How to write a press release for an event

Events are fun for the person attending, not for the one who manages them and makes sure it’s smooth sailing for the whole affair. The fun factor diminishes even more for the person stuck writing a press release for the event. The idea of mingling with people and generally having a good time might be enticing for the average party-goer, but it’s the writer’s job to make sure that the event sounds fun enough in the release. So how to write a press release for an event? We’ve got some pointers that’ll help you get that release abuzz.

Writing a press release for an event

Writing a press release for an event need not be a boring job. Sure, the actual event will be fun, but eventually, it’s the release’s job to paint the picture as such. The writer is basically tasked with the job of attracting people and journalists with what they can do with a press release that portrays the event as a must-attend. With the following pointers, it’ll become much easier to understand and write a press release for an event.

Give the press release an air of newsworthiness

The press release is a news item. It is supposed to intimate people of an event, much like news that informs people of events. Therefore, treating the release as a news item will always work. For starters, find an angle through which you can depict the event as a news item and bank on that. Your press release should depict the event as news for the general public. Giving it the news treatment will also exponentially increase its chances of being picked up by a journalist, which brings us to pointer number 2.

State facts in a disarming manner

Writing a press release for an event is like penning an invitation. However, a press release must contain details, with everything from the venue to the time listed on the release. So? Get creative. State the facts in a manner that interests everyone, journalists and the hoi polloi included. Use italics, bolds, and fonts to make it eye-catching. Facts that are presented in a manner that befits an event will always be well-received, regardless of their banality.

Get someone to appear/ endorse (preferably industry-related)

Endorsements and sponsors are the biggest things in the marketing industry. Utilized efficiently, a face can become a spokesperson and a company can bank on a lucrative deal. The same goes for a press release. If some big shot can make it to the event that you’re supposed to be writing about, make sure it’s the central point of the press release. What such personas can do is they can generate buzz through rumors long before an event is supposed to happen or even before a press release is actually issued.

But this ace has to be played rightly and intelligently, which would mean calling on someone who is supposed to be a somebody in the industry your press release collates to. You wouldn’t invite Charlie Sheen to a sobriety party and you certainly won’t see Kylie Jenner at a Harvard graduation party. So, relevance matters. Make sure the influencer making rounds in your press release is supposed to be an industry insider, not an outsider.

Use the visual medium to your edge

Pictures are the one thing that can really promote a press release looking to increase the headcount for an event. Journalists will actually prefer an event press release that contains images, flashy and glitzy pictures that set apart your event as a ‘must-attend’. The influencer endorsement point also plays to the advantage, as pictures of said influencer coupled with other glam cover-ups on your release will rile people up for the event.

Identify the segment, approach the right person

As the writer of the event press release, it will be your job to make sure the release ends up in the right hands to ensure timely and proper distribution. A press release for a fashion show cannot be sent to an investigative reporter, which ought to be a topic of common sense at this point.

Sending the press release to the wrong journalist will end in the event release getting binned since journalists are busy people and can’t really be bothered with irrelevant material. Identify the journalist that falls in the ambit of what your press release is preaching and then go for distribution.

Lastly, relate it to a cause everyone can get behind

Let’s be realistic here. Nobody really cares about causes, not even people at a fundraiser. But as a presenter of everything good, it’s the event press release’s job to tie the whole event off with a cause that supports good, be it a humanitarian cause in general or to a specific instance or a case. Such actions show that your event is in touch with what’s going on and cares about it. And that’s what matters in the contemporary world.

Now that you’ve written the press release for an event, you’ll obviously need to disseminate it and make sure your intended audience gets the message. For that, enlisting a press release distribution service is usually the go-to method and there is absolutely no dearth of these services on the internet. However, you’d want one that would give you the most bang for your buck and there wouldn’t be a better option than ReleaseLive, the press release distribution service that gives you the most coverage for the least amount and gives you a myriad of add-ons, that’ll further increase your visibility on the internet.