Press Release Format Guidelines
Here is an outline of what a press release should look like. It can be short or long depending on your needs but following this general outline will ensure that the media has all the pertinent information at their fingertips.
Contact Information (for the press) goes here
Contact Name
Phone Number
URL (if appropriate)
Email address
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: (or the earliest date the news should be released)
Headline
Be creative and keep it to one sentence (about 60 characters). Capitalize the first letter of all words but do not use ALL CAPS. Avoid exclamation marks (“!”) and other unnecessary punctuation.
Paragraph 1
City, State, Month, Day, Year – Begin with a strong introductory paragraph that grab’s the reader’s attention and contains the information most relevant to your message such as the five W’s - who, what, when, where, and why. This paragraph should summarize the press release and include a hook to get your audience interested in reading more.
Paragraph 2 thru 4/5
These paragraphs should contain more details about your news. They make up the bulk of the release. They can include quotes from you, clients, or experts in the subject that you are discussing.
Final Paragraph
This paragraph should restate what you release is about and summarizes the key points.
End with ### to signal that it’s the end of your release
Additional Tips
• Write in 3rd person… not I/we but They/Them.
• Remember, you are writing a press release to grab the attention of the media. Make sure you stick to facts and clear information but make it appealing.
• Try to keep the press release to fewer than 400 words total. Straight and to the point works best. However, there are times when a longer release may be needed so use your judgement.
• Provide complete information on how to contact you. Include mail address, telephone, fax, e-mail and web site (especially for online business). If using a website make sure to include the http:// in front of it for search engine recognition.
• Proof it over and over. Write it, put it down, and come back to it. You’ll be amazed what you discover.
• Use a minimum of one-inch margins on each side of the page, with the body of the text of your release centered on the page.
• Double-space your press release.
• Do not use abbreviations or acronyms when you first refer to someone or something. Instead, spell out the full name – Virtual Assistant - and then put VA after it in brackets. The next time you refer to it you can say VA.
• When you use someone’s name say: “Melody Spier” the first time and then “Mrs. Spier” or “Spier” in further references.
• Use the names of both the city and the state the first time you refer to a location.
• When you mention a particular day, use the date and year.
A final thought: If you can cut the bottom half of the press release off and still provide your readers with sufficient information, then you have written an effective release.
