26 Aug 6 Press Release Disasters that Actually Got Published!
Today, PR executives are often multi-tasking, working remotely, doing meeting marathons or churning out a PR strategy boxed in a small cubicle. So, rarely is there learning on what would grab a journo’s attention.
Yes, the stark reality is that PR disasters do happen. Here’s a few choice examples of bad PR you should definitely steer clear of when designing your press release.
This one is as old as Methuselah and even he may have wanted to avoid this cliché. Something cannot be new and be an update on the old model as well. It is an either-or situation.
New Magnetic Door Locks from Locks-Magnetic.com
Stuff for breaking news! A company that manufactures washing machines (insert whatever here) has a new series of washing machines (same product). The thing about news is that it has to be about the USP. Right now, we cannot say that this is something new or even is news.
Wholesale — Uninterrupted Power Supply
Just a broken fragment. Is there really someone who can purchase uninterrupted power supply? How can someone claim to supply uninterrupted power supply? How is it blockbuster news? This is like saying, “Hey, I love to watch movies…my favorite is science fiction…oh, Star Wars. And then they were interrupted. A complete idea is a must.
Bean Bags to Head Up the Christmas Retail Sales Charts.
Are these bean bags diamond-studded or do they have gold trimmings, or at best are made of chocolate? Which charts make this claim a convincing one? You cannot just write anything related to your products to boost holiday sales.
ZyXEL ventures into 2-Bay Media Server with the Launch of NSA221.
Maybe this is what does it for the tech PR folks but a media release filled with jargon is just not going to cut it for anybody else. The point here is that you don’t use hi-tech sounding jargon and expect people to be impressed by it. Also, when talking about new ventures at least make sure that enough people know about the company.
My-Data-Team Releases a New Data Entry Program
The whole point is that a little guy sitting in a garage cannot possibly be the subject of breaking news. Some company that has made some new program is doing some quick-fix marketing. Everyone out there is doing new stuff every day – the only things that make the news are when these things affect other things.
