In just a single day, hundreds and thousands of press releases are published on different platforms. However, only a small percentage gets the readersâ attention and the interest to read. Have you ever wondered why this is so?
Do you intend to capture the attention of a newsroom editor, rank up for an online search, or engage a potential client on social media? Whatever your aim, youâll need an eye-catching, compelling title to generate vital engagement for your press release. The title is a very important aspect of your release; itâs what the readers first set their eyes on when they come across your work.
However, coming up with the best title for your release can be quite challenging and time-consuming. There are a number of factors that come into play. Right from your goal, target audience, publishing platform, title length, and SEO optimization among other factors. Good news is, this guide contains everything you need to know about writing an eye-catching title and hence efficient press release that gets noticed and read. Please read on.
Put the following factors into consideration when deciding for the best title that fits your press release:
Your GoalWhat do you want to convey to your target audience in the press release? Do you intend to inform them of your new brand, improvement in an existing brand, change in management, media event, or a donation? Whatever your goal is, you should clearly state it in the title. This helps prevent vague or misleading titles, which would otherwise have a negative impact on your intended goal(s).
The channel or platform where you intend to publish your release will determine the length of the title to write. This makes it crucial to first take into account the publishing platform you intend to use before creating the title. For instance, the optimal title length for a LinkedIn post is between 80-120 characters and just 40 for Facebook.
This is a very important factor worth your consideration when deciding on the best title for your PR. It should reflect the relevance to your target audience to ensure it delivers exactly what the audience wants. This may require some research on its demographics, which should help you decide on the title that would grab the reader's attention and make them want to read your release.
The optimal length of your press release title may vary depending on the platform you plan on using. For instance, for search engines, the average number of characters is usually between 50-60 characters. Therefore, it will be best to keep the character limit below 60 characters to avoid some of the characters being cut off when the search engine results are displayed â youâll have hardly fulfilled your goal.
For your release to get maximum exposure on search engines, you should ensure to make the title (plus the main body, of course) SEO-friendly. Use of target keyword not only makes the title enticing but also search engine-friendly. In digital PR especially, having the keyword at the beginning of the title (within the first 1-3 words) can assure you of better results. You should also ensure that you use simple words and phrases commonly used by your target audience; avoid over-sensational language. You can check with your digital marketing team for the industry-specific phrases and keywords to include in your title.
There are quite several search engine tools which you can use to optimize your title. To identify the phrases and keywords that can receive the most attraction, you can visit trends.google.com to compare the level of interest and impact of some keywords you have. The right keywords can make your title more effective.
Perhaps you wouldnât want your target audience to wonder about the context of your release. They might not have the patience to read it halfway or towards the end to know what itâs about. As a matter of fact, theyâll most likely just skim through it. Let your readers know what the release is about in your title, and ensure to deliver this in the body. You can randomly ask someone not working in your firm for their thoughts about your story by just looking at the title. This will enable you to figure out if you embraced clarity in your title.
These are some of the most crucial tips that can make your title outstanding among the several press releases that get published.
Avoid Self-PromotionWhile you could be writing the press release to publicize your company name or a specific product, starting your title with the brand name may not be the best option, especially if youâre operating a new business. Chances are, very few or even none of your target audience has heard of your company before. Therefore, do not start the title with a proper noun not common with the readers as this can be a turn-off. They can make your title to look less eye-catching and interest-piquing, at least not the way youâd want. Start your title with something interesting to almost everyone, if not everyone. You may only use your company name as a selling point if itâs popular enough among the people and youâre positive it will turn heads, but shouldnât always be a priority.
We are all humans, and itâs our nature to have an emotional side. Even those who seem to be the most hard-core. These emotions are what moves us to react in a particular manner. And your press release wonât be any different. Making it emotional will entice your readers to respond positively to your release. It helps you tap into their psyches, as you convey a strong, concise message. Therefore, ensure to use titles that can stir up emotions of curiosity and confidence.
Itâs not a surprise to find work with titles that read like full paragraphs. This may happen should you put too much effort to cramming important information about your product, service, or whatever topic youâre writing about into the title. This makes the title ineffective, and youâll risk having it truncated in the search engines. Plus, long titles might not only get truncated, but readers also tend to get bored quickly with long titles. Ensure to include the most important information in the headline that can hook your audience and help eliminate any overwhelm.
There will be several hundreds of PRs on the editorâs desk, who might not have time to read through each PR that comes their way. They often would just look at the headline and only read those that grab their attention. Making the title newsworthy will increase the chances of getting picked by the editors, hence read by your target audience. Ensure itâs both interesting and intriguing.
The words you use in your title are essential to determine if the title will attract the readers or not. Always avoid using the passive voice and instead use an active voice. Why is this so? Well, passive voice can make your content less appealing and takes readers out of the action. Active voice, on the other hand, engages your readers and adds style to your headline.
Before deciding on a title for your release, try to ask yourself what would make a journalist want to read the release. This will give you the critical element you need to include in your title to capture the attention of the reader. Your target influencers will first see the title, and this makes it important to consider their mindset to capture their attention. Ask yourself if youâd read the title, hence the PR, if it popped up on your computer or smartphone. You should then decide on a title that grabs your attention and interest to read through the release.
There are terminologies commonly used in social networks today, even when referring to the same thing. These are the keyword versions that you should always use in your title for convenience. B2B Public Relations, for instance, could be used as B2B PR in popular social networks. Using these versions in your release makes it more trendy by association. Ensure to stay updated on whatâs trending in your industry every other time. You can also try to tie your press release to a hot current event or a popular personality in the industry. You can get an industry expert to speak at the event and highlight their special appearance at the release to garner more attention.
There are platforms which you can use to check the score, and hence the strength of your title. These sites help you attain a balance among the use of powerful words, emotional words, common words, and uncommon words in your PR title. They can help you improve on your headline by ensuring you get a better score.
When deciding on the title for your PR, ensure to consider one that will give your readers exactly what they want to know. You can try to give the reader the answer to the first question they would ask about the topic, or you can give them the question they would want to know the answer (which youâll provide in the body).
No one is a perfect writer. Typos and other errors are very common with most press releases submitted. And the sooner you accept this fact, the better position youâll be when it comes to writing the best, eye-catching title for your release. After writing the release, try to give yourself some break (say a day if you have time) before proofreading the piece. This way, youâll be looking at the release with a fresh set of eyes; hence can easily spot mistakes, if any. You can also solicit for help from your team, friends, or family. Have them go through the whole piece and give their honest thoughts on the headline you used.
Your PR title is as important as the rest of the release. Itâs an official statement that requires the use of proper punctuation, grammar and spelling right from the title. Below are important points to consider:
For an effective title, itâs crucial to consider the correct wordsâ placement. Use of powerful words can be a great idea, but they can be worthless if not placed correctly in a sentence. Ensure that you arrange the words you use in a meaningful manner that makes the title effective.
Use of power words in your title can be very vital, especially if you want to pique the curiosity of your target audience. You can use words like âeye-catchingâ, âmodernâ, âguaranteeâ, and âsecrets.â Such power words can increase your titleâs quality score, hence high probabilities of garnering more attention from the target audience.
Use of alliteration (a classic writing technique) in your title can be essential to attract your target audience to read your PR. The result would be a catchy title that will not only intrigue the readers into reading your work but will also stay in their minds for a significant amount of time.
You need a relevant, catchy title for your release. However, there are quite a number of PR title formats available, and selecting the one to use for your work can be challenging. Perhaps learning about some of these formats and their relevance will help you make informed decisions, conveniently.
These are the most common title formats used. They usually do not involve the use of questions or numbers. You will use this kind when you intend to convey your story to your target audience directly.
Youâll most likely encounter the use of how-to title formats in blogs. But this doesnât mean itâs not fit for PR titles. You need to use a title that will attract as many readers as possible, and how-to formats can give you just that.
Most readers tend to be attracted by press releases with âQuestionâ title formats in an attempt to find the answer to the said question. This is because the human brain is programmed to look for answers to questions. Including a question in your headline will provoke the urge in your readers to read more to find the answer to the said question. You can use this type of title when youâre certain you have provided a more satisfactory answer to the question youâll include in the title.
Do you intend to write a newsworthy story about your services, brands, major events, competitions, or milestones? If yes, then using the âNewsâ title format can be the best choice.
If your PR intends to inform your target audience of the benefits of an action, and why they should take that particular action, then you can consider the âWhy and Reasonâ format.
Perhaps youâve come across PR titles containing a number. Well, who doesnât like impressive statistics? The use of concrete numbers and facts helps to improve your audience trust and engagement. They can impress your audience and at the same time compel them towards reading your work to learn more.
You can also use superlatives such as âworldâs firstâ or âworldâs bestâ to convey your message. However, you should avoid using the superlatives unless youâre presenting the actual truth for your claim. For instance, you can use the superlative âworldâs bestâ only when you can prove the claim. Also, avoid using superlatives that are too long as they tend to be ineffective.
If your PR intends to resolve a common issue that has been affecting your target audience for a while (could be an advice, service, or product), âGuaranteeâ title can be the best way to strike their interest in your story.
These are the titles that involve the use of actionable verbs (at the beginning) such as âfindâ, âstopâ, âopenâ, and âdonâtâ. You can use this format if you intend to invoke an actionable response from your readers.
This format can be essential when you want to grab the attention of your audience instantly. Here, youâll communicate the benefits of a particular offer, product, or service in the title.
Press release titles are essentially powerful. Theyâre what most readers first set their eyes on and will determine if theyâll be interested in reading your release or not. Itâs an important part of your release, just as the rest of the body. You need to have the best, eye-catching title that can generate significant engagement. When deciding on the title to use, ensure to consider who your audience is, what you want them to do, and why you think thatâs relevant.
Yes, working on the title alone might take even more time and effort than writing the rest of the body, but it will be worth the sacrifice considering the importance it has on your work. Remember, you can have the best press release on the planet, but it will be worthless if you bury it behind an ineffective title. Lucky for you, the tips in this guide are enough to get you exactly what you need for an eye-catchy headline for your work. Just follow the guide to the latter and rest assured of writing the best title thatâll get noticed and read. Good luck!