How to write a press release, step by step
To write a press release, lead with the news: a headline that says what happened, a first paragraph that answers who, what, when, where and why, then supporting detail, one strong quote, your boilerplate and a contact. Keep it to one page, factual and in the third person, with your company name and the key facts in the first two sentences.
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1. Find the news angle
Before writing, finish this sentence: "[Company] today [did something], which means [outcome] for [audience]." If you cannot, the news is not ready. Good angles are concrete: a launch with a clear user benefit, a number (users, revenue, funding), a named partner, a first in a niche.
2. Write the headline
State the news in under about 100 characters, with your company name and an active verb. See press release headlines for formulas.
| Weak | Strong |
|---|---|
| Acme Revolutionizes Bookkeeping | Acme launches Ledger, AI bookkeeping for freelance designers |
| Exciting News From Acme! | Acme raises $3M seed round to expand into Europe |
| Acme and Beta Partner | Acme integrates with Beta, bringing invoices into 40,000 Beta workspaces |
3. Write the lead paragraph
Two or three sentences after the dateline that answer who, what, when, where and why. A reader who stops here should have the whole story. This is also the passage search engines show and AI assistants quote most.
AUSTIN, Texas, Oct. 22, 2026 – Acme today launched Ledger, an AI bookkeeping tool for freelance designers that categorizes expenses and prepares quarterly tax estimates automatically. Ledger is available now in the US for $12 a month.
4. Add the body
Two to four short paragraphs, most important first (the inverted pyramid). Include:
- the problem and who has it, with a number if you have one;
- how the product or announcement solves it, in concrete terms;
- availability, pricing, markets, dates;
- proof: customers, results, partners, investors.
5. Add one strong quote
From a named person with a title. Use it for opinion and meaning, not facts already stated. "We built Ledger because designers lose a day every quarter to receipts" beats "We are thrilled to announce this exciting milestone."
6. Boilerplate, contact and end mark
Close with your standard "About [Company]" paragraph (see press release boilerplate), a media contact (name, email, website), and "###".
7. Add links, carefully
Link your company name or product to your site, and one or two relevant pages. Avoid keyword-stuffed anchor text: Google's spam policies list optimized anchor text in distributed press releases as a link scheme. See press release backlinks.
8. Edit for facts and length
- Is every claim true and checkable? Wires reject releases with unsupported superlatives or misleading claims.
- Third person throughout ("Acme said", not "we").
- 400 to 600 words.
- No jargon a customer would not use.
- Spell-check names, figures, dates and URLs.
9. Distribute it
Publish it on your site's newsroom, send it to a few relevant journalists personally, and distribute it through a newswire for reach and indexed copies. See how to distribute a press release.
Questions people ask
Can I write a press release in the first person?
No. Releases are written in the third person, with first-person language only inside quotes.
How many quotes should a press release have?
One or two. More dilutes them.
Should I use AP style?
US newsrooms use AP style for dates, titles and numbers, and following it makes a release look professional. It is a convention, not a requirement for distribution.