How to Maximise your press release
Sending out your press release will help the media decide if your story is worthy enough of coverage. That’s why it helps to keep your press release simple and never use any hype. Stations and newspapers are looking for news, they’re not looking for a sales spiel.
You’ve got a window for sending out your press release. You don’t want to send it out too early and then it gets forgotten or buried and you don’t want to send it out too late when other stories may have already been assigned and they simply can’t fit your event in. Generally, 2-3 days before your event is enough of an advance notice.
You also want to be sure you include directions and any special instructions within your press release. If your company’s headquarters are at one location but your event is at your plant 30 miles away, you need to make this clear in your release.
Watch the Phone Calls
After you’ve sent your press release, you can call the editors at the newspapers or the producers at the TV stations to verify they receive it. That’s all you have to ask.
This will often open up the conversation for them to tell you if they think they’ll be able to come or not. But even if it doesn’t, you don’t want to ask if they’re coming. They’ll be there if they can but won’t make any promises.
Do keep in mind, breaking news or heavy news days might prevent them from coming at the last minute. You don’t want to pester them to see if they’re coming, even on the day of the event when you’re standing there waiting for reporters to show up.
You also want to watch the time you make your phone call. Calling at 10 til 5 p.m. might seem like the end of the day for you but for a producer that’s 10 minutes until a nightly newscast. The best times to call are generally around 10 a.m. and between 1 and 2:30 p.m.