Websites 4 Small Business Newsletter
1 May 2005

HOW TO WRITE PRESS RELEASES THAT GET PUBLISHED
by Paul Krupin

Do you want to know the secret of writing a news release that
will get published? Here it is:

My secret for publicity success, developed from rigorous self
assessment, after having sent out over a million faxed news 
releases on behalf of over 2,000 clients:

"Tell me a story, give me a local news angle, touch my heart 
(make me laugh or cry), hit me in my pocketbook, make my 
stomach turn over, or grab my gonads."

Do this as many times as possible in a one page news release 
in 30 seconds or less and you will succeed in getting publicity.

A few years ago I spoke at the National Public Relations 
Society meetings in Omaha. I found out that most publicists at 
most big PR firms don't have a real clue about how to write 
a news release to get news coverage. They write corporate fluff.

Rarely do you see them create something that makes an editor 
drop what he’s doing and pick up the phone and call. And yet 
this is what you want an editor to do.

Few people who write a news release really think about what 
they want the editor to do after they receive and read a news 
release.

I’ve been sending out news releases for people for almost 22 years,
and most of the people who come to me initially write detailed book 
reviews or commercial news and web site announcements, not short 
ideas for articles intended to attract editors’ attention and get 
a dialog going that results in a feature story published.

I often have to tell them to start over or shift gears.

A lot has to do with the content and quality of the book, product 
service or web site, but let's just assume that you've written the 
be-all, end-all of whatever subject in your field. This is the 
ultimate sensation. The only thing anyone will ever need or want. 
You're all charged up and revved up to go. Now what...

A Publicity Plan!

Yes! A Publicity Plan.

First, establish your goals for the release. Write them down. 
Memorize them. Sleep on it. Wake up and think about them some more.

Remember you have to integrate your marketing with your PR and 
keep it all within your budget. So identify what you have available 
and write down how much you want to spend -- and on what -- and 
when -- and with whom.

Let's assume your goal is getting the word out about your product. 
It could be an initial announcement. It could be part of a year-long 
monthly campaign to a well targeted media list (again and again to 
get name recognition).

Look at your schedule and see that this week your task is at hand.

You want to get an article published in as many places as possible, 
to feed sales, acquire name recognition, drive web traffic, all of 
the above, or whatever. These are common goals.

Now it’s time to be more specific. Narrow your options and tighten 
the true alternatives you wish to seriously consider. Think 
strategically. Narrow the goals and keep it as simple as can be.

Whatever your specific publicity goals, you need to be mindful of 
the types of news releases that can be written: · Print releases 
for feature stories· Op-Eds Tips articles

Event announcements

Radio and TV interview releases

Product or services releases

Query letters

Internet News Releases

E-mail news releases

All these can produce publicity success. But writing each type of
release entails arraying different information into a different 
format and style of presentation. Each release has a different 
purpose and asks the editor or producer to take a different action. 
And doing any of these well in order to succeed is a daunting 
challenge.

Every year I complete a qualitative review of our custom news 
distribution and the relative success people have been having in 
getting published as a result of sending fax and e-mail news 
releases. We analyze this data to see what works and what doesn’t 
work. We ask our clients what got published and where, and how much
publicity or success they experienced as a result. While this is
by no means statistically definitive, it is nonetheless useful.

We've seen one page releases sent to targeted media lists result 
in successful publicity (defined loosely as having resulted in either 
wide national publicity, a significant number > 35, top national 
interviews or bookings, or profit) for book authors, publishing 
companies, product firms, and government agencies, whose one-page 
news releases took one of the following approaches.

So no matter what type of news release you write, you will increase
your chances of success if it incorporates one or more of the 
following. Here's what appears to be working the best: 

· human interest angles -- particularly with heartwarming anecdotal
stories that reveal deep emotion or feelings with bright, colourful 
word pictures, and enriched sensory experience interpersonal 
relationships on difficult or controversial issues -- focus on love, 
sex, money, communications between men and women, parents and 
children, companies, and employees, government and individuals, tips
articles advice and tactics excerpted from books, ten commandments, 
ten tips, etc.

- unusual events -- unique personal accomplishments, unusual 
  creative ideas

- humour and wisdom, fun and tragedy

- really new and unique products or books Internet innovations and
  developments

- politically and socially important editorial tie - in articles

- holiday and event tie in articles

At least in my humble opinion, for those of you writing news releases
or seeking publicity, your chances of success are likely to be 
increased if you follow one of these formats.

Even when you do, you will maximize your success if you give the 
editor a "local news angle". Localizing news releases maximizes the
publication of your release in weekly and daily newspapers. The 
easiest publicity to get is the announcement of a local event with 
a distinct local human interest angle. You don’t have to do the 
editors work for him, but the idea that the news release can be 
easily adapted to appeal to local needs must be very clear.

Sometimes getting national publicity is harder, especially in 
mainstream publications. You need to have a news angle that has 
some interest at a national level. You also will compete against 
everyone else vying for attention in the nation, and you have to 
distinguish why your release is worth publishing over others.

You can make your job easier and be more successful by breaking your 
national media lists into geographically distinct areas and localizing 
the release.

Even once you've identified you target media, settled on a type of 
news release, it all comes down to writing the actual release. 
Assuming you are aiming at print (radio/tv releases are a different 
animal) -- here's my advice.

Bottom line -- find out what works specifically in the media you 
want to be in and use my special simple technique for publicity and 
news release success.

The Identify, Imitate and Innovate Technique

Go to a newsstand, and pick up the latest issues of every relevant
magazine or publication you can find. The ones you want to be in. 
Then dissect each magazine for book articles. Use yellow stickies, 
or cut these out and make a scrapbook. Study the publications closely
and see how they write book articles and reviews. Make a list of the 
headlines. Study the style, length, focus, content, word choice.

Then start writing by imitating the articles you see. Remember most
of the small articles (which are the easiest to get published are
one page 200 words.

Then Innovate it. Re-write it fifteen times. Make it Short and 
Snappy. Vary the character of your news release to the media you 
are aiming at.

You've written the end all of all books in the field. Or you’ve 
created the best product in the world. This is the ultimate sensation. 
The only book or product anyone will ever need. Get enthused. Now tell
people why you are enthused in 150 to 200 words.

Read it out loud as if you were live on the air -- see if it sounds 
good.

By the way, good short articles in newspapers and magazines are often
read on radio stations and on talk shows every day, especially on 
morning radio talk shows. This has happened to me. Listen closely 
when it happens. Remember what the radio announcer is doing. He's 
reading a paper or magazine on the air. Wow -- a force multiplier 
effect. Like being seen on Oprah and getting asked to do an interview
with People magazine (This happened to my client Courtney Garton. 
You can see the 7/27/98 edition of People magazine). It also happened 
to my client Ms. Karen Derrico, author of Unforgettable Mutts. She
did an interview on a small radio station in New York City, and was 
heard by William Safire, who then wrote about the Million Mutt March
on Mother’s day in Washington DC in his column in the New York Times.

A news release has to sing to you before you send it to me, if I am to
make you the best possible custom targeted media list I possibly can.

Best way I know to make it right is to follow in the footsteps of the 
successful before you.

_______________________

Paul J. Krupin is one of the leading PR and Media Consultants, and
is the author of the best selling ebook "Trash Proof News Releases"
Click here or go to http://www.TrashProofNewsReleases.com/g.o/Web4Business
to order Trash Proof News Releases.