5. Key Messages

One of the most important parts of the press release writing process is to make sure that certain key messages are included in the text.

Key messages are statements that, it is hoped, will eventually appear in the press coverage and will help improve the way the client is perceived by the public. Key messages also play a fundamental part in the evaluation of many PR campaigns.

Unfortunately for copywriters, many key messages are dreamt up by marketing committees and tend to be unwieldy to say the least.

Crow-barring key messages into an otherwise tightly-written press statement can be a job in itself; including them in a way which will ensure they get used by journalists can sometimes be well nigh impossible.

If you have the liberty of coming up with key messages yourself, make sure they mirror the brand and are simple, straightforward and flexible. So a key message for Bert’s Widgets that reads ‘the leading widget manufacturer in the North West’ is preferable to ‘purveyors of excellence in widget solutions worldwide’, for example – no matter what the marketing manager thinks.

If you have to make do with existing key messages, and are finding it hard to fit them into your press release, you can always put them in the client quote. And if it does not get used you can simply blame it on the fact that nine out of ten journalists prefer to get a quote direct from a spokesperson, so it is up to the spokespeople to get the messages across.