Guidelines and Tips for Writing a Press Release

Task

PEST, SWOT, competitor analysis (Indirect and direct), marketing mix (Ps: People, Product, Price, Promotion, Place, Process and Physical Evidence), or any related to the issues/gaps/crisis

To identify a contemporary ‘corporate reputation’ issue and, upon completing a literature review, deconstruct the content and effectiveness of PR message strategies of a real-life organisation, across a range of media channels using a rhetorical analysis approach (E.g., audience, purpose, medium, context).

Ability to write a Press Release dealing with a prescribed PR situation. You are require to write a one to one-and-a-half page (A4) press release. Your press release must be followed below.

Your press release should follow the approach and style guidelines discussed in class and in tutorials in the weeks leading up to the hand-in date. Marks are not given for precisely following rules (since practice varies) but for writing a press release which is fit for purpose overall. You should bear in mind:

• Your press release should fill the page (and may be up to one-and-a-half pages, including editor’s notes).  Points should be grouped together into relatively short paragraphs, broadly following one or combining more than one of the templates used in class.
• The writing style should be clear and succinct.
• The document must be checked and corrected; it should convey a credible, authoritative impression of the organisation.
• What you take to be the ‘headline’ (or most newsworthy) message line should come first, to attract attention and interest. You should arrange your various points in a suitable order and weigh up what the most important and positive points are.  You present each point in your own words.
• Any given situation provides enough material for more than just one possible press release. So you have to choose what angle or angles to emphasise, and what sort of story to create. But remember that your aim is to improve the reputation of the organisation in question (so that it is seen in a way that it is likely to wish to be seen), not to damage it or to make it unhelpfully controversial, etc.
• You should take special care in deciding how to present any points that you don’t particularly wish to draw attention to, but which you feel it would be unwise to omit altogether. They may be referred to obliquely, or clearly implied but not stated, etc.

To make the press release realistic, you are free to embellish the information with relevant extra details (e.g. places, amounts, dates and names, bits of background). But only do this where such points are needed. In assessing your work, some latitude will be given as regards this additional, made-up material - so long as you don't undermine the scenario as given by inventing details or facts that fundamentally conflict with the situation as given

The following 15 points are things to remember, not the order of elements to include

1. Press releases traditionally follow the so-called SOLAADS format. That is, information appears in the following order: 
Subject - Organisation - Location - Advantages - Applications - Details - Source 
(In some cases, you won’t have information under all these headings)

2. Decide your story angle: it must be timely and newsworthy. Write the release using 'inverted pyramid' structure: most important information first. Check that you answer ‘who, what, when, where, why’ questions. (Also, the 'how' question.)

3. Keep headline short and snappy: simple, less than 10 words. If necessary, add sub-heading to include supporting details

4. Never use past tense: present tense creates impression that content is up-to-date

5. First paragraph: main facts; must include name of company and whatever product/service/event you're announcing.

6. Remaining paragraphs should provide supporting information, in descending order of importance. Relate most exciting and newsworthy aspects of product/service first. Provide references (= footnotes) for facts and figures. Don’t express personal opinions, except in the quotes. Draw conclusions from your facts and statistics; don’t add extra, personal opinion. 

7. Include quote from senior person at company and/or other relevant ‘newsmakers’. Couple of sentences only. You may need to be proactive in getting this quote.
8. Write in third person: not “I", "you", "we" or "us" bus "it", "he/she" and "they". 

9. Avoid acronyms and abbreviations 

10 Use simple, concise language 

11. Don’t make unsupported claims 

12. Avoid puffery (i.e. exaggerated self-praise)

13. Provide Notes to Editors as appendix: background information on company 

14. Contact details: name and details of your appointed contact person

15. State whether you have photos available. Don’t attach them.