PR Focus - The perfect structure

PR focus - the perfect structure

News stories generated through press releases are the bread and butter of media coverage, both within your trade press and the wider national media; in exceptional cases this may even extend to broadcast exposure. Alison Church explains how to construct a successful press release that attracts media attention


PR coverage is pretty easy to get – all you need to do is throw together a quick press release, email it off to a 100 or so media contacts, and wait for the media coverage to start flowing… Isn’t that the case?

Back in the days when I worked as an account director in a small PR agency, it was drilled home to me the strict rules of how to construct a press release…and of course how not to! Now, on ‘the other side’ of the fence, it becomes all too clear why these age-old guidelines still hold true.

General rules
Anyone with any awareness of PR would agree that press releases should be clear, concise and capable of grabbing the journalist’s attention quickly.

Therefore, your first paragraph is the most important: this is what will sell the story to the journalist. Most releases are binned after just the first sentence has been read.

A broadsheet journalist I once spoke to told me, out of the 200 plus press releases he received EVERY DAY by fax or email, on average two to three per cent he read fully, one per cent he followed up on, and half a per cent was printed.

The release is an information source and needs to contain the important basic information – if a long story is to be written from the release, the journalist will follow up for interviews and further information of specific interest to their readership. A longer article will require unique information for their publication and not just be taken straight from the press release.

Structure
Title: this is what sells the release, so put some thought into it! Most releases will have a three to five word title, with a subtitle that explains a little more. Don’t try and fit the whole story into the title!

The first paragraph: This should also be very short and to the point, which literally just sums up the story in a sentence. Make this a maximum on three short sentences, but don’t forget to state briefly your USP. For example, “AN Company, a leading provider of AN products, announced today…”.

The second paragraph: Use the second (and potentially third) paragraph to expand on the story, with any background information on your company (or the companies involved) that is directly relevant to the release.

Include a quote: Quote a senior member of your company (the more senior the better) that explains what the piece of news means for the business, with any reference to current events that interests the media that are relevant.

End: Finally, sum up the news in one sentence to close the release.

If a release goes over onto two pages, indicate at the bottom of the page:

- more follows -

And at the end:
- ends -

Extra bits: Use your ‘notes to editors’ section at the bottom of the release to expand on any detail such as dates, background information about the company, or other asides that would be useful to the article. It obviously needs to have the relevant contact details at the bottom, so that a journalist can contact you if they need want any more information or images.

Content
What you put into a release is important – it has to be factually (and grammatically!) correct and contain the messages you really want to convey. An attractive press release to the media is one that doesn’t require a great deal of subbing (very important when on deadline).

Issuing the release
When do the magazines/papers go to press? Work out the best day to issue the release to fit with these. Have an idea of which publications you think are most important to secure coverage.

What would attract your attention in the subject header? What will make your email stand out? This should be your press release title as well. Think about how many words will fit into a subject header of an email. Don’t make it longer than will fit; if they can’t read it all, it’s not going to get their attention.

Make sure you are sending the release to the right person in that publication – releases are very rarely forwarded on. Who allocates news stories in each publication? It is most often the editor, but if you have a contact within the publication, they are sometimes better to send the release to.

PR specialists are often divided as to whether you should follow up your release with a phone call. Follow up phone calls to journalists once you have sent your release can make sure they know your release has arrived and gives you the chance to sell it to them. There is a possibility that it will increase your chances of coverage.

But put yourself in their shoes. Think about how many releases they receive on a daily basis. If they had a call from everyone who had sent them a release, how well would your phone call go down? If someone calls you just to ask if you have received an email – chances are they have! In my opinion (and experience), if they want more information, they will call you.

Good relationships
The golden rule is, NEVER phone a paper or magazine when they are on deadline! This is the way to ensure your story is not printed! Find out when they are going to press and ensure you make any non-urgent phone calls or enquiries away from their deadlines.

You are also far more likely to get a story noticed and printed if you are known by and have a good relationship with a publication. Take time to establish these. Identify the core publications that you would like to ensure always cover your story and focus on them. That way, they are far more likely to notice your release landing in their inbox, read it and hopefully cover it!