CONTACT: Graham Bass FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

LOC: (505) 715-5339

NAT: 1-866-929-1092
EMAIL: Info@PositiveContactsNM.com

CONCISE HEADLINE: READERS HOOKED AND EDITORS PLEASED

Your sub-head tells a little more, so potential readers see why this is worth their time.

August 11, 2010

Your headline should hook readers into reading your release. Wording and tense are both
important aspects of this. If you have read the paper before you know how a newspaper headline reads.
Use this style as a template. Do not employ sensationalist headlines or word play tactics. Don't try to
be clever unless you are really truly incredibly clever. Even then, be careful.
Use this template to ensure simplicity and clarity in your headlines and body text: state a fact,
state an outcome. The fact you will state is the news you are attempting to gain attention for. Make it
short, and stick to the facts. The outcome is typically speculative or predictive in nature, as press
releases are used to break updates or important new information. The outcome could also cover events
currently underway, if they are ongoing or of a duration of more than two days.
The most important aspect of crafting your press release is to choose your content wisely.
There must be an action or something of real interest in your press release, otherwise you are wasting
your time. Remember: the public doesn't cares who you are or how you feel, only what you do. Do
not treat your press release like a resume or a blog. A press release is for the press. Give reporters
something they can sell in the media (fact, outcome), or do something else with your time.
An example. You have a great piece of news to get out: you just received an major award from
a prominent environmental group for the work you did in promoting conservation in your district.
Summarized, that is your fact for the headline. You decide your own outcome here. In this case, your
outcome is that you have decided to lead a district recycling drive as a celebration, and you will be
having a recycling parade collecting recyclables and promoting your candidacy. This is a great set-up.
In order to get free media coverage of this event, you need to make sure that you bring your
event to life for readers. This means that writers should focus on active tense verbs and removing any
verbs that imply equivocation or hesitancy. Remember that the faster you can get to the meat, the more
of it people will eat. In your body text, get to the fact quick and explain its' importance succinctly.
Then present your outcome. Explain it dynamically, and make sure that readers understand why
this is of importance to them, or why it might make a unique or news-worthy story. Press releases are
your tickets to free media, so ask yourself: “How do I make this news-worthy?”
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For more information on the services that Positive Contacts Consulting offers, you can visit us on the
web at www.PositiveContactsNM.com, or call us at 505-715-5339.