Writing A Powerful E-mail Press Release

By Author: John Karnish
Total Articles: 8
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Press Releases are a great source of publicity
for your business and often attract more buyers
than traditional, paid advertising. However a lot
of people are confused when it comes to sending
out publicity releases, so here are some things
you should know.

You should always remember that the main
objective is to seek publicity for your business.
You never should send out a sales letter. That's
not what a release is for and you'll never get
published. Always target the person to whom
you send your release. Sending out releases isn't
a numbers game. The more targeted a contact
is to your release, the more likely they will
publish it.

Once you find a media source that would be
interested in your publicity release, then you want
to find which editor is the best for your purpose.
Don't send it to a managing editor, you want to
send it to a contact that is related to your release.

When you send a release, always personalize
it. "Dear Editor's name,". Use their title, "Being
the Sports ...
... Editor for..." Also use their field of
interest if it's known. "Being the Sports Editor
for the (New England Chronicle) and an avid
soccer fan..."

There are two, general ways of sending out a
press release by e-mail. Both have good and
bad qualities. Some editors prefer that you
send them a short e-mail, "briefly" describing
your release and asking permission to send it.
This will prevent an editor from asking to be
removed, which would end any future contact
with him.

The second way is to make absolutely sure
he would be interested in your release and
just send it out. The advantage of going this
way is neither of you is wasting time by asking
permission and granting it. It's up to you. I
suggest you try and see how each one works for
you and choose the better of the two. Whichever
strategy you use always honor an editor's request
to be "removed."

Try to keep you release short; e-mail releases
are recommended to be only three paragraphs.
Many editors will receive a hundred or more
releases a day, so you have to get his attention
in a very short amount of time.

Catch their attention in the first paragraph, the
main focus of your release in the second and
your contact information in the third.

You don't want to give your whole story in the
press release, you want them to contact your
for more information. The nice thing about the
internet is that you can make this information
directly available by using a webpage or an
autoresponder.

List all of the information they'd be interested
in. Think of some questions that an editor
would probably ask you in an interview and
provide the answers. Write down all of the
specifics of your story. You might want to list
your credentials or company history too.
Whenever you list a contact number, always
leave a number where you can be reached.
Editors don't have a lot of time and they're not
going to go out of their way to get in touch
with you.

When thinking of ideas for a release, one
good way of getting noticed is by tying
yourself in with recent news stories.
Another idea is just to make a bold claim,
"that you can live up to." You'll find
that lots of people will give you publicity,
to try to prove you wrong. For example
"New York stock broker say he can make
anyone a millionaire." Just remember that
you should be able to stand behind your
claims.

Format of a Press Release

"FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE" should be written
in top, left corner. If your information
needs to be printed on or before a certain
date, you would write something like:
"FOR RELEASE AFTER MARCH 27" or
"FOR RELEASE BEFORE CHRISTMAS."
These would also go in the upper, left-hand
corner.

Skip two lines and type "CONTACT:" Then list
your contact information. Skip two lines and
type your headline. Make sure your spend
some time here because this is what will
determine if your release gets read or shred. (=

The first paragraph begins with the dateline.
Here's an example:
(New York, NY - October 9, 2000) -
Then. skip a space after the dash and write
your first sentence. The first paragraph of
your release should be a few sentences that
concisely summarize the content without much
specific detail. Remember to answer the basic
questions who, what, where, when, why and how.
Pay special attention to the first paragraph
because it's here that you have to convince
the editor that your release is worth reading
and printing. Be sure to make this clear. Why
should her readers be interested? How will it
affect their life? What are the benefits?

The second paragraph, you want to go into a
little more detail and add some quotes.
Remember to establish yourself as an expert.
Don't say "Tom Jones says," say "Tom Jones,
webmaster for Kidco.com and prominent author
says..."

In the third paragraph, you want to persuade
the editor to seek more information. You can
have them visit your web site or a pre-made
webpage, send a message to an autoresponder,
call you etc. At the end of your press
release, you want to skip a space and end
with three, centered number signs. "###" ABOUT THE AUTHOR
John Karnish of
the Internet Marketing Professional website.
Visit his site for a QUICK And EASY Way To
Build A Profitable Business On The Internet.
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