7 Tips for Making Your Press Release a Success

7 Tips for Making Your Press Release a Success

by | Oct 28, 2020 | Blog

Most journalists (36%) still receive their news from the good old press release. As a PR professional, you are responsible for getting the news your client wants to disseminate in front of as many relevant people as possible.

But in 2020 when the usual news topics have been turned on their head, how do you do that?

PR Newswire – a Cision company – released its State of Press Release report which noted that 48% of all releases issued between March and May 2020 mentioned COVID-19.

The report also provided these statistics when comparing 2019 and 2020 news topics:

  • Future events news dropped 56%
  • Trade show news releases dropped by 77%
  • Public safety news increased by 192%
  • Corporate social responsibility releases increased by 118%
  • News about infectious disease control saw a huge jump of 3,140%

If your client’s release is either in a category that isn’t being discussed, or included in a topic that’s likely to get lost in the shuffle, how do you ensure yours stands out?

Here are seven tips to give you an edge.

1. Start at the top with a short, newsy headline. A short and catchy headline is where you capture audience attention. After all, when you scroll through a newspaper, social media platform, or newsletter, what is it that makes you decide which articles to read?

The average headline length for a press release is 88 characters. Keep headlines short and sweet, and if it’s absolutely necessary for a longer headline, ensure the important keywords are in the first 70 characters because this is where Google search engine results and email subject lines cut off.

2. Use strong call-to-action words. According to the PR Newswire / Cision State of the Press Release report, these are the top 10 CTA headline words:

  • Confirms
  • Reveals
  • Proves
  • Launches
  • Empowers
  • Enables
  • Allows
  • Announces
  • Rolls Out
  • Shows

3. Select the right newswire company. At our agency, we have been working with PR Newswire for many years. We have experience with all the wires, but we feel this company has an edge.

Not only do they have superior customer service, their wires syndicate to more outlets than any other. Additionally, they have a service in which editors pay to subscribe to their wires.

It gives those looking for news the chance to eliminate a mass download to their inbox, and it provides search terms. Therefore, when we set up releases to be sent on the wire, we use an option provided by PR Newswire, in which we “code” for keywords and trades. This allows the right people to find the news they are actively looking for to write into their story lines.

4. Pick the right time to send your news. According to Cision, the highest volume of news is sent at 8 AM ET, Mondays through Thursdays with Tuesday being the highest day of release traffic. 52% of copy is sent at the top or bottom of the hour.

So, to stand out from the flood of releases being pushed, yours should be sent either before or after 8 AM ET. If you’re looking to maximize your visibility, the best days are Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday in the middle of the day. Use odd times like 9:05 am, or 1:10 pm.

5. Make content informative and engaging. The average press release according to Cision’s data, is 686 words and readers spent 3 minutes and 39 seconds. But it won’t get read at all if it doesn’t interest the media. This blog post by my colleague Michelle Noteboom provides tips for tweaking your message to ensure the audience hears you – during COVID-19 and beyond.  

6. Don’t rely on the wire alone – pitch away! Hopefully, you’re working with an experienced PR agency who has a great media relations team. I pulled this entire paragraph from Cision’s report because I found it compelling:

“For the first time in Cision’s State of the Media Report history, we asked reporters to share what days they receive pitches most and what days they actually prefer getting them. As many of us expected, Mondays proved to be the preferred day for reporters, and it was also when they got pitches most. However, many journalists reported they were still open to receiving pitches until Friday (a handful even on Saturday and Sunday). As the week progresses though, the number of pitches they receive declines. While their interest in receiving pitches did slightly decrease, the numbers weren’t so significant that it should prevent publicists from reaching out.”

7. Look outside the box for other ways to promote your news. Ensure the client is posting the release on their website. Use your social media team to create multiple, engaging posts for all the client’s social platforms. And if your client is a member or sponsor of any publication or trade organization, find out if benefits include posting corporate news.

New hire announcements, contract wins, and product launches all make for news-worthy events. In the world of health and health IT, we look to publications such as HIStalk, Answers Media and DOTmed, and trade organizations including AHIP, CHIME and the ATA for posting our clients’ press releases.

2020 hasn’t been an easy year. But with a little extra work and attention to detail, you can ensure your press release is picked up and read by as many people as possible.

The 4 Essential Components of a Strong Case Study

The 4 Essential Components of a Strong Case Study

by | Dec 12, 2018 | Blog

While every tool in the PR arsenal from press releases to bylines offer value in generating attention, a strong case study has the potential to stand above the rest as a real-world example of how a vendors’ product helped a customer solve a vexing business problem.

A strong case study can help a company begin to move beyond talk to illustrate action specifically the positive outcomes, enhanced revenue or cost savings a prospect can achieve by taking the action of implementing your product. Customers want to know you have experience solving problems just like the ones their company is currently experiencing, and a case study provides the perfect opportunity to demonstrate exactly what your company and product accomplished to deliver value to a similar organization.

A well-executed case study must tell a story. In this story, the hero is the customer that boldly and courageously implemented your product to better serve her own patients or customers. The vendor plays the role of the humble servant, providing support and guidance to help the hero accomplish her goals and save the day.

In its most basic form, a case study’s story consists of “Problem -> Solution -> Results” but a strong case study requires more. Think of it as a job interview in which your primary challenge is to convince a prospect why your product is the one she should hire for the position.

When developing your next cast study, be sure to include these four essential elements:

  • Customer quotes: Don’t just tell us how the customer feels about your product, show us by using the customer’s own words. A customer’s own words always carry more weight and create a greater impact than what a vendor says about its own solution. The best way to obtain valuable quotes is to interview end-users of the product.
  • Quantified results: Nothing is more demoralizing for a case study consumer than to feel interest and curiosity while reading through the introduction, problem and solution sections, only to come to a disappointing results section that contains vague language of improvement and no key metrics. It’s a sure way to turn off a prospect who was beginning to consider your solution. After implementation, did your solution help the customer make money, save money, see more patients, or improve operations in some other quantifiable way? Let us know about it in as much detail as possible. While some customers are understandably reluctant to share specific dollar amounts, they’re more likely to approve of using percentages, such as “grew revenues 50 percent one year after adopting the solution.”
  • What’s next: It isn’t lost on most people that a case study must include detailed information on how a customer has already used a vendor’s solution, but it’s easy to forget to include details about future plans. Does the customer plan to expand use of the solution with a new patient population, offer it at a new location or purchase a complementary product? Including this information will help prospects conceive of a long-term strategy for their adoption of your product.
  • Call to action: Another easy-to-forget aspect of a case study is the call-to-action (CTA), which provides the vendor with an opportunity near the end of the piece to request a specific action from the reader. Whether you’re offering the reader more content to consume or a free giveaway, or asking them to fill out a form, be sure to make the experience as easy as possible for the user to complete.

Wherever your latest prospect is in the customer journey, a solid case study holds the possibility of providing that nudge to take the next step. When you sit down to plan out your next customer case study, don’t forget these four essential elements.