Make Your Press Release Heading an Attention Grabber

We write hundreds of press releases and we receive dozens and dozens of questions from people who are just learning to write them. Even people who write press releases regularly have questions. The pros want to improve too. 

We also interview experts who share tips on what works for them. Since one of our main goals is to help you write better press releases, we like to share that great store of combined knowledge and know-how with you. 

For the next several newsletters, we're going to focus on one important aspect of the press release. We'll put it under the microscope, dissect it, and then analyze it. When we're finished, you'll know how to make that one thing better.

This newsletter will focus on the press release heading. Think of it as a title. It's the first thing the reader will see to determine if the subject is of interest to him. It needs to convey enough information to grab his or her attention but not so much as to be confusing. Don't promise something you cannot deliver. "Cutesy" headings often miss the point. An attempt at humor often misses the mark. Trying to be clever frequently backfires. You know how clever you are being but the reader has no clue. 

The press release is really a lot like a short story. It should have a title, a beginning, a middle and an end. The title or heading is the most important part. That does not mean that the body of the press release is not equally important. It just means that if the title is no good, the rest of the release can be a work of genius but nobody will read it.

To quote an old cliché, "Don't judge a book by its' cover," but we all do. How many times do we pick up a book or newspaper in a store if we like the headlines or the title? How many great books do we miss because the title lacks intrigue or interest? Think about that for a minute.

The best way we've found to create an effective heading is to summarize the message we are trying to get across. For example, suppose you are trying to sell a widget that decreases fat while cooking. It's a special frying pan grill. You come up with a 'cutesy" title, "Fat Gets Hot off the Grill." That's clever, catchy and cute. But does it tell readers what it is and how it will help them? No, it does not. It shows your brilliance but the reader will not read far enough to get the message. Remember, you get readers attention by reaching out to their needs and interests, not yours. 

A better title or heading might be "Decrease Fat in Your Food While Cooking with Widget." It gets right to the point, tells you what you can expect to learn and if you have an interest in the subject.

So hit the reader where he lives. Reach out to his needs and interests. Summarize the content of your press release message in the title.