How to Write a Press Release

Need to get your message out to the public? Here are a few tricks and tips on how to write a press release for your organization.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• Word processing program
• Full information about your event or news
• Email address or FAX number of news organizations

1. The first step to writing a comprehensive news release for your organization is to gather all the pertinent information. If you are working with a large organization, such as a regional Boy Scout troop or a sports league, you will need to talk with the director in charge of that organization.
   Usually, if you are in charge of submitting information to the newspaper, you will already have been asked to take on this duty rather than having to ask permission.
2. There are two types of announcements you can submit to a newspaper. The first is an announcement telling people about an upcoming event.
   In this type of announcement, you should be careful to include the following information in your news release -- What, Where, When, Why and How.
   What: Tell the name of the event and include whether it takes place annually.
   Where: Be specific. Tell the name of the location where the event will take place. Include a street address, city and a phone number, if possible, for those who might get lost trying to locate your event.
   When: Be sure to include the day and date along with the time. Don't forget to notate whether the event takes place at 7 a.m. or 7 p.m.
   Why: Perhaps this is a fundraiser for your group or a benefit for a worthy cause. Tell a little about why the event is taking place.
   How: If your event includes the sale of food or an auction or other events that will help raise money, say so.
3. Contacting the news media: Call your local town's newspaper. The smaller the newspaper, the more likely you are to get more of your information into the publication.
   Larger newspapers which come out daily typically cover wide areas and don't have the resources to print every announcement that comes in about school festivals or elementary poster contest winners.
   But smaller papers often anchor their community coverage on these types of things. Small weekly papers often welcome news releases and even photos from community organizations.
   But you must understand that all newspapers, regardless of size, are governed by their own deadlines. That means you must meet those deadlines or risk being left out of the paper altogether.
4. The first thing to do is to call your local newspaper and ask about their deadlines, what events they consider eligible for free inclusion in the paper, and a way to submit that news item.
   Often, editors prefer to receive news items through email. If you do this, be sure to include the news story as both a .doc document as well as cutting and pasting the news item into the body of the email.
   This guarantees that there will be no problems in the editor getting the information successfully.
   If you decided to submit the story in person or by regular mail or FAX, be certain to type the story. Do not submit a story hand-written. There is too great a risk for mistakes if your handwriting is not very good.
5. Writing the story: In the first paragraph, clearly state the pertinent information about the event.
   
   EXAMPLE:
   
   The South Town Boy Scout Troop 332 will have a bake sale Saturday, May 30, starting at 2 p.m. at the Super Center parking lot, located at 123 Main Street in Youngstown.
   
   In this example, you have included the Who (South Town Boy Scout Troop 332), the What (bake sale), the When (Saturday, May 30, 2 p.m.) and the Where (Super Center parking lot, 123 Main Street, Youngstown).
6. In the next paragraph, include a little more information about the Why, the Who and the How.
   
   Troop 332 is preparing for its annual camping trip to Montana and is raising money for travel expenses. The troop includes boys age 8 through 11 from the Youngstown area. This is the fifth consecutive year for the boys to make the trip.
7. If you want to add more impact to your story, include a quote from a person directly involved in the event:
   
   "This is an important, life-changing event for these young boys," said Troop 332 Leader John Smith. "The boys will come back with memories that will last a lifetime."
8. At the end of your news release, include a paragraph for those who might want to contact you for more information or, with some luck, for those who might just want to donate to your cause.
   
   For more information about the upcoming bake sale or about membership in Troop 332, call Smith at 555-555-5555.
9. The easier it is for a news editor to take the information and turn it into a story for his paper, the more likely you are to get published.
   Be sure to spell-check your information and include a contact number and name for the editor to use in case they need to get more information from you.
10. Many weekly hometown newspapers will also usually include a photo of your event after the fact. In this case, you might not want to take a picture of the bake sale for publication as much as you would a picture of the trip to Montana.
    Although you might think this trip is the biggest thing in the world, for a newspaper full of different stories and photos, this is but one piece of what's important in this week's publication. Submit one good in-focus photograph. Either a print or an emailed digital image is fine. For the digital image, make sure it is high resolution, otherwise the newspaper likely will not be able to use it at all.

Tips & Warnings

• Find out about deadlines and don't crowd them. Get your information into the newspaper early.
• Include all the important information (What, When, Where, Why, How)
• Make sure there is a contact number for the editor in case there are questions about your story.
• Spellcheck!!
• Don't write in first person or second person. Don't use the words "I" "we" "they" "us" or "you" in a story. Always write in third person
• Think about photos that might be included in your story. Make sure they are in focus and, if digital, that they are high resolution.
• If you are a for-profit organization wanting to sell a product or invite people to a paid event, don't expect newspapers to print your information free of charge. Though you may see your event as a benefit to the general public, the newspaper sees it as you trying to make money for yourself, much like any other business person who runs an ad in the paper.