Does Your Press Release Headline Pass the Test?
How are your press release marketing results? When it comes to effective press release marketing there are a few keys to success. The first, of course, is to make sure that the press release information is newsworthy. That is to say that it’s relevant and valuable to your audience (and to the media). It’s also important to have a good call to action. You want readers to visit your site, buy your product, or sign up for your information. Images and branding can also impact your press release success. However, no single press release feature has quite the power as your headline. Without a good headline, your release and your news and your call to action will never be read.
The Headline’s One Job
Your headline has one job. It has to inspire, motivate, or arouse interest and get people to click on it and open your press release. That’s it. And while that one job seems simple, it isn’t. Headlines are often the most difficult part of any content format, and that’s definitely true for a press release. Why? Because there are limitations on the tactics you can use, and get away with when writing a press release.
The Press Release Has a Lofty Persona
The press release isn’t a sales piece. It isn’t a how-to article and it can’t make promises. Your press release headline, therefore, cannot be sale-sy, and it can’t leverage the power of words like “discover” or “how to” or even many other headline templates. Instead, your press release headline must inform the potential reader about the information in your press release, while also motivating that click. It’s a tough job.
So, do your press release headlines pass the test?
- Are you getting the press release open rates that you want and expect?
- Are you getting the shares and links and engagement that you want and expect?
- Do you have keywords in your press release headline and are they relevant both to your audience AND to the content?
- Does the headline accurately reflect the information in your press release?
- Is your press release headline exciting, unique, or inspiring?
If you can answer yes to these five questions, then your headline is passing all-important tests. Keep it up. If you answered no to any of them, then there’s room for improvement. Make sure to leverage analytics to help you discover what headlines are most effective for you and your PR marketing goals.
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