Writing an Effective Press Release
by Jeff James

After months of refining code, squashing bugs, rewriting
documentation and creating attractive packaging for your program,
you're finally ready to release your product to the Amiga-using
public. Now you can dash off a press release and start sending
review copies out to your favorite Amiga magazines, right?

Admittedly, creating a press release is often the last thing on a
programmer's mind. Some developers believe that a polished, well-
designed piece of software should be enough to guarantee some
press coverage. While good software does happen to sell itself,
the importance of a thoughtfully written, timely delivered press
release serves an important purpose. The press release is an
important tool, a tool which can help you announce new products
and get those products more media coverage. A press release can be
used in other instances as well, such as when you ship a major
software update, drastically change prices or when your company
undergoes a major change in management or ownership. 

WHY SHOULD I USE A PRESS RELEASE?

A good way to understand the importance of a press release is to
look at how the media uses them. In the case of the Amiga press, a
press release alerts them to new items, which are assigned to a
New Products Editor. This editor is often the first person to look
at your product. Using your press release as reliable background
information, this editor writes a short description of your
product for the New Products section. From here, your program --
with press release attached -- travels to another editor, usually
a Review Editor or Associate Editor. This person looks at your
product and reads your press release, using both to decide whether
to assign the product to a staff editor or freelance writer for
review, or to hold the product for later examination.  

At each of these stages, the value of a press release cannot be
understated. The New Products editor draws information from your
release to write a short description of your product; the
Associate editor uses the press release to help gauge how
important your product is and how it should be reviewed; and
finally, the actual reviewer of the product often uses a press
release to become familiar with the main features of your product.
If your press release is filled with spelling and grammatical
errors, or lists incorrect information, it makes the job of each
one of these individuals more time-consuming. Remember that
journalists are always on a deadline: time spent on the phone
clarifying a confusing or ambiguous press release translates into
less time for the reviewer to spend evaluating your product. If
the editor can't reach the person listed as a contact on your
press release (or if one isn't even listed), your product might be
put aside until questions can be answered and ambiguities
clarified. Your press release is often the only communication an
editor might see from your company, so it's important to make a
good impression.   


IS THERE A "RIGHT" WAY TO WRITE A PRESS RELEASE?

Although there isn't a set of rules cast in stone someplace on how
to write a good  press release, here are some generally accepted
guidelines dealing with the basic structure and layout of a press
release:

1. Use good quality, letter-size (8.5" by 11") paper. Double-space
all text, using just one column on each page. Set top, bottom,
left and right margins at 1".

2. Put your company logo, address, and telephone number in the
upper left corner on the first page of the release. Try to limit
press releases to two pages, and print on only one side of each
page.  

3. In the upper right corner of the first page, parallel to your
company information, list a contact name and phone number. This
should be a person an editor can contact for clarification or
questions on information included in your press release. Make sure
the person listed is aware of the press release and can accurately
respond to any inquiries.

4. Use a headline to quickly convey the main content of your press
release. Center the headline and place it directly over the body
text of your press release on the first page. 


5. Place the date at which the information in the press release
can be used in the upper left corner of the first page, between
your company information and the headline. You'll normally want to
put "For Immediate Release" in this spot, unless you want the
information released at a certain date. In that case, use this
format: "For September 26 Release." Keep in mind that most
magazines are published monthly, so alter release dates
accordingly.   

6. On the first line of your main text, print the city and state
from which the release is originating in capital letters, followed
by a release date. Use this format: "FALL RIVER, MASSACHUSETTS:
August 3rd, 1992 --"

7. Avoid using excessive computer jargon. Although most editors
are exceptionally familiar with computer terms, take the time to
adequately explain uncommon acronyms and other rarely used
language.  

8. If your release announces a new product, be sure to include an
extensive list of program requirements. This information should
usually be saved for the last paragraph of your press release.


9. If more than one page, put the word "MORE," centered, on the
bottom of the first page. Signify the end of the press release by
placing the symbols "###" or the number "30" at the bottom of the
last page. Output the press release to a high-quality printer,
preferably an ink-jet or laser.


(See figure 1 for a layout example using all the suggestions
listed above.) 


Again, these are only rough guidelines -- as long as your release
is short (two pages or less), tersely written and supplies all the
necessary information, you can deviate somewhat from this format.
Once you've chosen the physical layout of your press release, it's
time to look at what goes into a press release. What follows are
some general suggestions on writing a press release to announce a
new product.

GUIDELINES FOR GRAMMARIANS

If you're shipping a new product, avoid the temptation to make
your press release a giant feature list. Think about what makes
your product differ from competitive products, and concentrate on
those. For example, if your new product is a word processor, don't
spend valuable space discussing its word-wrap feature and ability
to open and save documents -- focus on what makes your product
unique, perhaps its ability to read a document aloud or extensive
ARexx support. 

After you've decided what you're going to include, you can begin
writing your release. It's important at this point to mention the
twin bugbears facing every budding writer of press releases --
grammar and spelling. Even good, experienced writers occasionally
commit some errors, so keep a dictionary handy and use a spell-
checker often. Many of the books listed at the end of this article
can be very helpful with grammar, particularly "The Elements of
Style," by Strunk and White, and the "Chicago Manual of Style," by
the University of Chicago press. The "Associated Press Stylebook
and Libel Manual" is another good text, used by journalists
themselves to find rules on spelling, punctuation and grammar.    

When writing your press release, it's important to write in the
active voice as opposed to a passive voice. For example,
"AcmeSoft's C++ Professional supports AmigaDOS 2.0" is in the
active voice; "AmigaDOS 2.0 is supported by AcmeSoft's C++
Professional" is in the passive voice. Write by "doing" (active)
instead of "showing" (passive). Using the active voice in your
press release shortens sentences and makes for easier reading.

You'll also want to write your press release in what journalists
call the "inverted pyramid" writing style. Visualize a real
pyramid flipped upside down -- the wide, thick base of the
pyramid is at the top. As you move lower, the pyramid gets smaller
and smaller, eventually tapering off to a tiny point. Just like
this topsy-turvy pyramid, you'll want to put the "biggest," most
important ideas at the top, or beginning of your press release,
followed by the next most important, and so on, until your release
draws to a close. Used by print journalists worldwide, this form
of writing manages to pack the most important information into as
small a space as possible. The first sentence of your press
release, called a "lead," should contain the most important
information you are trying to convey. For example, if your
company just released a new game, your lead would look something
like this: "Gamesoft has released Midway Monsters, a new football
game featuring rotoscoped animation of real players, for the Amiga
computer." In just one sentence, you've introduced your company,
announced a new product, stated a unique feature of that product
and mentioned which computer that product operates on. If you
aren't very familiar with this style of writing, just drop by your
local library or bookstore and ask for books on newswriting or
print journalism.  

OTHER POINTS TO REMEMBER

When releasing new product information to a publication,  it's a
good idea to send two review copies of your product -- sturdily
enclosed within adequate packing material -- along with your press
release. Why two copies? One copy stays with the magazine's
editorial staff, while the other is often mailed out to a free-
lance author for review. For press releases which don't involve
new products, a large 9" x 11" envelope with the press release
(and possibly a business card) will suffice.  

As bad as sending a poorly crafted press release to the media can
be, sending too many press releases can do even more damage. Just
as in the Aesop's Fable where the boy cries "wolf" one too many
times, flooding an editor's desk with press releases of marginal
news-worthiness can result in a truly important announcement of
yours being overlooked. A press release dealing with such things
as minor personnel changes, new packaging for your product or the
forthcoming marriage of your lead programmer may be very important
to you, but of little interest to the Amiga community at large.
Limit your press releases to new product announcements,
significant product updates, major organizational changes and
other information of equal importance.

Finally, it's always wise to send your press kit addressed to a
specific individual as opposed to a generic job title. Addressing
your communication specifically to one individual improves the
chances of your product getting noticed. If necessary, call the
magazine beforehand and find out the full name of the person in
question (be sure to get the spelling correctly, too). It does
work -- just think how you feel when you receive a letter
addressed to "current resident," and you'll see why this step is
effective. 

These suggestions obviously cannot replace a structured course on
public relations writing. If you're new to writing press
releases, several of the books listed at the end of this article
are excellent reading material. Taking a course on public
relations or persuasive writing at a local community college can
also be helpful. Obviously, a press release can't work miracles.
As a software developer, your first priority should be to create a
solid, reliable program that people would want to purchase.
However, in an increasingly competitive Amiga market, a well-
written press release can help tip the scales in your favor.   


Suggested Reading:

The Chicago Manual of Style, 13th ed. University of Chicago Press,
Chicago, 1982. ISBN 0-226-10390-0  $37.50

The Elements of Style, 3rd ed. William Strunk Jr. and E.B. White.
Macmillan Publishing, New York, 1979. ISBN 0-02-418200-1  $5.95

Business Writers Handbook, 3rd ed. Brusaw, Alred, Oliver.  
St. Martin's Press, New York, 1987. ISBN 0-312-10958-X  $19.95

News Reporting and Writing, 3rd ed. Brooks, Kennedy, Moen, Ranly.
St. Martin's Press, New York, 1988. ISBN 0-312-00279-3  $23.95

How to Write a Dynamic Press Release. The Communication Workshop,
217 East 85th Street, New York, NY 10028  516-767-9590  $8.00

The Associated Press Stylebook and Libel Manual. Norm Goldstein,
Ed. Addison-Wesley Publishing, New York, 1992. ISBN 0-201-56760-1
$11.95