RESEARCHING PRESS RELEASES

It’s very difficult, if not impossible, to write a meaningful press release without researching the facts beforehand. The time and effort required for research will vary – five minutes reading a simple product specification, half an hour on the phone to a talkative salesperson, eight phone calls to contact an elusive customer – but careful research always pays off. Here are some research guidelines.

Is there a story?

It sounds obvious, but do make sure that you know the basic facts before going to in-depth research. For instance, some excitable guy or gal in Marketing may tell you that Sproggs have just ordered a £1.2 million SuperGizmo machine from your company – we must get a press release out immediately!

First, have a word with the front-line salesperson concerned. You may discover that the order hasn’t actually been confirmed, so Sproggs won’t want to talk to you just yet. Same with ‘new product’ stories; don’t try to announce them while they’re only a twinkle in the R&D manager’s eye...

Get approval

Releases on subjects such as orders and distribution agreements involve other parties, and you must obtain their agreement in principle before researching and writing such stories. Ask nicely for this approval before starting your research, otherwise you won’t get very far with it! You may have to approach the other party’s Press Office or PR agency, and you will have to submit copy to the other party for final approval before the press release is distributed.

If you are writing a release on behalf of a local school, club, church or society, it is essential to get firm approvals in advance from everyone whose names you intend to mention, or whose pics you propose to submit. This applies particularly when children or young people are involved; you must always get permission from their parents, in writing if possible.

Incidentally, it can often help to get initial approval to write the release if you emphasise that you will be submitting the copy for approval before it goes out to the press that nothing will appear in print before they approve it. It all may sound like a lot of fuss and bother between friends, but many a friendship has been badly strained by one party taking the other for granted.

List your questions

We have said that you will almost invariably have to talk to someone to get the facts you need. There are few things more frustrating than finishing a telephone call to a customer to research an order story, for example, only to realise that you’ve forgotten to ask him for a comment on why he bought your equipment. So, before making contact, always draw up a really detailed questionnaire for that particular release, covering all the aspects of the story. This should even include details such as the correct spelling of the customer’s name, and a prompt to ask for the customer’s fax number or email address for sending him copy for approval (a reassuring touch with which to end the interview).

Just a tip from a couple of old hands in the game: On order/installation stories, don’t take everything that your own salesperson tells you as gospel. When you talk to the customer, check what he’s bought, and its value – sometimes you can actually get two different versions, which need to be back-checked with your organisation’s sales records to establish which is correct.