Developing a news release may worry you in the beginning to a small business owner, but with a bit of research and practice you will be able to write an excellent media release. To start, just follow the rules below for writing and distributing your press release.

1. Place News First – Because readers want news, you should always include the news before the source. So before you state who made the announcement, you should actually write the announcement. For example, a news story about a new tobacco study should describe the results of the study, before describing who conducted it.

2. Interest Your Audience – Keep your audience and the publications readers in mind. Before writing your press release you should consider why the news matters to them. Ask yourself if you’d want to read the press release, if you were in their shoes.

3. Compelling Headlines – Just like the rest of your marketing, you need a headline that will catch the attention of your intended audience (in this case the news editor). It will likely be the first thing the editor reads. If it doesn’t catch his attention, it will also be the last.

4. Personalize Your Distribution – Get the name of the person you are sending your press release to and place it in a prominent position. Be sure to double-check the spelling.

5. Keep Up-To-Date – News by its very nature should be current. If the news in your release is outdated you shouldn’t be sending it. Yesterday’s news is today’s history.

6. Remain Objective – Press releases are not the place for being biased. Journalists are seeking news. It may be ok to use later paragraphs for dispelling or confirming rumors, but it’s best to cover your bases with a little objectivity.

7. Communicate Pertinent Information – An old rule in journalism says that you should include the 5 W’s and H. This holds true for press releases. Be sure to answer the questions What, Who, When, Where, Why, and How.

8. Demonstrate Positive Intentions – If space permits, allow an executive of your organization to inject some human interest to the story. These types of quotes can be used to demonstrate compassion, show good intentions, or simply transition a negative story back to a positive tone.

9. Avoid Hype – Press releases are not an appropriate place for marketing copy. You should avoid excessive use of adjectives and other promotional language.

10. Location Matters – You should define the location your press release originates from. Editors love to find a local angle on popular stories. And for certain industries, location matters.

11. Utilize Proper Attribution – If your press release includes information or quotes from other sources, it’s a good idea to attribute that information to the original source. This allows the journalist to verify the information, plus it provides credibility.

12. Be Prepared – Just because your press release has been sent, doesn’t mean you’re done crafting your message. Be ready to answer calls from journalists and prepare statements for them. Keep a log of the questions they ask, because there’s a good chance that another reporter is going to ask the same thing.

13. Solve Problems – The media loves stories that explain how human innovation and creativity are solving our everyday problems. If you can explain how to fix a common problem, you’ll appear to be the expert. Alternatively, you might demonstrate how a solution is being developed.

14. Show Professionalism – Using a professional layout and avoid sloppiness to indicating seriousness. Understanding and abiding by industry standards for writing press releases is a great start. For example, always write your press releases in the 3rd person and end your press releases with “-30-” or “XXX”.

15. Verify Accuracy – When it comes to numbers, names, and locations it’s easy to make mistakes. You should always double-check everything to avoid embarrassing mistakes.

If you follow these guidelines for writing better media releases, you greatly increase the likelihood of your press release being published. If you want even more ways to improve your news release writing you should view the large list of tips to write more effective media releases.

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These tips were presented by PressDr, Inc. PressDr.comis a successful online public relations company.