Press releases are official brand announcements that are published to gain media and public attention. In today's world, press releases have become one of the most affordable and impactful components of marketing campaigns as well. However, not every announcement has a similar impact and one of the few things that will make sure your press release is creating the desirable impact is a quote. These quotes have the power to turn the story from meh to a must-read. However, too often quotes are used in the content as just simple fillers. So here are some important considerations for press releases to make the maximum impact.
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Ensure it is Something Important and Relevant
In businesses, it is often the sales or marketing team that asks for the press releases to be written. Usually, they send the brief, but mostly they give the orders because press releases are often quoted. Bloggers and journalists know and realize that press releases of today are completely promotional, some of them are to a greater extent than others. So there is no need to highlight this common knowledge. Quoting something irrelevant, especially a marketing or sales person is surely a great way to move your press release from inbox to bin real quick. So, to write effective quotes for press releases, always look for someone who is in a more meaningful position, someone important in the industry, or someone with authority or seniority. People who are in broad-level positions usually tick the box as people give importance to descriptive titles. If the person is someone recognizable, it is even better. When you are quoting someone, try to be consistent. It is okay to have a handful of people available but do not quote someone new with every press release.
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Add Human Interest
Even if you think, quoting someone relevant, someone right is not that simple, or would not give you the desired result. They also have to say something interesting, because a quote in a press release should back up the main story. The quote does not necessarily need to say something revolutionary or new but as a second way of telling the story in a more personable way, with a bit more punch. Businesses and corporations have a certain tone of voice when it comes to press releases. A quote is an opportunity to show that the organization is run by in fact real people and not robots. Providing this additional human touch can be done by using personal experience, or emotive language, such as 'I feel', 'I believe', or 'In my opinion'.
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Don't Make it Speech-like
While you write press release quotes, make sure that it does not sound speech-like. It is not just what you say, but how you say it. Remember quotes in press release content give journalists a window to an interview. So the quote in the content needs to feel like real spoken language. If the sentences include overly complicated words or are too long, they are less likely to be used.
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Statistics
When you write a press release and use a quote to impress the readers, a stat can be useful, however, be wary of using it in the right way. Save the majority of them for the main content and if you have to include the numbers in the quotes, go light. For example, if the numbers show that 80% of people prefer ketchup to mayo, in the quote, it is much more human to refer to this as four in five people.
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Superlative Words
If you are familiar with press releases, you must have come across words like "delighted", "excited" and "thrilled". However, these are very common and if journalists had a dollar for every time they received something that included these terms, surely they would not be sitting around waiting for more. Similarly, words like "unrivaled", "unparalleled", "outstanding", "first-class", and "excellent" are a big no-no in quotes, especially used in press releases. Quotes in PR content should be used to express opinions. It may very well be the opinion of the spokesperson about the new product or service blooming, but blowing your own trumpet does not sit well with the bloggers and reporters. Instead, you can try using features and benefits to get the message across more subtly, and effectively.
A quote is the only part of the press release that the journalists cannot interpret in their own way or are allowed to change it. So it becomes a very powerful tool when it is used correctly. As the saying goes, "People buy from people", and successful communication becomes of the greatest importance when it comes to building relationships. Quotes in press releases should always start to build that connection between the brand and target customers.
