3/24/2015
We asked Journalists:
What are your top 3 sources for stories?
75%
68%
IS THE PRESS RELEASE DEAD?
Half of journalists polled check Wire services at least once a day. 41%
37%
17%
10%
Email from
companies/agencies
Press releases
Assigned by editor
Twitter
Facebook
Other
Source: 2013 survey of PR Newswire for Journalists members conducted by KPMG.
MEDIA EVOLUTION
Source: Comscore Device Essentials, U.S., Monday, 21st January 2013
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3/24/2015
MORE AND MORE PEOPLE ARE GETTING THEIR NEWS FROM SOCIAL
85% use their smartphones before leaving bed in the morning
Source: AOL Morning Rituals Study – Nov 2014
8
AUDIENCES NOW PLAY AN ACTIVE ROLE IN THE MEDIA LANDSCAPE
Source: The American Journalist in the Digital Age – Indiana University May 2014
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8 GOLDEN RULES OF WRITING GREAT PRESS RELEASES
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Lead with the story, not the brand. Headlines should be short.
Lead with the why.
Use subheadings.
Use multimedia such as photos, videos, and graphics. Resist use of more than 1‐3 hyperlinks in a release.
Don’t create news releases that are blocks of paragraphs. Have a call to action. 2
3/24/2015
IT ALL STARTS WITH A GOOD HEADLINE
if your content is a gift, then your headline is the wrapping.
…this?
Would you rather get…..
80/20 RULE
…or THIS?
For every 10 people that see your headline… …8 will only read the headline…
Headline
Article
…and only 2 will make it to the article.
Source: uyr
HEADLINE FORMULA
One in five people
1 in 5 people
Number/Trigger
Keyword
Adjective + Promise
_______________
Headline
+
+
Source: Jeff Goins
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HEADLINE FORMULA
Source: Jeff Goins
DISTRIBUTION VS. OWNED EXPERIMENT
Large Grocery
Retail Chain
Distribution
Media pick up
Major media
RANK 13
WIRE
“Art of Dairy” May 3, 2013
Picked up multiple times
Google search of store name
RANK 35
NO WIRE
“World Vegetarian Day” October 1, 2013
Online discoverability benefits
(below the fold)
Google search of store name
Not Picked up
Source: KPMG
Image sources:
• http://ebooks.adelaide.edu.au/f/fitzgerald/f_scott/gatsby/chapter1.htm
• AP
Multimedia Drives Discovery
IT ONLY
TAKES 150
MILLISECONDS
TO PROCESS
AN IMAGE
TEXT RELEASE
TEXT RELEASE +
1 VISUAL ASSET
Source: PR Newswire analysis of 2013 releases.
TEXT RELEASE +
MULTIPLE MEDIA
MULTIMEDIA NEWS
RELEASES &
CAMPAIGN MICROSITES
Source: http://neomam.com/interactive/13reasons/
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3/24/2015
..A STORY AT THE HUFFINGTON POST
CANNOT BE PUBLISHED UNLESS IT HAS A
MULTIMEDIA ASSET, A SEARCH HEADLINE, A
TWEET AND A FACEBOOK POST…
Source: NYT Innovation Report 2014
Source: http://www.thisblogrules.com/wp‐content/uploads/2009/11/thank‐you‐for‐sign.jpg
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