. And for good reasons. You may revolt at the thought, as this simply does not fit your ideas of scalability and exponential reach. But it remains true. Relationships translate into business, and PR is no exception. Some of our most effective PR partners are those that have key media relationships and only use them when they see synergy and shared value.

Do some homework when assembling your media list. Don't target general outlets - target specific individuals. Make sure you are sending to the most appropriate person at the outlet, who most closely covers the news you are attempting to make. Read recent articles from these individuals to get an idea of what/how they cover stories and then, in your pitch, mention some of these articles as reasons why you think they would be interested in your news. As a follow-up ask what type of stories they are interested in, in the event you have upcoming news that could be useful for them. Become a resource for your media contacts - not just a flak looking to get quick coverage. The latter will come if the former is established.

In crafting press release subject lines, it's essential to highlight the value your news offers to the reader, emphasizing how a new product launch will benefit users or what genuinely newsworthy element your announcement contains. This approach ensures your message captures attention by directly addressing the interests and needs of your audience, making it more likely for your press release to be opened and read.

Depende del comunicado y de la empresa que lo emite. Si se trata de un contenido interesante que lo medios esperan de manera recurrente, por ejemplo, resultados anuales de cierre, es importante identificar con el nombre de la empresa en el asunto y el main topic del contenido indicando que se trata de NdP para diferenciarlo de contenido comercial. Con ello ayudas al periodista a discriminar. Lo puede leer en ese momento o dejarlo en la nevera para cuando quiera escribir sobre esa materia. Por el contrario, si se trata de algo muy comercial estoy de acuerdo en utilizar vocabulario que llame más la atención poniendo el foco en la novedad de la noticia, siendo creativos, pero sin perder de vista que el asunto tiene que cuadrar con contenido.

Para que una línea de asunto o titular llame la atención, utiliza una frase que genere curiosidad, sorpresa y que despierte el interés de tu audiencia. Puedes utilizar moderadamente técnicas de clic bait de manera persuasiva y estratégica. Debes tener la capacidad de síntesis para redactar este texto.

Wir alle erhalten mehr Posts, emails etc als wir sinnvoll verarbeiten können.Deshalb sollte eine gute Betreffzeile drei Dinge erreichen:Interesse wecken, präzise sein und kurz muss sie sein.

El encabezado es determinante para el éxito de tu comunicado. Los reporteros y periodistas en tu lista de medios llegan a recibir hasta miles de boletines, por lo que tienes ese renglón inicial para capturar su atención. Si no lo haces, es probable que ni siquiera lo lean, aunque el resto de tu contenido tenga información muy valiosa. Evita palabras monótonas y rimbombantes, usa verbos de impacto y asegúrate de integrar el elemento más jugoso y llamativo de tu comunicado en el título.

Make your pitch short and specific. In a sentence or two, explain to this journalist you're targeting (whose stories/social media profiles you've researched, of course) why he/she should pick up the story. For example, the launch of a project designed to sharpen the digital skills of women entrepreneurs in XXXX country isn't interesting... unless the journalist is 1) based in that country, 2) writes about women, tech or trade, and 3) is offered an exclusive interview with your head of agency, on how thousands of women will earn higher incomes by using AI to sell their products online. Make it easy for the journalist to say yes.

Do your research and get to know the media outlet, reporter and what they care about. While your goal is trying to get media coverage for your business or client, making the pitch personal, relatable and relevant will go a long way to ensure your pitch turns into media coverage. Also, make it short and succinct to ensure you break through the clutter. Lastly, it's important to understand trends, current news and how to make that connection in your pitch to ensure it will be noticed and shows the reporter you understand the news cycles we live in today.

Pitching without personalization is just spamming. Take some time to give the person receiving your pitch a reason to read said pitch!

This is just it - don't send a press release, send a pitch. No one wants to read a press release. A short pitch, written specifically for the reporter based on their interests and previous coverage, is a much better use of your time.

It is best to build up a network of editors and have arguments that help the editors to achieve their own goals. I recommend pitching in person and then following up by e-mail.

Even before it is sent out, give them a heads up. That is about the relationship, and if you have a story you think they would be interested in covering reach out and fill them in about why it is important to their audiences. Then when you send it, follow up - ideally with a phone call - to see if they have any questions, etc. And then if they do a story, thank them. If they don't, still thank them for their time and maybe ask what they would be interested in, for next time.

The press release is the most misused comms tool. I assure you that at least 95% of press releases are pointless. The most crucial factor for distribution is news value. If there's no news value, ditch the urge to prepare a press release and buy an ad (promoted post etc.). If there's something of news value to share, blast it on a tailored list, nurture interest with a selection of tier one and tier two contacts, use owned channels, and leverage high impact partner channels, including employee amplification. If distribution is a challenge, and wire options aren't feasible, consider promotional posts.

Following up to ensure a press release was well-received is one thing, but ideally you can also offer some new information in a follow up pitch to strengthen the newsworthiness. Are there new places your recently launched product is now available, new offerings from your client, etc.? Leverage this additional news to create extra excitement rather than just following up to follow up.

Build relationships with members of the media first. When you make a pitch or send a press release, think like a journalist. Identify compelling story elements, help members of the media see how the story will benefit their audience and provide access to powerful visuals/information on where to find powerful visuals.

Following up is a must. Unless you are the stock exchange putting out information that all the journalists are clamouring for…. Ideally to follow up with an additional angle or interview opportunity on hand to offer the journalist for best results.

The biggest question is whether or if a press release is the best -- or even a good -- instrument to use. Of all the tools in the communications toolbox, this is the one most fetishized by executives outside of the communications department. They'll often demand it, sometimes over the counsel of their own communications team. It's an enticing idea, really: Pay a few hundred bucks and your announcement is scraped-and-loaded onto CNBC.Com, Yahoo Finance, and more. Then there are the specious claims about how it boosts SEO. Or the notion that the NYT newsroom is madly scraping press release wires looking for something to cover. Releases have their use cases. I advise business leaders: your comms team might have better ideas.

You need to consider a few things to help amplify your news: - Have you defined what success is for your specific announcement? - Do you have a strong comms strategy that aligns to your KPIs? - What is your social/content amplification plan? If your KPI is generating awareness, social/digital may be your most effective channel. - Are your materials compelling? Your announcement is one of many, how do you stand out? - Post announcement day, what is that long-tail storytelling strategy to extend the narrative around your news?

I put my reporter hat back on and “produce” the story for them. Have all the elements available, especially visuals. One stop shopping helps save time and energy.

In countries like Ethiopia where there are divers groups of people with different languages, it is important to consider translating the press release in to different languages

A press release with meaningful information backed by data and a solid storyline usually has a high chance of pick-up. You can distribute it organically through your agency and if you have a targeted media list. However, you can also boost it through wire services - that helps to maximize your pick-up.