Make the journalist's life easier

Writing your own Press Releases is an art, but one which can be acquired by most people. One key to success is to make the headline and first paragraph as eye-catching as possible (a golden rule for any form of written advertising).

Bear in mind that your Press Release will probably be one of many lying on the desk - but whose desk? Make sure, by phoning in advance, that you send it addressed, personally to the right person at the publication. So make it easy on the journalist by them not having to wade through a sheaf of papers that should be on someone else's desk.

After your headline has caught their eye, and your short opening paragraph has convinced them that the rest of the blurb is worth reading, make it easy for them to read:

• Use wide margins, thus keeping the line length short
• Use double spacing
• No more than two pages of A4

There is obviously much more to writing effective press releases than these few tips. One good book to get if you are planning to write your own Press Releases is Be your own PR expert by Bill Penn (published by Piatkus).

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