How to Write a Press Release in 2026: A Complete Guide with Writing Tips, Formats and Examples
Last Modified: March 31, 2026
Key Takeaways (TL;DR)
- Write like a reporter, not a marketer: A press release is not an advertisement. Strip out adjectives, self-congratulatory phrases, and vague claims. Journalists need facts they can verify and publish.
- Use plain language throughout: Assume the reader knows nothing about your industry. If a concept needs explaining, explain it in one sentence before moving on. Technical terms without context get releases deleted.
- Lead with the most important information: Put the who, what, when, where, and why in the first paragraph. Everything else supports that opening. This structure is called the inverted pyramid, and journalists expect it.
- Back every claim with data: Numbers give journalists a reason to trust the story. Percentages, case study results, and third-party statistics carry far more weight than descriptive language.
- Quote the person closest to the news: If a product launches, quote the product lead. If a market expands, quote the country manager. Save CEO quotes for company-wide decisions, acquisitions, or crisis responses.
- Include visuals: A press release with access to high-resolution images or a short video is significantly more likely to get picked up. Link to a digital press kit rather than attaching files.
Table of Contents
How To Write a Press Release: At a Glance Table
| Stage | What It Covers | What Good Looks Like |
|---|---|---|
| Finding the news | Identifying what actually qualifies as a story | A clear answer to: what changes for someone outside the company because of this? |
| Writing style | Tone, language, and how to handle technical concepts | Plain language. Every concept explained for a reader with no industry background. No adjectives without a fact behind them. |
| Structure | How to order information | Most important information first. Context and data second. Background last. |
| Quotes | Who to quote and why | The person closest to the announcement, not the most senior person available. |
| Visuals | What to attach and how | A link to a digital press kit, never a file attachment. Images, logo, and video where relevant. |
| Distribution | How and to whom you send the release | Pasted into the email body. Sent to journalists who cover your specific sector. Personalised introduction above the release. |
| Timing | When to issue a release | Funding rounds, product launches, market entries, leadership changes, partnerships, crisis responses. Not routine updates. |
What is a Press Release?
A press release is an official written statement sent to journalists, editors, and broadcasters to share newsworthy information. Its job is to give reporters everything they need to write an article without having to chase down additional details.
When you write a press release, you are acting as the first reporter on your own story. You gather the facts, confirm the data, and structure the information so a journalist can pick it up and run with it.
That means writing in plain language. No industry jargon. No acronyms without explanation. No assumptions that the reader already understands your market. If your product works within a niche industry, define that industry in one sentence before you explain what the product does.
Many people confuse press releases with advertisements. The difference is straightforward. An advertisement tries to sell something directly to a consumer. A press release informs the media about a factual event and relies on the credibility of the publication to carry the story to the audience. That third-party credibility is the entire point.
Promotional language undermines that credibility immediately. Phrases like “the first of its kind” or “a groundbreaking solution” signal to journalists that the release was written by a marketing team, not a communications professional. They move on.
Why is a Press Release Important?
A press release gives journalists a reliable, structured way to assess whether a story is worth covering. When a release follows the expected format and contains verifiable facts, it respects the journalist’s time and increases the chance of coverage.
That coverage matters beyond visibility. According to Pew Research Center’s findings on trust in news and social media, trusted news coverage still carries significant authority. When a respected publication writes about your company based on a press release or newsworthy angle, you borrow that publication’s credibility. This third-party validation can help build long-term trust with your target audience.
Press releases also create a documented record. They mark the moments that matter: product launches, leadership changes, funding rounds, market entries. Investors, potential partners, and prospective hires often search a company’s press history to gauge how it communicates and where it is heading. A well-maintained archive signals transparency.
What Are the Most Common Types of Press Releases?
Different events require different information.
Understanding how to write a press release for each scenario ensures you include what journalists in that category actually need.
Product Launches
A product launch press release focuses on what the product does for the user, not what it is made of. Start with the specific problem it solves and for whom. Then explain how it solves it, in plain terms that any reader can follow.
Include the release date and where the product is available. Add pricing if relevant. If you have data from a pilot, a beta, or a case study, include specific numbers. “Retailers who tested the system during the pilot reduced stock discrepancies by 28 percent” is more useful to a journalist than “the product has been positively received.”
Avoid listing every feature. A journalist does not need a technical specification sheet. They need one clear story: here is the problem, here is who has it, here is what changed.
Funding and Financial Announcements
Financial journalists require precision. Vague statements about “accelerating growth” or “expanding capacity” give reporters nothing to write about.
State the exact amount raised, the names of the lead investors, the type of round (seed, Series A, Series B, etc.), and what the capital will be used for. If the company has hit a revenue milestone or user threshold that puts the funding in context, include it. For example: “The funding follows a year in which the company grew its client base from 40 to 120 organisations across Iberia.”
If the round includes a strategic investor, explain who they are and why their involvement matters beyond the money. That context is often the most interesting part of the story.
Leadership Changes
A leadership announcement introduces a new executive to the industry. Its job is to explain why this person, for this role, at this moment.
Cover the relevant parts of their background, not their full career history. If the company is expanding into Spain and the new hire spent a decade managing operations in Madrid, that is the lead. Include their new responsibilities and what the appointment signals about the company’s direction.
This type of release also serves an internal audience. Employees, investors, and existing clients read leadership announcements to understand whether the business is moving in a clear direction. A quote from the CEO is appropriate here because the announcement concerns company-wide strategy.
Crisis Communications
Speed and clarity matter more than polish in a crisis release. Journalists and the public will fill gaps in information with speculation. A fast, clear statement controls the narrative better than a careful one that arrives late.
Acknowledge the situation directly in the first paragraph. Do not use vague language or passive constructions. “An error in our payment processing system resulted in incorrect charges for 1,400 customers between March 12 and March 14” is more credible than “some customers may have experienced issues.”
State what the organisation is doing, what the timeline looks like, and who affected parties can contact. Include a direct quote from the CEO that takes clear accountability. Do not issue a crisis release without that quote, and do not use the quote to deflect responsibility.
For a detailed framework, see our crisis communication plan guide.
Event Announcements
An event release gives journalists and their audiences enough information to decide whether the event is worth covering or attending.
Include the date, time, location or platform link, the names and titles of keynote speakers, and what the event is designed to do. If registration is required, include the link and any deadline. If the event is free, say so. If there is a ticket price, include it.
The news angle is usually the speaker lineup or the topic. “Annual industry conference returns to Lisbon” is not a news story. “Former ECB chief to address 800 founders on European tech regulation at Lisbon summit” is.
How to Write a Press Release in 2026
Writing press releases that get picked up requires a specific structure. Journalists scan dozens of emails before deciding what to read in full.
If the first paragraph does not make the story obvious, the release gets skipped.
Follow these steps in order.
Step 1: Find the News Value
Before writing a single word, ask whether anyone outside your organization would care about this information. If the answer only makes sense to your internal team, it is an internal memo, not a press release. The news value must be visible to a reporter, their editor, and their readers.
Ask what changes for someone outside the company because of this announcement. That change is the story.
Step 2: Write the Headline
The headline must communicate the entire story in fewer than 70 characters. Use an active verb and a specific noun. Avoid vague or promotional language.
Instead of: “Company Announces Exciting New Product” Write: “LogiWorks Launches Inventory System That Cuts Warehouse Errors by 30%”
The second version tells the journalist exactly what happened and why it matters.
Step 3: Write the Lead Paragraph
The first paragraph is the most important part of the release. It must answer five questions: who, what, when, where, and why. A journalist should be able to read only this paragraph and understand the complete story.
Keep it to three sentences. If you are writing four or five, you are including detail that belongs in the body.
Step 4: Add Context and Data, Written for Any Reader
The paragraphs that follow the lead build the story with supporting information. This is where press release writing guidelines most often get ignored.
Explain every concept as if the reader has no background in your field. If your product integrates with a warehouse management system, define what that system does before explaining how your product improves it. If you reference an industry standard, state what that standard measures and why it matters.
Support every claim with data. Reference a third-party study, a client case study, or internal figures that can be verified. For example: “According to a 2025 retail case study, inventory errors cost independent retailers an average of €50,000 per year. The LogiWorks system reduces those errors by tracking stock across multiple locations in real time.”
That combination, a defined problem followed by specific data, gives journalists a structure they can use directly.
Step 5: Choose the Right Quote
Quotes provide perspective that facts cannot. They give the story a human voice and help journalists frame the narrative.
The person you quote should be the one most directly connected to the announcement. For a product launch, that is the product lead or the engineer who built it. For a market entry, that is the country manager or the team lead on the ground. For a new client programme, that is the head of client services.
Quote the CEO only when the announcement is genuinely a company-wide matter: an acquisition, a major strategic change, a crisis response. Using a CEO quote for every release dilutes the role and makes the release feel like it was written around seniority rather than expertise.
A good quote adds an opinion, a perspective, or a forward-looking statement that the facts alone cannot convey. A poor quote simply repeats what the lead paragraph already said.
Step 6: Add Multimedia
Link to a digital press kit that includes high-resolution images, the company logo, and, where relevant, a short video. Do not attach large files to the email directly. Attachments trigger spam filters and slow down the journalist’s workflow.
A release with accessible visuals is more likely to be published, because the publication does not need to source additional assets to run the story.
Ideal Structure of a Press Release
| Component | What It Is | What Good Looks Like | Common Mistake |
|---|---|---|---|
| Headline | The title of the announcement | Under 70 characters. Active verb. Specific noun. States the news, not the feeling about the news. | “Company Announces Exciting New Chapter” – vague, promotional, tells the journalist nothing |
| Dateline | Origin city and date | CITY, STATE – Month Day, Year. Placed at the start of the lead paragraph. | Omitting it entirely, or formatting it inconsistently |
| Lead paragraph | The full story in three sentences | Answers who, what, when, where, and why. A journalist should understand the entire announcement from this paragraph alone. | Spending the first paragraph on company history or context instead of the news |
| Body paragraphs | Supporting context and data | One idea per paragraph. Every technical term defined. Every claim backed by a number or a named source. | Listing features without explaining what they mean for the reader |
| Quote | Human perspective on the news | An opinion or forward-looking statement from the person most directly involved in the announcement | Repeating the lead paragraph in quote form. Quoting the CEO for every release regardless of subject. |
| Boilerplate | Standard company background | Under 100 words. One link. Describes what the company does and for whom, without adjectives. | A paragraph of promotional language about the company’s “mission to transform the industry” |
| Media contact | Contact details for journalists | Name, direct email, and direct phone number of the PR contact. Link to the digital press kit. | A generic info@ address or no phone number |
When to Write a Press Release
Knowing how to do a press release is only useful if you know when to issue one. Sending releases for minor updates trains journalists to ignore you. Reserve them for moments that genuinely change something, either for your company or for the people you serve.
Write a press release when you reach a major milestone: a significant funding round, a new headquarters, or a user base threshold that signals market traction. These events tell a story about the company’s direction and health.
Write one when announcing a strategic partnership. Two organizations joining forces changes the competitive picture for their shared market. The release should explain exactly what the partnership involves and what it means for customers of both organizations.
Do not write a press release for routine activity. A minor software update, a standard employee promotion below executive level, or a seasonal discount do not qualify as news. Each unnecessary release reduces the credibility of the ones that matter.
Examples of Press Releases
Reading examples helps clarify what the guidelines look like in practice.
The following two examples apply the principles above to real announcement types.
Example 1: The Product Launch
Headline:
LogiWorks Launches Cloud Inventory System to Cut Warehouse Errors by 30%
Lead:
LogiWorks today launched a cloud-based inventory management system that allows mid-sized retailers to track stock levels across multiple locations in real time.
Context:
A 2025 retail case study found that inventory errors cost independent retailers an average of €50,000 per year. The LogiWorks system addresses that gap by syncing physical stock counts with digital records automatically, without manual audits.
Quote:
“Floor managers were spending more time counting boxes than fulfilling orders. We built this to give that time back,” said Sara Proença, Head of Product Design at LogiWorks.
Example 2: The Leadership Change
Headline:
Global Finance Corp Appoints David Chen as Chief Risk Officer
Lead:
Global Finance Corp today announced the appointment of David Chen as Chief Risk Officer, effective May 1, 2026. Chen brings 20 years of regulatory compliance experience to the role.
Context:
Chen previously led international risk assessment at Apex Banking, where he oversaw the adoption of new European data privacy frameworks across 12 markets. His appointment follows Global Finance Corp’s announced expansion into the European market earlier this year.
Quote:
“David knows how cross-border financial regulation works in practice, not just in theory. That is exactly what this expansion requires,” said Maria Rodriguez, CEO of Global Finance Corp.
Note that in this case, the CEO quote is appropriate because the announcement relates directly to company-wide strategic direction.
Check out more press release examples in this article.
Press Release Template
Use this structure as a starting point.
Fill in each section with specific, verifiable information.
Press Release Template
Fill in the fields on the left — the template fills in as you type.
[Company Name] today announced [the specific news]. This [product/event/hire] will [primary benefit or impact]. The announcement addresses [the core problem] for [target audience] by [specific mechanism].
Body paragraph 1 — context and dataAccording to [Credible Source], [specific industry challenge with numbers]. [Company Name]‘s announcement addresses this by [explain how, in plain language]. [Include a specific figure or case study result].
Body paragraph 2 — quote“[A perspective, opinion, or forward-looking statement that adds something the facts do not already say],” said [Name], [Title most relevant to this announcement] at [Company Name]. “[Second sentence, optional, that adds context or direction].”
Body paragraph 3 — additional details[The product/event/initiative] will be available from [Date] at [Location/URL]. Pricing starts at [Price], with options for [Target Segment].
About [Company Name]
[Company Name] provides [core service] for [target audience]. Founded in [Year], the company focuses on [key differentiators]. More information: [Website URL].
Media contact
[Name]
[Title]
[Email Address]
[Phone Number]
[Link to Digital Press Kit]
What is the Ideal Format for Press Releases?
Journalists process the layout of a press release before they read the content. A clear, predictable format signals that the sender understands how media relations works.
- At the top: Write “FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE” in capitals, aligned to the left. If you are sending the release ahead of publication under an agreed date, write “UNDER EMBARGO UNTIL [Date and Time]” instead.
- Headline: Center it. Bold it. It should be the largest text on the page. If the headline needs one additional detail to make sense, add a subheadline directly below in a slightly smaller, italicised font.
- Paragraphs: Keep them short. No paragraph should exceed five sentences. Large blocks of text slow down scanning and bury the key facts.
- Font: Use Arial or Times New Roman at 12 points. Avoid multiple colors, decorative fonts, or embedded graphics that may break in an email client.
- Closing: End the body of the release with three pound signs (###) centered on the page. This is the standard journalistic signal that the text has ended. Place the boilerplate and media contact information below that line.
Top Expert Writing Tips
The structure tells you where to put the information.
These tips determine whether that information is actually readable:
1. Remove every adjective that does not carry a fact.
Words like “groundbreaking”, “leading”, or “comprehensive” describe how the company feels about its announcement, not what the announcement actually is. Replace them with specifics.
Instead of “a comprehensive inventory solution,” write “an inventory system that tracks stock across up to 50 locations.” The second version tells the journalist something they can quote.
2. Cut the opening padding.
Do not start a paragraph with “In today’s competitive landscape” or “Now more than ever.”
These phrases delay the actual information and signal that the writer is filling space. Start with the subject and the action.
3. Write for the reader who knows nothing about your industry.
This is the most overlooked press release writing guideline.
A journalist covering your story may have no background in your sector. If you mention a technical standard, a regulatory body, or an industry acronym, define it in parentheses or in a short clause.
One sentence of context prevents the journalist from having to research terms before they can evaluate the story.
4. Replace jargon with numbers.
Vague business language like “improved efficiency” or “better outcomes” means nothing without figures. If your service saves time, state exactly how much. If you are opening a new office, state the square footage and the number of jobs it creates.
Precision replaces the need for promotional language.
5. Target the right journalist.
Distribution is as important as writing.
Do not send the release to a generic media list. Research the specific reporters who cover your sector and send the release directly to them, pasted into the body of the email. An attachment is a barrier. A personalised, contextual email is not.
Build Your Media Presence With The Square
Writing a press release that earns coverage requires more than following a template. It requires knowing what makes a story credible to a specific journalist, in a specific publication, at a specific moment.
The Square is a strategic communications agency based in Lisbon, with offices in Madrid and Porto. The agency works with technology companies, scale-ups, and innovation-driven organisations across Iberia and beyond, translating corporate milestones into news narratives that journalists find credible and editors choose to run.
The Square handles everything from drafting objective, data-backed press releases to managing targeted distribution across Portugal, Spain, and international markets.
Planning an announcement?
Speak with us to turn it into a story journalists will cover
Everything You Need To Know About Writing Press Releases
| Category | Essential Insights |
|---|---|
| Core Definition | A press release is a factual statement sent to the media to announce newsworthy information. Its goal is to earn third-party coverage, not to advertise. |
| Writing Style | Plain language. No adjectives that are not backed by data. No jargon without a definition. Write so that any reader, regardless of industry background, can follow the story. |
| The Inverted Pyramid | The first paragraph carries the full story: who, what, when, where, why. Body paragraphs add context. Background comes last. |
| Proper Quoting | Quote the person most directly connected to the announcement. A product lead for a product launch. A country manager for a market entry. The CEO for company-wide decisions only. |
| Visual Elements | Link to a digital press kit with high-resolution images, the company logo, and video where relevant. Do not attach files directly to the email. |
| Formatting Rules | “FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE” at the top. Bold headline. Short paragraphs. Boilerplate under 100 words. Media contact with direct phone and email. Close with “###”. |
| Common Mistakes | Treating the release as an advertisement. Using adjectives instead of data. Quoting the CEO for every announcement. Failing to explain technical concepts. Sending to irrelevant journalists. |
| Distribution | Paste the text into the body of the email. Target journalists who cover your specific sector. Write a short personalised introduction in the email before the release. |
| When to Send | Funding rounds, major product launches, strategic partnerships, executive hires, market entries, or crisis responses. Not for routine updates or minor internal changes. |
FAQs about How to Write a Press Release
How to write a press release?
Start with a headline under 70 characters that states the news directly, using an active verb and a specific noun. The first paragraph answers who, what, when, where, and why in three sentences. Body paragraphs add context, data, and a quote from the person most closely connected to the announcement. Close with a short company description and media contact details. Throughout, write in plain language and replace every adjective with a specific number or fact wherever possible.
Where to send press releases?
Send to journalists who cover your specific sector, not to a generic media list. Research which reporters have written recently about companies or topics similar to yours. Paste the release into the email body rather than attaching it. Include a brief personal note explaining why the story is relevant to that journalist’s beat.
How much do press releases cost?
Distribution services typically charge between €100 and €500 depending on the length of the release, the number of outlets targeted, and whether the release includes industry-specific targeting or multimedia. Premium services for international distribution or sector-specific placement cost more. If you handle distribution in-house, the cost is the time spent on writing and direct journalist outreach.
How long are press releases?
Between 300 and 500 words, or roughly one to two pages. That length is enough to cover the full story, include one quote, and add the boilerplate and contact details. Longer releases lose journalist attention quickly. If the story is genuinely complex, link to a full briefing document or press kit rather than extending the release itself.
How to write a good press release during a crisis?
Acknowledge the situation in the first paragraph using plain, direct language. State what happened, what the organisation is doing about it, and what the timeline looks like. Include a quote from the CEO that takes clear accountability and outlines specific next steps. Distribute through official channels immediately. Avoid vague language, blame-shifting, or statements that cannot be verified. Speed and clarity reduce speculation.
