By BloggerKhan

My profession is Management and Marketing and it revolves around outsourcing, ecommerce and marketing on the internet. Wise men say identify what you are passionate about and then see if ...

According to PR Daily, over 1800 press releases are published every day in the US alone. Many companies and communicators have seen the benefits this kind of writing brings them (read news coverage) hence the big number of press releases.

So, how can you make you make your press release stand out from the crowd? Here are our top tips:

1. Speak the language of your audience

What is your press release about? Imagine the audience that is going to read it, then put yourself in their shoes. Write it in the language your target audience uses. If it’s marketing, use that vocabulary. Basically, use industry specific vocabulary for related topics.

2. Make it short but informative

A good press release must answer the who, what, where, when, why and how questions. Press releases that do not contain all this information will not be taken seriously.

3. A good headline

A good headline will bring more readers, a bad one will draw them away. Make it good one, but not longer than 60 characters as Google and social media shares will be affected. Descriptive and enticing but not too long is the general rule.

4. Call-to-action

Promoting an upcoming charity event? Then not only do you need to answer who, what, where, when, why and how but also include a call-to-action. This should be what you want people to do after reading your release.

5. Quote credible sources

Connect the topic of your release with an expert in the area. Their quotes will add insight and credibility to your press release and readers will be able to connect said quotes to a person and interpret it as a recommendation.

6. Multimedia

If a publication picks up your press release, the job of sharing the article they later write on their social media, will be a lot easier if you have already provided them with an image or video they can feature alongside the text.

7. SEO optimization

We advise you to research the keywords your audience is already looking for and use those. But do not overuse them. Place your keywords strategically throughout your press release. Avoid keyword stuffing by placing your keywords in every single sentence as search engine algorithms will read through it immediately.

8. Contact information

Provide journalists and publications with a contact where they can get more information for their piece as the press release itself may not be enough or they may want to follow up on a specific question. Make sure that the team member whose contact you provide is aware of the fact and able to respond to media requests.

9. Pitch to the right people

The more, the merrier is not always right. Find the media outlets relevant for your company and industry and pitch your press release to them. After all, your press release represents your brand and there may be publications that do not align with it.

To sum up, making your press releases catch the eye of editors and journalists is not a simple task. It will require time and effort. But once you have perfected the skill of writing about newsworthy things and pitching to publications that align with your brand, you will reap the benefits. It is a mostly free way to get publicity and drawing the attention of potential consumers or investors.

Good luck!

How to write a press release