A quick look at the parts of a press release.

1. How to Write a Successful News Release
PUB 355: March 11, 2011
by Monique Trottier
monique@boxcarmarketing.com
You should follow me on twitter @boxcarmarketing

2. Creating an Online Press Release

3. Tips
• Start Strong: You have a matter of seconds to earn attention.
• Be Newsworthy: The headline, summary and 1st paragraph should clarify
the news. The rest of the release provides the details. It’s not a marketing
pitch or advertisement.
• Use Keywords: The headline and summary use keywords people are likely
to use when searching for this type of information.
• Identify Yourself: Identify the company, brand or product in the headline
and summary.
• Economize Your Words: Be concise. Aim for 60 characters including spaces
for the headline and 1-4 sentences for the summary.
• Pick an Angle: Make sure your release has a good hook.
• Proofread: No spelling or grammatical errors.
monique@boxcarmarketing.com
twitter: @boxcarmarketing

4. Format Considerations
• A Headline Should Appear in Title Case
• Capitalize Every Word Except Prepositions and Articles
• Aim for 60-170 characters
• ALL CAPS FOR EMPHASIS SHOULD BE AVOIDED.
• The Summary is a synopsis of the information in the release. It
follows the headline
• 1-4 sentences only
• Sentence case for summary text.
• Lead Paragraph is 25 words or less.
• Write in 3rd person. No “I” or “you”
• Body Copy is 300-800 words.
monique@boxcarmarketing.com
twitter: @boxcarmarketing

5. Beyond writing a good release,
you’ll want to know “Did it work?”
How to measure the success of a
press release:
http://www.bloggingprweb.com/how-to-measure-pr-success
monique@boxcarmarketing.com
You should follow me on twitter @boxcarmarketing