There are many articles available which discuss how a press release should be written. There is lots of information present about how a perfect press release can be written but unfortunately, there is little to no material available which discusses what makes a press release bad. Reading this blog will help you understand the problems which eventually make a press release bad. They are all minor problems which can be fixed easily but are easily overlooked by people writing a press release in most cases. Without further ado, let us dive into all the factors which contribute to the question ‘what makes a press release bad?’
This is one of the worst press release mistakes that most marketing departments make when publishing a press release. They want to write and publish a press release about everything that is happening within the organization. Sure, it is important for all of you.
**Yes we understand that your “announcement” adds more value to the company but take it from an expert, it does not interest other people.
If you become one of those organizations who publish every kind of news in the form of a press release, your press releases will lose their worth. This means that whenever you do publish a press release that can interest relevant people around the world, they will pay no heed to it. This is because they have seen so much content which is unimportant from your organization, they assume everything that you do has little to no worth attached to it.
Backlinks add a lot of worth to your press release. There is no doubt about it. Despite being a common practice, it definitely makes a press release look bad. Too many of them just makes the press release overcrowded. A journalist’s interests evaporate within seconds when going over such a press release.
Sure, you can add one or two links here and there to market a product or just to increase traffic on your website. But control your temptations to bombard the press release with irrelevant links to it. Automatically, press releases start to lose their worth.
This way your press release will seem more genuine and more like an informative piece of writing instead of just another one of those advertisements. By adding minimum cross-links, the authenticity of the press release increases rapidly which makes journalists or media personalities from relevant industries more interested in your work.
You just launched a new product and want the world to know all about it. You write a strong press release and add each and every detail about your product. This here is exactly where you are mistaken. The makings of a bad press release consist of too much text. You must be confused! Surely, you are just adding details about your product in the press release, how can someone not be interested in them?
The answer to this is very simple. Journalists simply do not care about most of the products or services that they provide. Let us put the care factor aside. Suppose a journalist does take an interest but the problem is with time. For starters, the journalist will not be interested in going through so much text in the first place. Even if they do, they will not want to share it with their followers. Because they know, no one has the time to read details about the same thing unless they are genuinely interested.
Extensive details about a product or service do not have any place in a press release. By writing and publishing press releases with all kinds of information related to a product, you are literally ruining the meaning and purpose of sharing a press release. Not only does it make your press release look bad, it also ruins your image in the eyes of relevant journalists, creating publicity problems for you in the future.
Related: Perfect Press Release Length to Improve Visibility
This is one of the most basic issues which makes a press release look very bad. These issues are not limited to grammatical mistakes but also include spelling and punctuation mistakes as well. Working on these issues and eradicating them beforehand cannot be emphasized enough! Please, proofread your work before getting it published. Find an editor and get them to pick your press release apart paragraph by paragraph.
It is highly likely that a journalist will lose their interest in your press release as soon as they spot a grammatical, or spelling mistake in your work. And this ignorance factor is not limited to journalists, rather applies to anyone who has an interest in reading any type of content. It cannot be stressed enough how important it is to write in proper, error-free English.
Another thing that must be remembered is this: please write a press release using formal English. Some of the worst press releases are those which are written in casual language. By writing in formal language, it does not mean that difficult words must be incorporated. Instead, no slang or acronyms should be used. Technical jargons should be avoided at all costs. Press releases should be written in layman languages, understandable for everyone who reads it.
Using the right words when writing a press release is not enough. A proper format needs to be followed. What is worse than a poorly written press release? A press release which lacks formatting! We live in an informal age, where everything is casual and has an easy flow. But when it comes to press releases, that is not the case. There is a proper format that has to be followed. Sure, you can move a few headings around and change the content body as you like but you cannot completely change press release format. Refrain from it.
Journalists like to skim through the press release to extract the required information. By following a proper format, you can place important information in such a way that journalists withdraw maximum information in just one look.
A bad press release will include all five of the above-mentioned traits, but there is a lot more to a bad press release than what meets the eye. Improper formatting, an incoherent language and a dismal outlook can make a good case when it comes to bad press releases, but there’s more. Improper use of grammar, phrases and vocab set all contribute to a shoddily-written press release. Furthermore, there are several rules to formatting a press release, whose non-inclusion could make the whole text unreadable and material-to-throw-away rather than press release to publish. Similarly, using the vocab set way above par or below par the intended audience’s understanding will also label it as bad press release.
Press releases are delicate pieces of content. They should be written carefully. Even though writing a press release is not a challenging task, there are a few tips and strategies that need to be followed. Keeping those in mind, a perfect press release can be written within no time. Once you have written one, proofread it. After that, if possible, ask someone else to read it for you. Another person giving their opinion on it will give you a fresh perspective and help in identifying any mistakes that you have made. Try not to write huge press releases. Ensure that each press release delivers the message. The whole purpose of writing a press release is to provide a quick update about any news which the company wants to announce.
Not sure if you can avoid all that when writing a press release? No problem! Hire a press release distribution service to do all of the work for you. Launched in 2015 iCrowdNewswire powered by Google has implemented more press release distribution innovations than any other newswire in the industry from paid social and digital media advertising to audio marketing and 8 translations per release – no other wire provides geographic targeting down to a zip or postal codes worldwide; demographic targeting by age group, industry and interest; 8 translations with every release for unmatched multicultural and global reach; audio distribution with Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, Microsoft Cortana and Apple Siri; Google and Apple news and more.
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