12 tips for producing a killer news release

A press release should be newsworthy. It shouldn’t be a blatant ad for your business. Yet far too many businesses send out press releases without giving much thought to whether they’ve really got news to share.

Rob Nance, director of content marketing at Inovautus Consulting in Boulder, Colorado, said that if there’s any doubt that journalists and others will care about a press release, then you shouldn’t send it. Nance recalled that when he was working at an online media company covering the accounting business, he received a press release from an accounting firm announcing that it had a new sidewalk in front of its building.

“Funny, yes, but it’s not news or timely, useful information,” Nance said. “It’s a game of quality over quantity with press releases.”

Here are 12 tips that will help ensure your releases win the battle of quality over quantity.

1. Nail down the news.

If your business is opening a new location, that’s definitely newsworthy. If your business is sponsoring a major charitable event, then you’re probably wise to put out a press release. But not everything that happens at your business rises to the level of a press release.