THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE UGLY

Ask most businesspeople what a news release is and their response will probably sound suspiciously like the definition of an advertisement.Because, what they rarely take into account is that most notorious of four letter words … NEWS.

And if no-one else spots the difference the News Editor who reads it certainly will – because they will not print a news release that offers no valid contribution to a news or feature page.

It’s essential, therefore, that copy is presented in the right language and format. And that does not include the bright sparks at Bedford Instruments who once proudly announced that:

“Nitric Oxide is now recognised as a selective pulmonary vasodilator in adults and neonates…”

Anyone who has ever been tempted to work “selective pulmonary vasodilator” into a critical, eye-catching, ‘intro’ paragraph probably doesn’t need to be told what a “neonate” is. For the rest of us … it’s a baby. But if we needed to refer to a baby in a news release we’d probably call it a baby … errr, wouldn’t we?

Another personal favourite is the thrusting professional, in the press office of Eastleigh Borough Council in Hampshire, who allowed personal confusion to spill into a news release describing parkland trees that had been …

“provided and planted by specialist approved contractors Landmark Design and Build of Staines or Chertsey or something like that in North Surrey near London where there are silver birches and golf courses and things.”

No wonder the media is often derisory about news releases!

So what’s the solution? Well … it’s part creative and part mechanical.

First – find the news angle. What’s different? Not from a corporate point of view but for the person in the street? And, most importantly, what will the media consider different … and, therefore, newsworthy?

Second – gather the appropriate information to “stand up” the news angle.

And then – present it in a form that gives the story the best possible chance of being published.

Easier said than done sometimes – even for professionals!

STYLE

Aim for a clear, reader-friendly, mid-market style.

If you’re targeting a particular publication and can demonstrate a basic knowledge of their copy style then it’s a good idea to do so.

(A piece of university research showing that pulse vegetables contain an ingredient that induces wind was headlined by the Daily Telegraph along the lines of “Pulses cause flatulence – research reveals” while the Sun captured the essence with “Beanz meanz fartz”.)

INFORMATION

So, what sort of information do you need to begin?

Who - are you writing about
What - are they doing?
Where - is this taking place?
When - is it happening (past events should be left dateless. On no account say “recently” – which tends to flag up an out-of-date story.
How - is it being done?

… and Why.

Somewhere in this information you will, hopefully, find your news angle.

PRESENTATION

Keep your news release crisp, concise, objective, factual … and in plain English. Avoid being overtly promotional. (Tip - keep opinions within the spokesperson’s quotes.)

The intro is the most important paragraph because it’s an attention-grabber that briefly describes what the story is about and makes people want to read on.

Keep paragraphs short - and the whole release should be no longer than 400 words or so.

Watch out for tautology – such as “the business was first founded.” (Tch tch!)

Use singular and plural correctly. “Trafford Council have announced …”, “the company have said …” are singular in both cases - so use “has”!

Try to avoid jargon. I once re-wrote a technical feature that described a “simultaneous physical presence”. Got that one? (It was a “meeting”!)

And I’ve been known to write to newspapers about apostrophes! Mediaeval torture techniques would be too good for the signwriter who wrote that one of the fast food outlets beside Manchester United football ground sells Burger’s and Kebab’s. Good grief!

Date the release at the end. Give a contact name, telephone number and, if appropriate, an e-mail address.

Now you’ve finished it … who can you send it to?

That, as they say, is a whole different story.