How To Craft An Attention Grabbing Press Release [Infographic]

Attention grabbing press releases can be such a powerful part of your Internet marketing strategy if they are done well. It is an effective way to get exposure in the mainstream media. When people read things online, which do you think they trust more, a press release or advertising? Of course the answer is a press release. However, there is a benchmark to consider when it comes to press releases. Press releases are for news. The first question to ask is, is your topic newsworthy?

Crafting an attention grabbing press release is tricky because for many bloggers it’s counterintuitive. The way you write an attention grabbing press release is very different from how you would write about the same piece of news on your blog, so it’s easy to get tripped up when you write it. In the simplest terms, it should look like news. If you use fancy copywriting techniques (which work well on your blog) in a press release, it will look like an ad and not grab anyone’s attention.

Instead, on a press release, you don’t want to go out of your way to be engaging (use passive voice). You want it to be low key. It needs to look like it was written by a journalist. You can go to any news site and see how they write. That is what you want to mimic. If you can get this right, and if your topic is truly newsworthy, you will end up with an attention grabbing press release.

In your press release, be sure to stick to the facts. Remember, it has to look like news, so there is no room for embellishments. However, it’s still important to keep it interesting and natural, so it’s a bit of a balancing act. Open with a strong attention grabbing headline. Follow that up with the body of text written in brief sentences. You don’t need to use a lot of descriptive words. Again, this is very different from a blog post. Be objective.

If possible, tie your press release to a current event. Google views press releases as an authority on the news, and by tying it to a current event, you’ll only increase the SEO ranking on your press release. Remember, even though your press release needs to sound like news, don’t write a bunch of boring mambo-jumbo. It has to be natural. Google is very keen on knowing what is natural writing and what isn’t.

No matter how powerful your press release is, it’s tough to make a lasting impact with just one. You want to put out your press releases on a schedule (like once a month) in order to really gain some attention (that is why many of those press release companies sell them in packages of 3, 5 or 10). Last but not least, be sure to proofread your press release for any spelling and grammar errors.

I could go on and on, but instead I’ll stop and just refer you to this infographic called Press Release Dos and Don’ts by Skadeedle. These are great tips, and if you keep all this in mind, you’ll for sure write your best attention grabbing press release ever!