How to Write a Press Release: A Practical Guide for Startups
If you have never written a press release, the blank page can feel more intimidating than it should. I get it. There is something about the words “FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE” that can make a reasonably confident person suddenly forget how sentences work.
The good news is that the basic format is pretty simple. The harder—and far more important—part is figuring out what the news actually is.
A press release is not an advertisement. It is not a company brochure, an executive biography, or a magical collection of words that makes reporters cover your business. A press release is a clear, factual account of something that changed.
Its job is to give journalists, customers, partners, investors, employees, search engines, and, increasingly, AI tools a reliable source they can quickly understand.
That sounds simple because it is. But simple does not always mean easy.
Before You Write, Know What Time It Is
Timing is part of the story.
Before you start writing, ask two questions: What is happening now, and why does it matter now?
A product update that has been available for six months is not a launch. A funding announcement that says nothing beyond the amount raised is just a number. Connect that investment to an expansion, new hires, customer demand, or a larger change in the market, and suddenly you have context. More importantly, you may have a story.
You should also settle the logistics before drafting:
Is the announcement under embargo?
Does a partner, investor, or customer need to approve the language?
Are there legal, regulatory, or investor requirements?
Can the executive quoted in the release speak with reporters when it goes out?
Is there a customer, photograph, demo, piece of research, or meaningful data point that makes the news more useful?
Does everyone involved agree on when—and whether—the information can become public?
The date on a press release should reflect a coordinated communications plan, not the moment someone finally found the time to approve version 14.
Find the Story Behind the Talking Points
When I draft a press release for an executive, I do not begin by asking, “What do you want the release to say?”
That question usually produces a list of internal talking points, approved phrases, and adjectives like innovative, transformative, and industry-leading. Those words may make everyone inside the company feel good, but they do not necessarily tell anyone outside the company why they should care.
I want to find the story behind the talking points.
Start with these questions:
What has actually changed?
Who outside the company will care?
What problem does this solve?
What opportunity does it create?
Why is this happening now?
What evidence supports the announcement—customers, revenue, adoption, research, outcomes, or market data?
What makes this meaningfully different from what competitors have already announced?
What should someone understand, believe, or do after reading it?
What can we say publicly, and what needs to remain confidential?
Who can answer a reporter’s follow-up questions?
Which customers, partners, experts, spokespeople, or visual assets are available?
Then I ask the question that often unlocks the best quote: “Why does this matter to you personally?”
The answer will almost always be more interesting and human than “We are thrilled to announce.” For the record, nearly every company in the world is apparently thrilled to announce nearly everything. Thrilled has had a very busy career.
The Basic Anatomy of a Press Release
Reporters scan quickly. They shouldn't have to strap on hiking boots and wade through three paragraphs of corporate jargon before finding the news.
A familiar structure helps people understand what happened, why it matters, and where they can learn more.
Here is the structure I use:
Headline: State what happened in plain language. Specific beats clever.
Optional subhead: Add the most important context, evidence, or consequence.
Dateline and lead: Answer who, what, when, and where—and, most importantly, explain why the announcement matters.
Supporting paragraphs: Describe the problem, market context, evidence, and practical implications.
Quotes: Add judgment, perspective, or human meaning. Do not use a quote simply to repeat the headline in a more enthusiastic voice.
Call to action: Direct readers to the product, report, event, media kit, or another useful page.
Boilerplate: Include a short, current description of the organization.
Media contact: Give reporters the name and contact information of a real person who will respond.
For many announcements, 300 to 500 words is enough. A complicated transaction, major research report, or regulated announcement may require more. Regardless of length, use short paragraphs, active verbs, concrete numbers, and links that help readers verify the news or explore it further.
The goal is not to make the company sound important. The goal is to make the announcement easy to understand.
Match the Evidence to the Announcement
The overall format of a press release stays fairly consistent, but the information readers need will change depending on the news.
Funding: Include the amount raised, the funding round, lead investors, intended use of the capital, meaningful company traction, and what the investment makes possible. Do not leave the reader standing alone with a dollar sign. Explain what the money will allow the company to do that it could not do before.
Executive Hire: Explain why this leader, why this role, and why now. A chronological tour of someone’s résumé is less useful than a clear explanation of how that person’s experience connects to the company’s next chapter.
Product or Service Launch: Identify the customer problem, explain what is genuinely new, state when and where the offering will be available, include pricing when appropriate, provide evidence, and give people a place to see or use it. If the product is the “first,” “only,” “fastest,” or “most advanced,” be prepared to prove it.
Company Milestone: Replace adjectives with evidence. Customer growth, geographic reach, measurable outcomes, hiring figures, approved revenue ranges, and meaningful operational achievements tell a stronger story than “tremendous momentum.” Momentum is much easier to believe when you can measure it.
Partnership: Explain what each party contributes and what customers or communities can now do that they could not do before. A partnership is not news simply because two logos now appear next to each other.
Merger or Acquisition: Explain the strategic rationale, what will change for customers and employees, the leadership structure, the expected timing, and any required financial details. These announcements create uncertainty. Clear language matters.
Research or Data: Lead with the most surprising or useful finding. Explain the methodology, provide access to the complete report, and make an expert available for questions. Do not bury the most interesting result in paragraph seven. If the data surprised you, there is a good chance it will interest someone else.
Other legitimate announcements include events, expansions, awards, certifications, policy positions, and major social-impact commitments—but only when the information matters to people beyond the organization itself.
Write Quotes That Sound Like People
One of the strangest habits in corporate communications is taking smart, interesting people and making them sound like a committee of robots.
A strong quote should do something the rest of the release cannot. It can explain why the moment matters, offer an opinion, acknowledge a challenge, describe a vision, or show the human motivation behind a decision.
A weak quote says:
“We are thrilled to launch this innovative solution and deliver tremendous value to our customers.”
A stronger quote explains what the company saw, why it acted, and what will now be different.
Ask the executive how the problem became real to them. Ask what customers have told them. Ask what would happen if nobody solved it. Ask what they are most proud of—or what kept them awake at night.
Then write the answer the way a thoughtful human being would actually say it.
The Final Gut Check
Before approving the release, read only the headline and first paragraph.
Can you explain what changed? Can you tell why someone outside the company should care? If not, the release is not ready.
Then go through the details:
Remove the jargon.
Verify every claim and number.
Confirm every name and title.
Test every link.
Secure the necessary approvals.
Make sure the media contact knows the release is going out.
Prepare the photographs, demos, reports, and other supporting materials.
Confirm that the people quoted would be comfortable saying those words out loud.
Finally, ask yourself one honest question: Is this actually news, or are we simply hoping that writing it in press-release format will make it news?
There is nothing wrong with deciding that an announcement belongs in a blog post, customer email, social post, or internal memo instead. Choosing the right format is part of good communication.
A clean press release makes the facts easy to find. A strong one also gives people a reason to keep reading.
That is the real goal: not simply to announce something, but to help people understand why the announcement matters.
Please don’t hesitate to reach out to us if you have any questions about writing your first press release.
