Press Releases

Made EasyA Simple guide to create a press release

What is a press release?

Public relations is about communicating with the public, letting them know the great things your

chapter is doing, and helping them find ways to get involved. A press release is one way to help

the media tell your story.

In order to create a successful press release, it is

ideal to follow the inverted pyramid model as shown

below:

1st Step

2nd Step

3rd Step

Inverted Pyramid Model

• Step 1 includes the most newsworthy information first. Answer the five W’s: who, what, when, where and why. All essential information should be included in the first paragraph of the press release and provide important details in the following paragraphs.

• Step 2 provides important details in the next paragraph(s).

• Step 3 is where you use the boilerplate. The boilerplatesums up the critical information about Alpha Phi. There is a standardized boilerplate that should be used that can be found at http://www.alphaphi.org/news/Boilerplate.html

Press Release Format

1. Add your marketing contact followed by the contacts phone number.

2. Before writing the first paragraph, enter in your chapters city, state, and then the date of the event.

3. Write your first paragraph (the five W’s).4. Write your second paragraph(s).5. Write your final paragraph with the official Alpha Phi

boilerpoint.6. Enter in your chapter’s address and contact

information.

Here’s a standard layout for press

releases. You canview this online at

alphaphi.org.

(1.)

(2.)

(3.)

(4.)

(5.)

(6.)

Press Release Example

Alpha Phi Foundation Visits White House ( Washington , D.C. 2/2/04 ) - Alpha Phi Foundation Executive Director, Rebecca Zanatta, received an invitation from President and Mrs. Bush to attend a special women’s heart-health event at the White House.

Key-note speaker Laura Bush highlighted elements of a Presidential Proclamation, signed by President Bush during the event, declaring February as American Heart Month and Friday, February 6, 2004 , as the first annual National Wear Red Day in support of women's heart disease awareness. She also promoted ways to take charge of heart health.

Alpha Phi International Fraternity was founded at Syracuse University in 1872 as one of the first Greek societies for women. Alpha Phi is dedicated to promoting sisterhood, cultivating leadership, encouraging intellectual curiosity and advocating service. The organization is comprised of more than 140 collegiate chapters and more than 130alumnae chapters throughout the United States and Canada. The Alpha Phi Foundation is the fraternity’s philanthropic and educational partner. Through contributions from chapters, individual members and friends, the foundation supports women’s cardiac health and other charitable and educational projects. Together, Alpha Phi International Fraternity and Foundation develop character for a lifetime.

Notice the who, what,When, where, why,

and how

Notice the importantinformation

Notice the boilerplate

When To Send It

• Send your press release to your media list 4-6 weeks before the event. Within 2 days of sending the release, follow up with phone calls to your contacts to make sure that it was received.

• Generally submit or send out press releases after 11am, and ideally on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. Try to avoid Mondays and Fridays, as more often than not hard news is received and covered on these days.

Where To Send It

Once you have completed the press release, you might not know where to send it. Here are a few ideas that

will best serve your interests in properly communicating to the public.

•Your college/university newsletter or school Web site.

•The local newspapers or any small magazines.

•Try the local radio or television stations.

Congratulations!

You now have the proper tools and knowledge to send out a professional press release. A well crafted press release in the correct format may take you a full day to create; but given the immediate and ongoing benefits to be had, it's definitely a worthwhile investment of your marketing time.

Additional Information:

For a more in-depth look at how to create a press release, or to see other examples of press releases, please visit our Web site at:

http://www.alphaphi.org/news/PressRelease.html