Letting audiences know about something newsworthy in an objective and productive manner is very important for businesses, and Press Release does this in the most result-oriented way.
The media is an integral part of our lives. It has reached the young and old, irrespective of their statuses of all types. The media is a way to pass information to reach out to millions of people in just one stroke. There are many points of time where one needs the support and recognition of the public at large.
Press Release is an essential tool that empowers businesses to communicate with their target audiences. The power of the people is invincible. There are many examples where media releases and their consequences have changed the face and fate of a particular situation.
Hence, the media is needed by all- by the whole entertainment industry and the business world as well.
When businesses want something to reach all the people you wish to, they need to use this media.
In this article, we will dive deep into the world of Press Release and understand how it helps businesses in informing more relevant people to generate leads and optimize conversions. So, without any further ado, let us get started-
Table of Contents
Introduction
A press release is a written copy of the information to release some information about any important event, product launch, circumstances, or any other happenings.
Businesses send it to the media by a variety of means.
No matter if your announcement is about a new invention in the scientific world or a new scheme to attract new customers to your business, a proper press release will always attract more audiences.
Here we will talk about the press release, its significance, and how to write it in a way that you attract more audiences. It will surely help you do your best and fly the highest in your work.
What is a Press Release?
Before learning tricks to write a better press release and attract the audience, we need to know what a press release is actually.
A press release is a written document created for the media, about some event, product launch, business announcement, or any other happenings that are worthy of creating any news.
It is an essential tool to reach the media if you want to inform you about some information to a large number of people at the local, national and international levels. We write it in no more than 1 to 3 pages.
When you circulate the press release among the media members, they use the information to create their content for their next TV show, broadcast, newsletter, etc.
Different reasons for which Press Releases are used are-
- Company Announcement
- Employee Announcement
- Product Announcement
- Initiative Announcement
- Research Results
- Honors or Awards
- Mergers and Acquisitions
Let us now have a look upon the significance of Press Release for the businesses-
Importance of a Press Release
The press and media are parts of the society where we live.
That can be used to enhance the business opportunities and keep track of all the advancements and developments in any process.
The press release is intended to reach out to the maximum people in society. It may not be a guaranteed marketing tool. Still, it undoubtedly can influence people through its exciting content and attract them to the business to make it even more prosperous and profitable.
The press release techniques are instrumental in maintaining good public relations with the business community.
The news articles give the profile of your company a boost.
It enhances the research and development teams to try different new strategies once their work is getting recognised with a press release. It makes the employees more hardworking and dedicated.
All of this affects the profitability and the position of the company in the market in a positive manner.
Methods
Some of the critical ways of using Press Release are-
1) Newspapers: The newspapers may get as old-school as they may, but they can never get outdated. Every household has a fixed newspaper vendor who delivers the paper every morning at the doorstep. Even today, the pleasure of sipping a cup of morning tea reading the recent newspaper is unmatched.
2) TV or Radio News: TV and radio are media faster than newspapers. They reach out to more people in a smaller period. TV and radio work round the clock. One can also broadcast a piece of breaking news at wee hours and still make it reach the maximum public. Radios are heard by many people, even while being busy with daily chores. That makes it possible for the radio news to target working people and gain optimum audiences from them.
3) Social Media: In the day and age where social media has become an integral part of our lives, how can it take a backseat when it comes to releasing information or news in public? The posts made by official accounts managed by the several reputed media houses are no less than a press release. It reaches most of the people and can be accessed at any time of the day.
When Should Businesses use Press Release?
It is not easy to reach a large number of people at the same time.
That is why the media has its importance for announcing a press release. Be it a conference for announcing your research paper, or your next business scheme; press release always helps you to reach your target audience.
Even the government uses press releases for announcing any new program provided to the new people and to hold any national-level mission, program, etc.
So here are the following points you should go through after which you will know why people prefer press releases so much for reaching their large amount of target audiences while announcing something.
- Any change in the company, i.e., change of the location, new investors, new partnership, the opening of a new office, any new strategic change, restructuring the old format, any step taken to expand the company, etc. All of these are worthy of a press release.
- Launch of a new product, product line change, a new range of merchandise, a new outlet of the company, new brands, improved supply, the new service provided by the products, etc. all of them are important enough to make a press release. Proper recognition of the products among the press community helps the product achieve a place of guarantee of its success in the market.
- A new internal or external project that may affect the company’s community is a topic of a press release. The company took any initiative for the employees, the start of giving any individual facilities to the employees all of these is important enough to make it a place to a press release.
- Employee announcement for new recruitment of staff is sure to make a place for the press release. Such advertisements benefit the public to grab the right and suitable job opportunities. This helps the business hire the best talent for the position and harness their efforts for better performance in the market.
- When we offer honour to a person or award a person for his work press release is a must thing. It is essential to let the world know about his work, and, significantly, he gets recognition from the world for his great doings. And this is possible with a press release. Hence press release is a must-do factor in awards and honours.
- Research paper release is another place where a press release is a must-do. The procedure of publishing the paper includes publishing the article in a known journal. And if the paper gets selected, you must do a press release and let the world know that your paper got selected. Also, the press release will help other researchers understand that this one topic has previous papers, and they should avoid this topic for their research topic.
- In the case of a company starting some campaign for spreading awareness about a specific concept, it deserves media attention. The media is a useful tool to share your thoughts and ideas with the masses. Concerning a social activity or a campaign started for the welfare of the society, it becomes necessary to make a press release so that maximum people can avail of its benefits.
What are the key points to keep in mind while you form a Press Release?
When you send the written document to the media office the selected team of that office decides if they will publish the information in their channel or newspaper as it has a vital role to play in increasing traffic in their channel.
So, sometimes it is harder to convince the media that your information is worth publishing. So it is crucial to write the document keeping specific points in mind before you send it to the media office.
Here we are going to discuss some of the critical points which you should keep in your head while you write the press release.
- The timing of the release is of the utmost importance. You can’t publish age-old news and expect to gain as many audiences as fresh news does. News is valued the most, only until it is new. Hence, it is essential to make a press release within the least time from the incident happening.
- The first and foremost factor in writing a press release is that you write it in a fixed format. The media where you are sending the press release mustn’t find you unprofessional. Presenting the content in the prescribed template adds value to the news. It displays your efforts in making the content readable and worth a press release.
- First write the word “media contact” in the upper left or right corner, followed by the name, phone number and the email address of the person who the reporters should contact for the follow-up questions.
- Below that is the place where you write the date you want to publish your information. If there is not a fixed date and you are planning to do it immediately write “for immediate release” and if you have time in your mind, write “embargoed until [the date]”.
- Write a headline in the center or left of the page that summarises the information that you provide by the press release. Make the headline striking. The headline may contain question words like ‘what’, ‘why’, ‘where’ and ‘how’. If such sentences find a place in the headline, it attracts the readers. The simple logic behind this is the fact that everyone likes to find answers. And when the answer to the question in the heading can be found in the news article, anyone would spare time to read it.
- You may use a subhead below the heading. It will add a little more detail to the press release and is entirely optional. A subhead acts as a glimpse of what lies in the next section. It should be engaging and intriguing at the same time.
- After that, you write the name of the city and the place where you are. And right next to that add the date you are planning to do your press release. All of these should be included in all caps format. E.g. “NEW DELHI, NOIDA – DECEMBER 12, 2019”.
- Now write your statement you wish to release. Write it in an inverted pyramid model where the most critical sentence goes in the first sentence. The second most crucial statement goes in the second sentence and so on. In this way, if the editor cuts the sentences, it is final that the primary information is taken at least.
- Put double space in the paragraphs. And put the symbol “###” at the end of your release.
- Before writing a press release, you should be clear about its goal and the desired impact. You should make the purpose clear in the content written for the press release. That will make the statements more precise.
- First, determine your audience and think about who will be interested in your press release. The nature of the content, its language, its length and the information to be released highly depends on that.
- After this, make a list of the media accordingly. Then you can mail them the release. In case of any further questions, the media will let you know about it.
- Do not use excess jargon language in your release if you intend it toward the general folks. It would help if you used the word according to your audience.
- Make the statement is simple and direct sentences. It helps the audience understand your press release; the more people understand the number of audience increases.
- You cannot go on writing pages as a press release and hope for it to get published by any form of media. The article needs to be crisp and concise. This is an age of quick actions and reactions. If you want the press release to reach more audiences, you have to make the article short and simple.
- Always remember a proper press release can still save tens of thousands of money on advertising. So write the release attractively with some natural language.
Who is the target audience of a Press Release?
Before you start to do press release of your announcement, it is crucial to keep in mind who is the target audience of your release.
Another reason for knowing your audience is that you have to write the document using such languages that the audience is comfortable. There may be numerous kinds of audience, depending on what you are releasing. So here we will discuss different types of press release content and their probable audience in the following points-
- All the businesses are interdependent in a business community. Hence, your local business community is one of the primary audiences if you announce any change in the business.
- Customers are another essential audience when you are announcing your new product range or any change in the product line. Also, the press release about the improvement in the old products is aimed at the customers. That makes the newer versions gain popularity, and the company can receive feedback about the same.
- Your prospects or leads are also vital audiences of the press release for any business
- A potential business partner is the aimed audience when you are willing to merge your company or expand the shares.
- Your sellers are one of the primary audiences in a press release about change in the product line or any new facilities provided to the dealers. Any change in your production is bound to affect their services.
- Other companies in your industry are also a vital audience announcing any new company change that can affect the market.
Wrap Up!
Without the help of the media, it is impossible to reach a large number of audiences.
The press release is undoubtedly an essential part of sharing information among a large number of people. It is beneficial to the people who choose to make any local, national or international level of the announcement.
The press release has a mass appeal and can make an impact on all strata of society and create awareness about any happening. It can make a community stronger by facilitating a smooth exchange of information among the various parts of a societal structure.
After reading this article, we hope you have made a clear idea about press release and how to attract more attention to your release, or whom to target as an audience. We hope you have to acquire the needed information about the press release and it will help you.
How important do you consider the use of Press Release for the businesses in widening their reach and targeting more audiences? Share your views with us in the comments.
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