Most small companies rely on their existing staff when they want to get their company name in print and many times they miss the mark on a press release and then wonder why it never appears in print. Their release contains the 5 “Ws”, the who, what, why, when and where but often leave out the 6th “W” of who cares.
Many freelance writers find additional income helping small companies write a press release and with the right understanding of the market can offer a better chance of the information being published. A person with their own home business writing public relations pieces can add a little more income writing releases. Pay for these items is usually small, depending on the size of the company and where it is to be published, but it can also give you an in for additional, more lucrative work.
Newspaper editors are typically busy and don’t have the time, nor are they willing to take the time, to rewrite a press release. The information in the press release has to be concise and to the point and anything extra is typically eliminated to reduce the amount of space the release contains. If you want your so-called press release to be printed verbatim, your best option is to buy an ad in the paper.
The first thing most editors look for in a press release in the who cares part. If your release only caters to an extremely small portion of the general public, its odds of being published is minimal. The information contained in the press release also has to be considered newsworthy, not by you but by the editor, before having a chance of seeing the light of day. Items such as promotions by local residents, awards and other information related to local people and companies are considered newsworthy.
Simply sending in information that proclaims a new product is being released may seem interesting, but briefly talking about how this new product will benefit the masses gives it a better chance of being published. A common mistake in a press release is including too much information or using industry jargon to convey the message. If the editor can’t understand the message, chances are slim it will be published.
On the flip side of including nonessential information is the press release that piques the interest of the editor but contains no contact information. Typically, there should be a block at the top of the press release that includes contact information. A name of the person knowledgeable of the information contained as well as a phone number or email address. You never know, the editor may find your release interesting enough to write a news article about the information.
It’s important that the person named as a contact is for the right person. Nothing turns off an editor calling for more information than being told you will have the right person call them back. This can be a deal breaker and when they do call back, the editor may have lost interest.
