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The Press Release Template

A simple document with much history.

Cover photo: @jerrysilfwer

Looking for a press release template?

This blog artยญicle will walk you through the basics of the clasยญsic press release temยญplate and some of its history.

Here we go:

Ivy Lee and the First Press Release

Ivy Lee and the First Press Release

In 1906, in Atlantic City, New Jersey, a terยญrible train acciยญdent drowned 53 people. 11906 Atlantic City train wreck. (2023, December 24). In Wikipedia. https://โ€‹enโ€‹.wikiโ€‹peโ€‹diaโ€‹.org/โ€‹wโ€‹iโ€‹kโ€‹iโ€‹/โ€‹1โ€‹9โ€‹0โ€‹6โ€‹_โ€‹Aโ€‹tโ€‹lโ€‹aโ€‹nโ€‹tโ€‹iโ€‹cโ€‹_โ€‹Cโ€‹iโ€‹tโ€‹yโ€‹_โ€‹tโ€‹rโ€‹aโ€‹iโ€‹nโ€‹_โ€‹wโ€‹rโ€‹eck

The acciยญdent was a tragedy for everyยญone involved but potenยญtially a disยญaster for the Pennsylvania Railroad. They retained one of the first pubยญlic relaยญtions agenยญcies, Parker & Lee. 2Ivy Lee. (2024, January 1). In Wikipedia. https://โ€‹enโ€‹.wikiโ€‹peโ€‹diaโ€‹.org/โ€‹wโ€‹iโ€‹kโ€‹iโ€‹/โ€‹Iโ€‹vโ€‹yโ€‹_โ€‹Lee

The agency had been founยญded only a year before the acciยญdent in 1905 as the third PR agency in the US.

One of the founders, the legendary PR proยญfesยญsionยญal Ivy Ledbetter Lee, wanted to help the Pennsylvania Railroad, his first major cliยญent, get the right story out. Hence, Lee creยญated the first-ever press release. 3The First Press Release. (2016, April 10). News Museum. https://โ€‹wwwโ€‹.newsโ€‹muโ€‹seumโ€‹.pt/โ€‹eโ€‹nโ€‹/โ€‹sโ€‹pโ€‹iโ€‹nโ€‹-โ€‹wโ€‹aโ€‹lโ€‹lโ€‹/โ€‹fโ€‹iโ€‹rโ€‹sโ€‹tโ€‹-โ€‹pโ€‹rโ€‹eโ€‹sโ€‹sโ€‹-โ€‹rโ€‹eโ€‹lโ€‹eโ€‹ase

Ivy Lee - Doctor Spin - The PR Blog
Ivy Lee (July 16, 1877 โ€“ November 9, 1934). Image: Wikipedia

Rather than tryยญing to supยญpress the story, which wouldโ€™ve been standยญard pracยญtice then, he invited the press to the acciยญdent scene. Despite the unforยญtuยญnate acciยญdent, the Pennsylvania Railroad got good press covยญerยญage for manยญaging the disยญaster well.

Keeping the press, and by extenยญsion, the genยญerยญal pubยญlic, up to date with an offiยญcial stateยญment is still someยญthing the PR industry strives to do. 4Morris, T. (2014, August 25). Ivy Lee and the oriยญgins of the press release. PR Academy; PR Academy. https://โ€‹pracademyโ€‹.coโ€‹.uk/โ€‹iโ€‹nโ€‹sโ€‹iโ€‹gโ€‹hโ€‹tโ€‹sโ€‹/โ€‹iโ€‹vโ€‹yโ€‹-โ€‹lโ€‹eโ€‹eโ€‹-โ€‹aโ€‹nโ€‹dโ€‹-โ€‹tโ€‹hโ€‹eโ€‹-โ€‹oโ€‹rโ€‹iโ€‹gโ€‹iโ€‹nโ€‹sโ€‹-โ€‹oโ€‹fโ€‹-โ€‹tโ€‹hโ€‹eโ€‹-โ€‹pโ€‹rโ€‹eโ€‹sโ€‹sโ€‹-โ€‹rโ€‹eโ€‹lโ€‹eโ€‹aโ€‹se/

Ivy Lee - First Press Release - New York Times - Doctor Spin - The PR Blog
Statement in The New York Times.

Learn more: Ivy Lee and the First Press Release

The Press Release Template

Classic Press Release Template - Public Relations
Download the press release template.

Download the clasยญsic press release temยญplate (zip file conยญtains pdf, pages, and docx).

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The Press Release Template

So, how do you write a press release?

Release Note and Contact Information

Press releases are often marked โ€œFOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEโ€ to demonยญstrate that this informยญaยญtion is intenยญded for disยญtriยญbuยญtion (this is where it says โ€œDRAFTโ€ or โ€œDO NOT DISTRIBUTEโ€ while the press release is being drafยญted). It can also say, โ€œEMBARGOED UNTIL โ€ฆโ€. 5Remember that journยญalยญists can disยญregยญard your โ€œembarยญgoedโ€ press release and pubยญlish the informยญaยญtion immeยญdiยญately. You could get a journยญalยญist to sign an NDA (non-disยญclosยญure agreeยญment), but not all โ€ฆ Continue readยญing.

Date and Location

You should include the date. It someยญtimes makes sense to add the city from which the press release oriยญginยญates for globยญal wire releases. Both the date and the city are often added right before the intro.

Headline and Summary

The headยญline should include the brand name and be descriptยญive rather than witty or intelยญliยญgent. Press release titles can be very long, though. The idea is to give the readยญer the full scope of readยญing the title. The title is often bold and more promยญinยญent, but this wonโ€™t work for plain-text wire releases. 

Also, press releases in English often have all importยญant words capยญitยญalยญised, but this is often conยญfusยญing for non-English speakยญers. Writing the headยญline in all caps solves both of these problems.

The intro should sumยญmarยญise the news hook in 1โ€‰โ€“โ€‰2 senยญtences. This part is usuยญally the most difยญfiยญcult to write; it should include everything in the headยญline and add more detail and context.

Focus the headยญline and the sumยญmary on the underยญlyยญing conยญflict. Remember the adage, โ€œNews is someยญthing that someone doesยญnโ€™t want to see in print.โ€

Content

Their conยญtent conยญsists of descriptยญive paraยญgraphs and quotes. A good rule of thumb is to alternยญate between them. If your first paraยญgraph under the intro is a quote, the next one should be a descriptยญive paraยญgraph, then a quote again, and so on. 

Also, if any of your senยญtences are longer than 25 words, conยญsider shortยญenยญing them.

A good way to start is to answer five basic questions:

  • Who?
  • What?
  • When?
  • Where?
  • Why?

Regarding formatยญting, you could turn your press release into an interยญactยญive microsยญite with mouse-over effects and pop-up toolยญtips. But your press release must work in plain, unformatยญted text for the most critยญicยญal use cases (news aggregยญatยญors, plain-text email send-outs, wire serยญvices like PRNewswire or PRweb, etc.). 

Quotes

Writing quotes often takes some getยญting used to. Here are a few good rules:

  • Avoid qualยญiยญfiยญers (good, great, unique, impressยญive, perยญfect, solยญid, etc.).
  • Avoid expressยญing emotions.
  • Write in a speakยญing voice.

Your boilยญerยญplate shouldยญnโ€™t be cute or cool, just informยญatยญive. Most organยญisaยญtions have standยญardยญised boilยญerยญplates, but if I can, I will add one that works well with the press release content.

โ€œOnly two things will surยญvive globยญal warmยญing: cockยญroaches and boilยญerยญplates.โ€
โ€” Ann Wylie

The Hashes

Signal the end of the news item by adding three conยญsecยญutยญive hash signs, โ€œ###โ€. Your press release should ideally fit on one page but nevยญer be longer than two pages (unformatยญted)โ€‰โ€”โ€‰includยญing all the parts described above.

Learn more: The Press Release Template

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PR Resource: Notable PR Contributors

Annotations
Annotations
1 1906 Atlantic City train wreck. (2023, December 24). In Wikipedia. https://โ€‹enโ€‹.wikiโ€‹peโ€‹diaโ€‹.org/โ€‹wโ€‹iโ€‹kโ€‹iโ€‹/โ€‹1โ€‹9โ€‹0โ€‹6โ€‹_โ€‹Aโ€‹tโ€‹lโ€‹aโ€‹nโ€‹tโ€‹iโ€‹cโ€‹_โ€‹Cโ€‹iโ€‹tโ€‹yโ€‹_โ€‹tโ€‹rโ€‹aโ€‹iโ€‹nโ€‹_โ€‹wโ€‹rโ€‹eck
2 Ivy Lee. (2024, January 1). In Wikipedia. https://โ€‹enโ€‹.wikiโ€‹peโ€‹diaโ€‹.org/โ€‹wโ€‹iโ€‹kโ€‹iโ€‹/โ€‹Iโ€‹vโ€‹yโ€‹_โ€‹Lee
3 The First Press Release. (2016, April 10). News Museum. https://โ€‹wwwโ€‹.newsโ€‹muโ€‹seumโ€‹.pt/โ€‹eโ€‹nโ€‹/โ€‹sโ€‹pโ€‹iโ€‹nโ€‹-โ€‹wโ€‹aโ€‹lโ€‹lโ€‹/โ€‹fโ€‹iโ€‹rโ€‹sโ€‹tโ€‹-โ€‹pโ€‹rโ€‹eโ€‹sโ€‹sโ€‹-โ€‹rโ€‹eโ€‹lโ€‹eโ€‹ase
4 Morris, T. (2014, August 25). Ivy Lee and the oriยญgins of the press release. PR Academy; PR Academy. https://โ€‹pracademyโ€‹.coโ€‹.uk/โ€‹iโ€‹nโ€‹sโ€‹iโ€‹gโ€‹hโ€‹tโ€‹sโ€‹/โ€‹iโ€‹vโ€‹yโ€‹-โ€‹lโ€‹eโ€‹eโ€‹-โ€‹aโ€‹nโ€‹dโ€‹-โ€‹tโ€‹hโ€‹eโ€‹-โ€‹oโ€‹rโ€‹iโ€‹gโ€‹iโ€‹nโ€‹sโ€‹-โ€‹oโ€‹fโ€‹-โ€‹tโ€‹hโ€‹eโ€‹-โ€‹pโ€‹rโ€‹eโ€‹sโ€‹sโ€‹-โ€‹rโ€‹eโ€‹lโ€‹eโ€‹aโ€‹se/
5 Remember that journยญalยญists can disยญregยญard your โ€œembarยญgoedโ€ press release and pubยญlish the informยญaยญtion immeยญdiยญately. You could get a journยญalยญist to sign an NDA (non-disยญclosยญure agreeยญment), but not all journยญalยญists accept embarยญgoes. Conversely, the journยญalยญist can nevยญer be 100% sure when a PR proยญfesยญsionยญal promยญises exclusยญivยญity. A traยญdiยญtionยญal honยญour sysยญtem charยญacยญterยญises the relationship.
Jerry Silfwer
Jerry Silfwerhttps://doctorspin.net/
Jerry Silfwer, alias Doctor Spin, is an awarded senior adviser specialising in public relations and digital strategy. Currently CEO at Spin Factory and KIX Communication Index. Before that, he worked at Kaufmann, Whispr Group, Springtime PR, and Spotlight PR. Based in Stockholm, Sweden.

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