Rethinking the Press Release

Written By Alex Ashley

This may be controversial…

Maybe it’s because I’m still a journalist at heart, but I love a press release. I love writing them, I love a tight, crisp format, and I love what they represent: the most direct way in PR to put a story down on paper. They are also quite paradoxical, because they are at once a fading marketing relic and ever-present in inboxes for all eternity until the end of time.

They are also perpetually mediocre, probably because most of them are written as a sales pitch; like one of those late-night infomercials selling you knives that can cut through a pair of sneakers. The media environment is inhospitable to the press release mainly because now online news and social media takes up all the oxygen, and a formulaic regurgitation of some boring company news has no competitive edge.

Having been on both sides of the pitch, I’d love to share a few things I’ve learned that we can do to rethink the press release and elevate our pitches from boring "infomercials" to acts of compelling storytelling. Interested?

Alex Ashley

A rare, triple-threat singer, songwriter and instrumentalist, Alex Ashley creates an electrifying amalgam of insightful lyrics, profound storytelling, sultry, smoky vocals and razor-sharp guitar playing that brings his songs to life with nostalgic effervescence. 

At just 26 years old, Ashley has been described as “that of a well-seasoned musician with years of traveling [and playing] every juke joint on the road…” 

Ashley’s debut full-length record “Babylon,” produced by the Love Sound label, is due to be released in 2017.

http://www.alexashley.org
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Rethinking the Press Release: Understanding What the Story Really Is
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