Press Release Tip 7

Keep your key press release message simple

Don’t try to cram too much information into a press release. The key message must be very simple. Before you start writing the release, you should be able to summarize the key message in just one sentence so you can say it out loud. Here are some examples:

• “In this press release, we want to announce five new employees.”
• “We want to let everyone know we were named the top company of the year in our industry.”
• “We want to offer our opinion on a controversial topic that’s in the news.”

Those are three very different key messages. And even if all three were true in your case, you wouldn’t want to cram all that information into one press release.  

In the example I’ve used the past few days about the company that sells antique doorknobs, their key message to the hardware store owners would be: We will be exhibiting at the convention.

The key message to consumers might be: We have the largest variety of antique doorknobs to fit any decorating scheme.

Your key message should be mentioned in the headline and in the body of the news release. If you have too many key messages, readers will become confused. They won’t understand what you want them to do. And they’ll bail out of your press release before they get to the end.

Once you’ve identified what you want to accomplish with your press release, you’ve defined your audience(s) and you know your key message, you’re almost ready to start writing. But first, it’s important that you understand what a good press release looks like. You’ll learn about that starting tomorrow. 

Opportunity #7 to write a press release: Awards you receive

If you receive an award, write and send a press release. Include the reason you received it! This is one of my pet peeves. About 9 out of 10 press release writers never explain why the person they are writing about won an award, thus blowing another opportunity for a bigger story. Learn more about how to publicize an award. (You’ll learn more about how to write about employee recognition awards in Tip 16.)

Next: You’ll start Module #2 and learn the 6 key parts of a press release.