Rethinking the Press Release: Understanding What the Story Really Is

Jan 17

The press release is a stalwart of PR communications churned out regularly to announce products, earnings, and personnel changes. But in a crowded modern media landscape similar to an elevator full of people all talking at the same time, the traditional press release is expected, formulaic, easy to ignore, and no longer enough. In fact, a journalist friend of mine recently went so far as to say they don’t work at all. I believe they have a place, but to be effective, they need to transport the story you are trying to tell, and that begins with understanding what the story really is.

Here’s what I mean…

From my journalism days, I still get at least eight to 10 press releases in my inbox from record labels and publicists every week. That’s just from the entertainment side. Almost all of them, with a few exceptions, follow the same formula:

❌ “[INSERT ARTIST HERE] RELEASES SECOND STUDIO ALBUM, [INSERT TITLE HERE],” or

❌ “[INSERT ARTIST HERE]’s DEBUT ALBUM, [INSERT TITLE HERE], AVAILABLE NOW.”

To brazenly misquote the late, great Nat King Cole: 🎶 “Sooooo forgettable, that’s what you are.” 🎶

See, the real story lies, not in the “product announcement,” but in answering the question: Why should I care? These headlines are the first touchpoint for a story that means something to these two artists, but they are not emotive. They convey nothing, other than, for all intents and purposes, a product a million other artists are selling.

I’ll give you an example: Last year, Trinidadian-American pop/soul artist Bryce Drew (who, full disclosure, is also my girlfriend) released an entrancingly meaningful single entitled “Glow.” I’ll give you two versions of the headline and subhead: one written as a product announcement; the other as a story. You tell me which is more powerful:

BRYCE DREW RELEASES NEW SINGLE, ‘GLOW’

Or…

BRYCE DREW ILLUMINATES GRIEF WITH POWERFUL NEW SINGLE, ‘GLOW’

In the new release, the 27-year-old Trinidadian-American singer, songwriter, and instrumentalist explores loss and honors the lifelong impact of a childhood friendship

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