How to Write a Press Release, Step by Step

A press release is a short, factual announcement written in a fixed order: headline, lead, body, quote, boilerplate, contact. Writing one well is mostly a matter of doing the steps in order and cutting anything that is not news. Below is the process from deciding whether you have a story to sending the finished release.

Step 1: Decide if it is news

Not every update deserves a press release. Ask whether a stranger, not your existing customers, would care: a new product, a funding round, an acquisition, a leadership change, an event open to the public. Internal milestones, minor feature updates and vague “exciting news” posts usually belong on a blog or in an email newsletter instead. If you cannot say in one sentence what changed for someone outside the company, it may not be ready yet.

Step 2: Find the one-sentence story

Before you write a word of the release, write one plain sentence that answers “what happened.” For example, an illustration: “Fictional company Northwind Robotics raised $12 million to build warehouse robots for small retailers.” Everything else in the release supports, explains or backs up that sentence. If you cannot compress the news to one sentence, you likely have more than one story, or you have not found the story yet.

Step 3: Write the lead

The lead is the first paragraph, and it should answer who, what, when, where and why in two to three sentences. Put the most important fact first, not the most flattering one. See the guide to press release format for how the lead fits with the dateline and headline, and how to write a headline for turning your one-sentence story into a title.

Step 4: Build the body

After the lead, add the supporting facts in order of importance: numbers, context, what changes for customers, timing. Keep paragraphs short, usually two to four sentences. If you are writing about a specific type of news, a filled-in structure can save time; see the templates for a working example, or browse product launch examples to see the pattern in a finished release.

Step 5: Get the quote

A press release needs at least one quote from someone with a real title, saying something a reporter could actually use, not restating the headline in different words. Ask the person what they think matters about the news, not what they think sounds impressive. The guide to quotes covers how to write and request one.

Step 6: Add boilerplate and contact

Close with a short boilerplate paragraph describing the company (see the boilerplate guide) and a media contact block with a name, email and phone number. Skipping the contact is one of the most common ways a real story gets missed, because a reporter with a question and no one to ask will often just move on.

Step 7: Check it

Read the release out loud. Check every name, number, date and title against your source, not against your memory. Compare it against bad examples to see what to avoid, and best examples to see what a strong finished release looks like. If the release should follow news style conventions, check it against the AP style guide.

Step 8: Send it

Decide who actually needs this news: a short list of relevant reporters, your own newsroom page, a distribution service, or some combination. The right choice depends on your budget, your timeline and how newsworthy the story is on its own. See where to distribute for how the options compare.

Checklist

• One clear sentence describes the news
• Headline states the news, not a slogan
• Lead covers who, what, when, where, why
• Body facts are ordered by importance, not by department
• At least one real, attributed quote
• Boilerplate is short and accurate
• Contact name, email and phone are included
• Every name, number and date has been checked against the source
• You have decided how and where it will be sent