In my other role as a creative consultant for brands, I’m sometimes asked to write press releases. It’s something I’m usually happy to do (given the right fee) because it’s good to flex your writing muscles for a different format and it’s also interesting to be on the other side of the desk, so to speak.
What you fast realise is that what you’re looking for when you sit down to start writing that release is the same thing you’re looking for as a journalist on the receiving end: a good story.
It’s all about the story.
I recently worked on a release about a store opening for a big luxury brand.
To be honest, the idea of coming up with 500 stirring words about another white retail box felt rather daunting. But actually the brand had done its homework. Not only was the store in a building of some architectural note, but the team had chosen to celebrate its history, referencing it in the renovation with pertinent installations within the interior.
An architecturally interesting space with a past – that’s a story. Without it, a store is just another white box and a press release is another piece of paper.
