When you write a press release it’s important that you submit a factual, professional and newsworthy story. If you decide to “bend the rules,” press release distribution services have the right to refuse to accept and run your press release.
Here are ten common reasons why your press release won’t be accepted and distributed:
1) SHOUTING AT YOUR READERS. Avoid using ALL CAPS or exclamation points anywhere in your press release (including the headline)!!! Capitalizing all of your letters or using exclamation points is unprofessional and literally shouts at your reader. (And, by the way, no one likes to be shouted at.)
2) Blatant Advertisements. Press releases are intended to deliver newsworthy stories to their audiences in an objective and non-biased manner. If you’re begging your readers to buy your products or services because they are “the best in the world,” you need to throw your release into the recycle bin and start again.
3) Hype and Exaggeration. Avoid language that makes extravagant claims or is filled with hype. Certain words such as “free,” “unbelievable” and “best” are huge red flags that what you’re saying is just “too good to be true.” Stick to the facts, Jack.
4) Lack of Content. Obviously, in order for a press release to be effective, it must be filled to the brim with important, relevant and newsworthy content. If, however, you insist on filling your release with fluff and “who the xxxx cares?” material, your mom may end up being the only reader.
5) Personal Opinions. Avoid writing press releases based around your personal opinions. Believe it or not, your readers aren’t interested in your opinions and beliefs. They want reliable, fact-based news.
6) Link Overload. Don’t overload your press release with links that point back to your website. Overusing links is a sure sign that you’re advertising yourself and your small business. (Look back at point #2: No one likes to be sold!) Make sure to limit your links to 1 per 100 words.
7) Reprints or Plagiarism. It’s illegal to reprint any copywrited materials from other websites or publications. Hopefully, that’s an obvious one.
Fiction. Remember that your press release needs to be a factual piece of news. If you’re interested in exercising your creative juices, save it for your short-story class.
9) Duplicate Press Releases. You should only submit your press release once. The search engines and other targeted audiences do not want to see the same release over and over again. Yawn!
10) Grammatical Errors. One of the main reasons press releases are rejected is because they are filled with obvious grammatical errors. Spell-check, spell-check and then spell-check again.
Press releases are a wonderful way to gain visibility for your small business. However, make sure that you avoid these common mistakes to ensure that your press release is accepted for the world to see.
About Jessica Swanson
Jessica ~
Some folks who read this will look at #10 as the least significant tip. Not me!
It takes so little effort, in my estimation, to proofread and edit your work before it's submitted. It drives me bonkers when I read anything that's riddled with punctuation and grammatical errors. If only people would stop to consider how those mistakes can diminish their credibility.
Do I sound like a staunch English teacher?!
Melanie
As a former English teacher, I couldn't agree with you more!! It's just crazy how simple proofreading can be….but, it makes a WORLD of difference!