Choose benefits, news and feature leads
Are you still using the fact pack — cramming who, what, when, where, why and how into the first paragraph of your news release?… Read the full article
Ann Wylie’s blog of writing tips
Six press release leads to avoid
How many of these have found their way into your releases?
Are you still using the fact pack — cramming who, what, when, where, why and how into the first paragraph of your news release?… Read the full article
What’s the best tweet length?
Plus: What’s the best hashtag length, word length and reading grade level for Twitter?
Sure, Twitter has a 280-character limit. But just because Twitter has doubled its 140-character limit doesn’t mean you should use all of them.… Read the full article
What’s the best Instagram caption length?
Plus: How many hashtags do you actually need?
While a picture paints a thousand words, a few hundred more could drive more engagement for your Instagram posts.… Read the full article
What’s the best press release length?
Journalists spend less than 1 minute reading releases
Tick tock.
In the time it takes you to wash your hands, buckle your seat belt or start the dishwasher, your favorite journalist can finish reading your news release.… Read the full article
What’s the best blog post length?
Are you writing about Brussels sprouts or brain surgery?
Blog posts are supposed to be 2,000 words long! insists a participant on one of my webinars.… Read the full article
What’s the best email newsletter length?
People average 51 seconds on e-zines
The No. 1 advice email newsletter subscribers have for e-zine senders? Keep it short.
This according to the Nielsen Norman Group’s 6 rounds of email newsletter usability studies conducted over 16 years.… Read the full article
Optimal length for a blog post, Facebook post, email newsletter …
Measure A.R.T., or average reading time
Writers measure copy in words, inches or pages. Readers use a different measure: time.
So instead of using writer-centric measures, think like your reader.… Read the full article
How to structure a press release
Toyota takes on feature releases
When PR pros at Toyota American Motor Sales needed to announce record-level production recently, they started with a traditional announcement release:
Toyota’s North American vehicle production at record levels in 2013
Toyota announced record level North American vehicle production for 2013 surpassing last year’s output.
What’s the best news release structure?
Federal Home Loan Bank nails the feature
It was a good story: More than 1,000 New Englanders would soon have safe, decent, affordable places to live, thanks to the Federal Home Loan Bank of Boston’s Affordable Housing Program.… Read the full article