Press releases are a great way to get the word out about your business. They can help you build credibility, increase brand awareness, and generate leads. However, if miswritten, they can do more harm than good.
This article will discuss the top nine mistakes with press releases that businesses make. We’ll also provide tips on avoiding these mistakes so that you can create successful press releases that will help your business grow.
- Not Featuring a Newsworthy Angle
Press releases aren’t advertisements. A press release aims to provide journalists and bloggers with information to use in their articles. It’s also to give them an opportunity for follow-up interviews if necessary.
If you’re announcing something new or different about your business, make sure you’re using an exciting angle.
With that said, make sure to avoid patting yourself on the back too much when writing press releases. Doing so will make your company look disingenuous. Besides, there’s no point in bragging about your products and services to your audience.
The key here is to find an angle that will appeal to bloggers and your customers.
For example, if you’re launching a new product line targeted towards dog owners, then include some tips on caring for their pets better by using your products or services. This type of content would be more appealing than saying, “We have a new product coming out soon!”
Another way to figure out what sort of press release might work best for your business is by looking at the types of stories other companies are writing about themselves to get media attention (and paying attention to which ones are successful).
- Not Using a Journalistic Writing Format
When writing a press release, it’s important to remember that you’re writing for journalists, not your customers. It would be best to use a journalistic style, which is different from how you might write copy for your website or marketing materials.
Some critical elements of journalistic writing include using an inverted pyramid style (putting the most important information first), keeping it concise and to the point, and avoiding hype and promotional language.
It’s also essential to avoid making unsubstantiated claims. For example, if you say that your new product is “revolutionary” or “the best thing since sliced bread,” then you’re going to have a hard time backing up those claims when journalists start asking for evidence.
When writing press releases for businesses, try to imagine that you’re writing a news article rather than an advertisement.
- Using a Boring Press Release Title
The title is one of the first things journalists and bloggers will see when receiving your press release. If it’s boring or doesn’t catch their attention, then they’re not going to bother reading any further.
Your press release title should be catchy and exciting, and it should reflect the content of the press release. For example, “Company Announces New Product Line” is a very boring title, while “How to Choose the Perfect Dog Toy for Your Pet” is more intriguing.
Make sure to spend some time brainstorming different titles before you settle on one. You might also want to ask friends or family members for their opinions.
The title of your press release is as important as the content, so take some time and care when crafting it.
- Using Quotes That are Too Hyped Up
When writing a press release, many people use detrimental hyped-up quotes. For example: “This product is revolutionary,” or “Our company will revolutionize the industry.”
These statements may sound good in your head and seem like appropriate things to say about your own business, but they’re not going to impress anyone else.
Quotes should be short and simple so readers can get through them without getting bored or confused by all the hype. They should also contain vital information about why this person believes what they say (e.g., “I have been working with dogs for ten years…”).
Quotes from experts on the subject matter are also a good idea because they add credibility to your press release. It can also make your business look trustworthy if you use authoritative quotes.
Avoid using over-hyped quotes in your press releases to keep them professional and concise.
- Not Including any Relevant Links
One of the benefits of issuing a press release is that it allows you to include links to relevant content on your website. Linking can be helpful for journalists who are interested in writing about your company or products, as they can find additional information without having to search for it themselves.
Including links also helps to improve your SEO ranking, as Google will see these links as valuable and authoritative. These days SEO and press releases work together as a marketing strategy.
Make sure that all of the links in your press release are relevant and accurate. Otherwise, you may lose the trust of the journalist or blogger who is reading it. Also, avoid using too many links or including irrelevant ones for the sake of boosting your SEO ranking.
- Distributing the Press Release to the Wrong People
One of the mistakes people often make when issuing a press release is distributing it to the wrong people. For example, you may send it to journalists who don’t write about your industry, or you may email it to bloggers who have no interest in covering your company.
Before you distribute your press release, make sure to research the target audience and which journalists and bloggers are most likely to be interested in writing about it. Doing so will save you time and energy (and embarrassment) down the road.
It’s also important to note that not everyone is interested in receiving press releases. Some people find them annoying or spammy, so try not to overdo it.
- Not Providing Your Audience With Value
Another mistake that many people make is not providing their audience with value. For example, if you are writing a press release about a new product or service, it should benefit the reader.
Value could be an answer to one of their questions (e.g., “How do I choose the right dog toy for my pet?”). Or it could be something interesting that they didn’t know before reading your press release (e.g., “Did you know there were over 100 different breeds of dogs?”).
The goal here is to promote yourself and what you’re selling and educate the reader and give them something useful or entertaining.
When writing press releases, avoid making mistakes by keeping your audience in mind at all times. Focus on providing them with value rather than promoting yourself and what you have to offer; this will help ensure that they are more likely to read past the headline (and even share it).
- Not Writing a Credible Press Release
Another common mistake is not writing a credible press release. A press release should always be written with credibility in mind, as this will help you avoid mistakes like spelling or grammatical errors.
Make sure to follow a standard format, too. Journalists receive many press releases, and they’ll ignore a poorly constructed release.
When writing your press releases, think about what makes them sound credible and then incorporate those elements into the text (e.g., quotes from experts in the field).
Also, make sure that all information provided by any third-party sources (e.g., links) is accurate before including them in your press release. Otherwise, it could negatively affect its credibility level, leading people to question whether they can trust what’s written or not.
- Not Using Multimedia
Many press releases read as though they were in a magazine or newspaper. However, this doesn’t mean that you should ignore media lists such as images, video clips, and audio recordings when writing your press release.
The key here is to make sure the content of any multimedia elements matches what’s said in the text so that people can easily understand them both together (e.g., if there’s an image showing how something works, then explain it clearly within the text).
Using videos may also help increase readership rates because they engage more senses than reading words on paper.
Avoid These Mistakes with Press Releases
As you can see, there are so many mistakes with press releases you can make. When writing press releases, you should avoid these mistakes to get the results you want.
Do you want to learn more about writing press releases for businesses? If so, check out our blog for more helpful articles.
