Avoid These In Press Releases

Things to Avoid in Press Releases

There are a variety of ways to form the intro to your press release.  Aside from the guidelines already mentioned, it's best to avoid ever starting your piece with a question.  An interrogative lead is never a professional way to write news. 

Although you might feel that it piques the reader's curiosity, all it will do is waste the reader's time, and that will cause them to skip your press release altogether.  Don't say "Will the PTA raise enough funds to buy new computers for the school" when you can say "The PTA will hold a fundraiser Monday night in an attempt to provide the school with all new computers."

Additionally, don't try to cram everything into one sentence if it seems to overload the information.  If the five W's won't fit gracefully into the first sentence, then cut out the least important information, and save it for the second sentence.  There is no need to practice deliberate overkill just to follow news formatting.

Just as you shouldn't lead with a question, you also should never lead with a negative sentence.  If the PTA meeting was rained out, don't write "The PTA did not have its meeting Monday night due to bad weather."  Say, "Rain spoiled the fundraising efforts of the PTA Monday night…" Or, even better, if something is going to replace the thing that did not happen, mention that first: for example - "The PTA will hold a meeting Tuesday night to take the place of Monday night's meeting, which was rained out."

Checklist for Intro

" Have I used, but not forced my five W's into my lead?
" Is my lead clear, concise, and positive?
" Is my lead appropriate in length, or have I tried to include too much information?
" Does my lead reflect the most important ideas based on the content of the body of my press release?
" Have I started with the most important information, and methodically mentioned less relevant points as the item progressed?
" Does my lead reflect matters of substance, or have I over-generalized?
" Does my lead answer to the broadest possible audience, or does it cater to one specific group in particular?

Everyone is different when it comes to developing his or her own leads.  Some prefer to write the lead first, and then flesh out the story so that it's centered around the lead.  And some prefer to write the story first, including all of the relevant facts, followed by writing a lead that is all-inclusive of their prewritten information.

Whichever method you choose, try to follow the basic rules in leads, headlines, and slugs.  Include the most important facts, write with clarity and value in mind, and try to target as many people as possible with your intro sentence. 

The wider your appeal, the more likely an editor will be to want to include your work in his publication.  The more people you cater to, the more people that will purchase his publication.