A dozen press agents working overtime can do terrible things to the human spirit.
KeyNotes - The Moving Finger Newsletter
About writing and editing for business, and words in general
June/July 2007
In this issue:
- Have you got news for a press release?
- Guest article: What photos should I send with my press release?
Have you got news for a press release?
It’s a well established marketing maxim that editorial that’s read in a newspaper or magazine is better regarded than any advert. Why? Because it carries the apparent endorsement of being published on merit.
And with the explosion in content-hungry print, broadcast and online media, the opportunities for any business to grab its share of the spotlight have never been better.
You can reach all manner of media sites and news channels economically online. If your market is local, a brief ‘get to know you’ chat with your local business editor followed by regular releases via email will get you noticed. Even if you do nothing else but post releases on your website, you’ll give it a regular injection of fresh content that will help your search engine rankings.
So what’s stopping you?
Maybe you don’t consider your business to be sufficiently newsworthy. Well, take a look at your product or services. Have you launched anything new? Or has an existing range been revamped? Perhaps you’ve built customer experiences of what you do into a newer, better offer. And don’t forget expansion – a change of office, new personnel – or event sponsorship within your industry, or in your local community.
If you’re still stuck, then get creative by taking a closer look at what your company does. Review some recent customer history and feedback. Is there some positive stuff you can rework into an industry trend to which your business is responding?
And don’t overlook those soapbox opportunities for a chance to comment on your industry’s wider issues, or at least your particular niche within them.
Plan a programme of releases and get them out there on a regular basis. Target a length of between 350-500 words and make sure you include the nub of your story in the first couple of paragraphs. Don’t bury your news out of sight.
Once you’re in gear, you should enjoy an excellent return for very little upfront cost - while logging fresh topics into the supply chain will become second nature.
Guest article: What photos should I send with my press release?
If you are not sending pictures out with your press releases, you are missing a vital part of your PR campaign.
As any editor will tell you, a release with a photo has a much higher chance of being used and could elevate your story from a few column centimetres on an inside page to a more prominent position and possibly the front page.
Here are a few tips that could help:
- As an absolute minimum, ensure you have headshots of all people mentioned in your press releases and spokespeople representing your organisation, before you are asked for them by a journalist. Avoid white background studio shots.
- Your main spokespeople, CEO, directors, VPs, etc should have a small selection of images taken which picture them in a natural working setting representing your specific business, both with your company logo and without. Make sure you get landscape and portrait orientated shots.
- If you are 'telling a story' in your press release, make sure the photo also tells the (same) story. Ensure it has enough impact to immediately grab the attention of firstly the editor and secondly the reader.
- Supplying a feature picture instead of a simple headshot is the biggest single thing you can do to bring your story to the top of the pile. Sometimes the most mundane story can be published as the lead story on the page thanks to a superb photo. (This is known as a picture led story).
- Have some generic shots taken that represent your business and industry sector. Both internal and exterior shots should be produced showing your business at work. Sometimes having these generic shots available when a picture editor is looking for a photo to go with an existing story can result in your organisation being asked to comment. (Make sure you are told what the basis of the story is before making the pictures available).
- Make sure all your photos meet the media photo specs so they can easily be sent by email and will not overload the mailbox of the journalist you are sending them to. (This wouldn't help your cause!)
Written by Simon Apps, ex-press photographer and founder of Professional Images - www.professional-images.com
