How to Write a Press Release

I'm going to teach you the basics of writing a press release in the proper press release format.

Plus... show you a sample press release and... link you to a christian press release I wrote that google has already indexed.

Scroll down for step by step How to Write a Press Release instructions to make it very easy for you to understand how to write a good press release.

Need Help? Contact Linda here. I will write a press-release for you.

A press release is a "news worthy" story about a business, new product, person, current social, political, or an economic issue, etc.

It is not meant to be a blatant advertisement for your business but rather a interesting bit of news such as a promotion within your company or a new product line just launched.

It should not be written with the consumer or customer in mind at all but is created with the intention of getting a journalist's attention and hopefully peak enough interest to get your story in the news.
(Journalists read press releases to get ideas for news stories.)

Press Release Guidelines & Proper Press Release Format

• Your press release should have short and catchy and fairly short title, (known as the headline.)
  Use it to lure your reader into wanting to read the first paragraph.
  Use between 80 and 125 characters.You need to capitalize the first letter of each word except for articles of 3 words or less or prepositions.
  Note: You never put a period at the end of a headline.

• Next you need a summary.The summary is a "condensed" version of your press release.
  It should be an intriguing outline of your story.

• Your press release must be written in the third person.
  

  Tell the story as if you are a newspaper reporter.
  

  Good example: Linda Pepin, webmaster of Christian Home Business Help, announced today that she and her husband Roger will soon launch a website about Niagara Falls, Canada.

  Poor example: I'm Linda Pepin. I'm the webmaster of Christian Home Business Help. I'd like to announce...
  

  Do you see the difference?
  

• The rest of your free press release is the "body."
  The body is approximately 2-3 more paragraphs.
  Each paragraph should be no more than 3 or 4 sentences.
  This helps keep your writing concise and to the point.
  Too much content loses the reader.
  Make each word count.
  Focus on benefits and not just facts.

• The first paragraph of your body is the most important (known as the lead.)
  It needs to be strong and interesting.
  You only have a few seconds to grab the readers attention and keep him reading.
  Use words as "hooks."
  Feed the reader with "tid bits" of information that will want him to know more and move into reading the body.
  Make the first paragraph 25 words or less.
  This is where you normally answer the 5 W's.
  

  (Try to think like a journalist and answer the questions that might pop into his mind.) What? When? How? Where? and Why?

• Quotes are good to use in your body.

• Use good keywords in the body of your press release.
  The right keywords will drive more traffic to your press release.
  Scatter keywords throughout your press release writing.
  

  TWO TYPES of keywords
  

  There are "general" keywords and "long tail keywords.
  Example of a general keyword is "press release."
  Example of a long tail keyword is "Writing a press release."
  

  Long tail keywords are more easily won and not so competitive.
  

  For more information on long tail keywords, click here.
  

  Important: Your keywords need to match your content.
  

  For example:
  

  In my "how to write a press release" instructions, I used keywords such as: free press release, christian press release, press release guidelines, etc.
  

  I didn't use off topic keywords like, "Obama's health care package stinks."
  

  Some writers use tricks like that in the hopes that they will get attention from the search engines because it's a hot topic.
  

  Don't do it unless your press release is about health care or Obama.

• Your entire press release should be between 500-800 words. No more.
  Use the word count in Microsoft Word to check if you're over the mark.
  It's most effective if less than 500 words.
  

• Your closing paragraph should summarize the entire press release restating the key points of your news story.
  You also include details about the company and/or product.

  Important: Before you list the contact person's name and phone number, give a short overview of the company or person the press release was about.

• Enter your e-mail address in the "contact email" box when you submit your press release, not anywhere in the body. This stops spam. However...people will still be able to contact you through link on your press release.

• Now put the contact information.
  Name
  Company
  Phone Number
  Website address.
  

• Put this symbol ### at the end so the reader knows the press release has ended.

See? Learning how to write a Press Release is not so difficult after all.

Click here to see an example of a Christian press release I wrote about our World Light Funding business.

It's one of the first press releases I wrote so there's plenty of room for improvement but many times it hits the first page of google simply because of my choice of good keywords.

Try typing in examples of press releases or Christian press releases into your google search bar for samples of other free press releases.

Take these steps...

1. Create a free press release account here.
2. Click "register" on the top right of the page
3. Pick a username
4. Pick a password
5. Confirm your password
6. Enter your email address
7. Click Register
8. Click Submit Press release
9. Choose Free Press Release
10.Enter Your Title
11.Enter the Summary
12.Copy your note pad press release summary and paste it into the "news body"

Note: click "preview to see what it looks like and make any necessary changes. (Be very sure your spelling and grammar is perfect because you will not be able to make changes with the "free press release" version.

13.Enter the "image" number you see
14. Click on the "tag" and enter your keywords.
15. You cannot enter a website or picture with the free press release version in this section
16. Click "contact" and enter your name, address, phone #, and website url
17. Enter your country
18. Click "policy" and read the information
19. Click "submit"
20. Your free press release will be indexed within 24 hours.

Need Help? If you need help with any of these "How to Write a Press Release" steps, or want me to write it for you, contact me here. I'll be glad to help.

Once you've tackled your first free press release, you won't feel so intimidated the next time. It's really not that hard once you understand a few press release basics.

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