Write an Effective Press Release Today

Writing a press release is easy. Writing an effective press release is another story altogether. Here are some tips to writing a press release that will not only get you backlinks to your website but may also get you noticed.

Why would a company use a press release?

Companies will use a press release for many reasons. The most common is to get their site noticed by the media, reporters and editors. The company would release a press release in the hopes that somewhere out there an editor would find it interesting and release it . But there are some criteria that you, as an internet marketer or as a company can do to increase your chances for your story to get picked up.

The first thing to writing an effective press release is that you need to follow protocol. In other words, you need to give the press all the information that they need. This includes:

1. Your company's name and URL.

2. Contact information including email address AND phone number where you can be reached as well as a physical location.

3. A short summary of what your company is about. 2-4 lines is okay. You aren't writing a book, just a quick summary.

4. An abstract of what the actual press release is about. This is important because a lot of times the editors will be scanning hundreds of press releases. The abstract will give them a quick overview of your press release without having to actually read through it.

5. The body of the press release is the meat of what you are saying. It should follow standard newspaper protocal...the who, what, why and when.

6. This should be written in third person as if someone else (not you) has written it. This is because in the event that it gets printed, the reader won't think that it is about the editor.

7. A press release should not read like an ad. It should be informative and provide some value to the reader.

Other things to consider when writing an effective press release:

1. The news should be new. A press release is made to announce to the world something new or innovative that your company is doing.

2. The most "newsworthy" information should be presented at the beginning of the press release. This is known as an inverted pyramid writing structure.

The actual mechanics of writing an effective press release has a protocol as well. The beginning, middle and end should follow a standard. All press releases typically follow this standard.

The 1st paragraph of the press release should restate the headline of the press release. In fact, it should be almost word for word. It should also quickly summarize what the press release is about.

The 2nd paragraph should highlight the reason for the press release. If your company has just opened a new store in Lindenberg, PA, for example, the second paragraph should clearly state the who, what, why and when.

The 3rd paragraph should have a quote or favorable comment from someone within your company. This is the place where you can give an opinion about why you think your press release merits publicity.

That last paragraph will contain your companies details (as mentioned above).

In summation, writing a press release is easy. But writing an effective press release that will get publicity in print from editors and press is a completely different story. The reality is that in order to write an effective press release, you need to know the press release standard as well as the required information that should be included with the release. Good luck.