News Program – Creating the Perfect Release
What is This Section About?
This section is about creating press releases: all the way from original data capture for a release, to the final editing and proofreading. It takes you through the highlights and the process.
Why is This Section Important?
Press releases are the centerpiece of public relations. Nothing happens without news, and clients live to make substantial news ahead of their competitors in order to gain or increase market share. For our part, the delivery of the news is paramount because it is often the first and most important document that readers will go to when they are making a buying decision.
Trainer’s Approach
News is one of the most important assets any PR team can leverage to meet client visibility metrics. Having said that, one of the most frequent complaints clients have about their agencies is the lack of writing skills. Often this isn’t about the agency’s use of grammar, but rather a misunderstanding of what the technology is or what the significance of the announcement is. Trainer begins by asking the client to respond to some questions in a template format – either verbally (or ideally) in written form. Trainer best practice calls for the Trainer writer to make an attempt at filling out the template based on the client briefing.
Trainer also recommends researching competitive sites and industry leaders in adjacent spaces to review styles, key trends, techniques. Next, write the headline and the sub-head (these two lines should tell the big story. Often writing the headline and the subhead takes longer than the bulk of the release. Getting these lines perfect – sets the stage for the rest of the release. Headlines are customarily no more than two lines and subheads are also not more than two lines.
What is This Section About?
This section is about creating press releases: all the way from original data capture for a release, to the final editing and proofreading. It takes you through the highlights and the process.
Why is This Section Important?
Press releases are the centerpiece of public relations. Nothing happens without news, and clients live to make substantial news ahead of their competitors in order to gain or increase market share. For our part, the delivery of the news is paramount because it is often the first and most important document that readers will go to when they are making a buying decision.
Trainer’s Approach
News is one of the most important assets any PR team can leverage to meet client visibility metrics. Having said that, one of the most frequent complaints clients have about their agencies is the lack of writing skills. Often this isn’t about the agency’s use of grammar, but rather a misunderstanding of what the technology is or what the significance of the announcement is. Trainer begins by asking the client to respond to some questions in a template format – either verbally (or ideally) in written form. Trainer best practice calls for the Trainer writer to make an attempt at filling out the template based on the client briefing.
Trainer also recommends researching competitive sites and industry leaders in adjacent spaces to review styles, key trends, techniques. Next, write the headline and the sub-head (these two lines should tell the big story. Often writing the headline and the subhead takes longer than the bulk of the release. Getting these lines perfect – sets the stage for the rest of the release. Headlines are customarily no more than two lines and subheads are also not more than two lines.
News Release Distribution
Putting a release up on the wire. Trainer has an umbrella contract with Marketwire that offers special discounts for our clients. Very rarely, a client may use another wire service (like PR Newswire or Business Wire).
2. Login in to Marketwire and select the name of the client for which you are uploading the release for
3. If you haven’t already done so, create an express profile for your client in the Marketwire portal (as this will save time when you upload future releases):
4. Select the Express Submission Profile from the drop down lis
5. All of the areas should auto-populate with the information you previously entered in the express submission profile
6. IMPORTANT NOTE: Make sure the distribution date/time is accurate, with the proper time zone.
7. When on step 3 of this process, double check that your distribution area is correct – in most cases, we distribute on the Northern California Circuit (this still provides national coverage, but it is much more reasonable for our clients from a cost perspective.
8. When you get to the enhancements page, note that our VIP pricing makes it possible for us to offer free image uploads and video. So when you review pricing on the last screen, ensure there isn’t a line item charge for those. If there is, consult with Tim Taggart, our account rep at Marketwire, to get the fees reversed.
9. In the notes/comments section, include a valid phone number that Marketwire can reach you at within the next 20 minutes to confirm and verify your release.
10. Once you click on the submit button, Marketwire will send you an email with a confirmation code; make sure to save
11. Marketwire will call you and verify your confirmation code and the title of the release; confirm all details and listen to suggestions from them on edits to the release.
a. If there are spelling or grammatical errors, have them correct the errors; you may need to send them an email to confirm you’d like them to make the changes, but they’ll let you know.
b. If there is confusion on a term used, use your best judgment.
Putting a release up on the wire. Trainer has an umbrella contract with Marketwire that offers special discounts for our clients. Very rarely, a client may use another wire service (like PR Newswire or Business Wire).
- Create a folder on your desktop and label it with the name of the client and the title of the release
- Put the final version of the release in the folder
- Put the final versions of any images you will be including in this folder
2. Login in to Marketwire and select the name of the client for which you are uploading the release for
3. If you haven’t already done so, create an express profile for your client in the Marketwire portal (as this will save time when you upload future releases):
- Go to Account Tools à Select Express Submission Profiles
- Click on Add a New Profile
- Go through each of the fields to complete the profile for your client
4. Select the Express Submission Profile from the drop down lis
5. All of the areas should auto-populate with the information you previously entered in the express submission profile
6. IMPORTANT NOTE: Make sure the distribution date/time is accurate, with the proper time zone.
7. When on step 3 of this process, double check that your distribution area is correct – in most cases, we distribute on the Northern California Circuit (this still provides national coverage, but it is much more reasonable for our clients from a cost perspective.
8. When you get to the enhancements page, note that our VIP pricing makes it possible for us to offer free image uploads and video. So when you review pricing on the last screen, ensure there isn’t a line item charge for those. If there is, consult with Tim Taggart, our account rep at Marketwire, to get the fees reversed.
9. In the notes/comments section, include a valid phone number that Marketwire can reach you at within the next 20 minutes to confirm and verify your release.
10. Once you click on the submit button, Marketwire will send you an email with a confirmation code; make sure to save
11. Marketwire will call you and verify your confirmation code and the title of the release; confirm all details and listen to suggestions from them on edits to the release.
a. If there are spelling or grammatical errors, have them correct the errors; you may need to send them an email to confirm you’d like them to make the changes, but they’ll let you know.
b. If there is confusion on a term used, use your best judgment.