As a vital communication tactic, a press release can attract valuable media coverage and give your company much higher notoriety among relevant stakeholders. However, amidst the buzz of sharing your latest company updates, it’s crucial that you avoid some common mistakes. From overly promotional language that turns off journalists to excessive jargon that leaves readers scratching their heads, we’ll share the 8 elements that you should leave out of your press release.
Why are press releases so important?
Before anything else, it’s crucial to understand the benefits of press releases for a company. Overall, this PR tactic works as a tool to boost brand awareness, shape public opinion, and ultimately drive business sales. But it’s worth knowing the much bigger advantages of using these documents for your company’s success. Here are some of the reasons why press releases are a must:
- Media coverage and higher visibility: When a journalist finds your press release newsworthy, they may write articles or create news segments about your company, amplifying its reach within a potentially large audience.
- Credibility and authority: being featured in reputable media outlets also lends legitimacy to your company. This is even true from an SEO perspective. The online channels that feature your company provide valuable backlinks to your website, helping increase its online presence.
- Trust from potential investors: a press release can provide shareholders with updates on company developments and performance.
- Higher employee engagement: your PRs can also be used internally to keep your talent informed about company news and achievements. This promotes a sense engagement among staff members. Positive media coverage will also serve to attract – and retain – talent.
- More leads: besides partners or investors, your can also attract the interest of potential customers, who learn about your company through media coverage.
The mistakes you should avoid in your PR
To truly benefit from this potential, you need to write a captivating press release, and this also means you should know what to leave out of this type of communication. Here’s what you should avoid at all costs.
1. Promotional writing
You have wonders to say about your company in a press release and you’re buzzing with excitement. You may tend to mistake your PR for a piece of advertising. But remember:
press releases are newsworthy; not salesy. Journalists are more interested in getting access to compelling news stories than knowing about your company. So, always prioritize the facts.
2. First-person references
One other quick way to make your press release look unprofessional is using terms such as “we”, or “our company”. This actually can come off as self-promotional and salesly as well. Instead, use third-person writing to make your news more valuable.
3. Wrong sources
You should also choose who you quote in your press release very strategically. If you’re announcing that your company is expanding to another continent, maybe highlighting your Head of People as the main source of information in the PR won’t be a wise choice. Your CEO, in this case, in a much more credible option. Your quotes should always add more credibility and depth to the topic being discussed in your press release.
4. Superficial quotes
Speaking of quotes, one aspect that also matters is substance; not just who you’re citing. Remember: your quotes exist to expand the PR and to provide substance and further information, rather than just stating generic enthusiasm. Mentioning that “we’re thrilled” to do this and that or that “this represents a big opportunity” doesn’t add much. Instead, be objective, use facts and numbers to back your quotes, and state a clear opinion to establish your sources as thought leaders.
5. Complicated language
This is one of the most frequent mistakes companies tend to make. When you write a press release for a national paper ou TV station, you’ll reach a broad audience, so, avoid jargons, complicated acronyms (or define them) and technical language. If a 9th grader is able to easily understand your PR, you’ve done your job!
6. Unnecessary details
Again, it’s easy to get overly excited about communicating something you’re passionate about, but you should always stick to what really matters in your PR. Don’t overcomplicate and stick to the essential information in a one-page long press release. You can save other details for your website or other supplementary materials. So, be concise, because the longer a release is, the less likely a journalist will read it.
7. Overuse of hiperlinks
When it comes to adding links in your PR, you’ll also want to be incisive. Select the most important ones. For instance, if you’re announcing a new recruitment opportunity, maybe it’s best if you link to your careers page. Having too many links will make it hard to identify the most relevant information.
8. Unappealing formatting
Visual presentation also matters. When you finish your PR, make sure you have a neat document, with short paragraphs, and bullet points to make the reading more accessible and pleasurable. Using bold sentences to highlight key information is also a good practice.
Contact FES Agency to write an effective PR
Writing an effective press release that avoids all the mentioned mistakes requires specialized skills. Getting a partner to do this work is a great way to ensure you create a PR that journalists will want to read and use. Contact FES Agency today to identify the best PR opportunities and secure positive media coverage for your business.
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