Whether the media will publish or ignore your announcement, most often depends on its contents and quality.
The following recommendations will help you create a public announcement of good quality, attract the journalists’ attention and optimize the text for distribution on the internet.
Optimization of media announcements
Create a public announcement “step-by-step”
Avoid most common errors
You do not have a second chance to improve the impression that remains after a badly written public announcement.
Optimization of text for distribution through the internet (SEO - Search Engine Optimization)
Do not forget, a vast majority of readers find your content through search engines.
Optimization of media announcements
» The headline must be concise and clear. Condense the information you wish to disseminate into no more than 20 words.
» Date and place of creation of announcement
» First paragraph - “Lead” - answers to five journalist’s questions: Who? What? Where? When? Why?
Structure the lead in such a way that it presents the essence of the public announcement in no more than 30 words. Regardless of the rest of the announcement, the first paragraph must represent a complete news item in itself, with all the required elements. The headline and the first paragraph must present the essence of the announcement, attract the readers' attention and stir their interest. The rest of the public announcement provides the details.
» In the second paragraph - develop the lead and name the source (management member, company expert or participant in an event).
» In the third paragraph - liven up the story with the strongest quote, and then name the source. Send messages to media representatives - our experts and members of management are at your disposal for any information.
» In the fourth paragraph - explain the subject of the announcement in more detail (details of an event, characteristics or advantages of a product or service, ways for using the product). If you wish, you may quote a third source (testimony of a satisfied consumer, statement of a participant of an event).
» In the fifth paragraph - describe the wider context of the information. You may cite statistical data and results of surveys, if you have them.
» In the sixth paragraph - inform the readers about how they could learn additional details about a product, service or event. Make sure to name a contact person who may be addressed for additional information and explanations.
At the end you may make a brief presentation of the company and describe its corporate identity. Cite the most important facts about the organization and do not change them more than twice a year (except in extraordinary situations).
Avoid most common errors
Make the job easier for representatives of the media and increase the probability for your announcements to be published. Write your text so that it suits the journalists!
» Make sure that your information is valuable as a news item.
» If your public announcement resembles an advertisement too much, write a new one. Do not forget that the journalist’s job is to inform the public, not to sell things.
» If you lack content, do not make the announcement.
» Cite facts only.
» Always write in third person.
» The tone of the announcement must be neutral and objective. Avoid using superlatives, praising your company or its products
» Chose the time of announcement carefully. You do not want your information to be obscured by other events.
» Avoid jargon, expert terms and foreign words. If you must use an expert term, explain it. Be cautious. A certain number of jargon words are useful if you wish to optimize your announcement for search engines. However, using jargon too often is not adequate if you are addressing the wide public.
» Do not abuse the “Urgent” flag.
» Whenever possible, add multimedia content to your text. Visual elements attract attention and direct it towards your story.
» Use the number of words that is necessary for information to be conveyed. Avoid unnecessary descriptions and phrases.
» Avoid emphasizing by punctuation. An exclamation mark is damaging to your credibility. If you must, use it once - never more than that.
» If your public announcement includes information or quote obtained from a partner, another company or organization, obtain written consent before publishing.
» Avoid grammatical and spelling errors. They negatively affect the image of your company if found in a public announcement.
» Never write the headline and the text of the announcement in capital letters.
Optimization of text for distribution through the internet (SEO - Search Engine Optimization)
» Analyzing and defining the relevant keywords
Think like a reader - which words would you use to find the information contained in your announcement? Define two or three key phrases and adjust them to the text so that it is readable.
» Headline of the announcement
The headline is the most important part of the announcement published online. It is the most visible on search engines and news portals, which often only convey the headline and a link to the announcement. In order to be positioned well in search results, the headline must contain two or three selected phrases. The recommended length of the headline for optimum visibility in search results is up to 22 words. Bear in mind that, in its search results, Google displays only the first 63 characters of the headline..
» The first 100 characters of the announcement are certainly visible on all web locations which, besides the headline, display a part of the announcement. This part of the announcement should also contain the selected keywords.
» A brief version of the announcement should not consist of more than 250 characters.
» The integral announcement should contain all the required characteristics of an announcement for the offline media, and should not consist of more than 1,800 characters.
» If you use foreign words (such as e-mail / email, t-shirt / tee-shirt), always use the version that is more frequent as the search criteria.
» Put the company name in the headline, subheading or first paragraph of the announcement, in order to increase the online presence of your company
