Posts Tagged: Writing
Is it really news? Does it matter anymore?
by Rebecca Kirkham on June 1, 2010 | no comments
in Corporate Communications, Writing, public relations
True confession time. My name is Rebecca and sometimes I write news releases about things that aren’t really news.
Now that I’ve gotten that off my chest, let me explain. You see, I’m one of those people who actually remembers what life was like before Facebook, Twitter and even the Internet made it easy for something seemingly insignificant to reach people far and wide. Back then, press releases were reserved for truly newsworthy events. Frontloaded with the five Ws (who, what, when, where and why), they were designed to stand up to the scrutiny of crusty old journalists who drink their coffee black and smoke at their desks. (Ok, maybe not all of them…but you get the picture.) News had to be just that: news.
Things are different now. With many newsrooms operating with a skeleton crew, reporters are increasingly looking for ready-made news. It’s not uncommon to see a press release that would have once made it straight to the circular file actually make it to print. Even if it doesn’t, news releases often find a broader audience online than in traditional media. Wire distribution services such as PR Newswire and Business Wire are now search engine optimized to allow your news release to “live” online in perpetuity. As a result, many companies are opting to release “news” that’s actually more suited for a company newsletter, a white paper or even a corporate brochure than a press release.
But that begs the question: should you do it just because you can? Like most things in the PR world, the answer depends on your unique situation and your goals. Here are a few tips to keep in mind as you weigh your options.
- Consider the big picture. Understand that you’re not likey to get widespread press coverage on a news release packed with non-news. But if your goal is to attach yourself to a particular issue or get “on record” with key audiences following your company, it may make sense – especially if you are up against negative news. Even if you don’t get the media coverage you desire, distributing your release via a search engine optimized newswire will ensure that people searching for information about your company get a more balanced look at what you’re all about.
- Get creative. When it comes to the Internet, fresh news – be it in a press release or a blog post – can go a long way toward combating the negative. While it’s a tactic that shouldn’t be abused, a new release detailing your company’s latest charitable contribution or round of promotions is likely to rank above the article about the lawsuit you settled last month in search engine listings. At least temporarily.
- Call your shots. Don’t assume your efforts to “bury” bad news means it will go unnoticed. Releasing other news should never replace direct communication with key audiences on an issue – especially in the event of a crisis.
- Get personal. Finally, whether you’re announcing a major acquisition or an employee of the month, remember to send copies of the release to your “family and friends” list.
So while the five W’s still have a place in the world, the definition of what is news is shifting daily. If you decide to spread the word for the sake of spreading the word, remember that – as with everything in life – a little common sense and moderation go a long way.
Here’s a Tip: Search Engine Optimize Your Press Releases
by Allison Russo on April 27, 2010 | no comments
in Media Relations, Writing, public relations
As much as I enjoy lazy Sundays spent drinking coffee and reading my beloved Styles section of The New York Times, I don’t know how I would function without the ability to effortlessly and instantly read the news online during the busy work week. With the invention of Really Simple Syndication (RSS) feeds, Twitter, Google Reader and the likes, I tend to believe I’m not alone in the quest for news delivery at the speed of light (at least Monday-Friday!). In fact, according to a recent article from the BBC, Pew Research Center has determined that online new sites are the “third most popular form of news, behind local and national TV stations.”
With that said, as PR practitioners, we have had to evolve our PR tools to cater to the needs of our target audience, which evidence shows, primarily lives online. So what is this evolving PR tool that I speak of? The Search Engine Optimized (SEO) press release. An SEO press release will not only get your news online, it will also help to improve your search ranking on Google, Yahoo! and Bing and, in turn, provide additional exposure to your company news. Below are five tips for creating a press release that will do just that:
Use Keywords: Develop a list of keywords that relate directly to the press release content and to your company. Repetition of these keywords will help search engines pick up on the main focus of the release. SEO experts say that search engines typically determine credibility of a release from reviewing only the first 250 words, so try to work your keywords into the beginning of the release as often as possible (at least three times is ideal).
Nix Generic Headlines: Many PR practitioners make the mistake of using a “teaser” headline or saying something generic to pique the interest of a curious editor. When it comes to SEO, a generic headline will go unnoticed if it is not informative. Make your headlines short and concise and always include your company’s name and a keyword or two.
Include Links: Linking to websites relevant to your press release content is another method search engines use when determining credibility. Link to your company website, of course, but make sure to link to other sites to improve rankings.
Limit Jargon: Press releases, whether meant for online distribution or not, should never include a lot of jargon. The point of a release is to get your news out there, not confuse people. The same goes for SEO. Search engines will have a hard time picking up on acronyms, so make sure to spell them out, at least upon first mention.
Embed Multimedia: Editors and search engines alike appreciate the value of multimedia to help tell a story. Embedding multimedia that links back to a website will help to improve ranking.
What else are you doing to search engine optimize your press releases?
Social Media and Journalism Converge in AP Stylebook Change
by Jan Morrison on April 19, 2010 | 1 comment
in Copywriting, Website, Writing
At the American Copy Editors Society conference on Friday, the AP Stylebook announced that it would change its standards for the term “website.” Previous editions of the Stylebook recommended that journalists use “Web site,” instead.
Known as “the Journalist’s Bible,” the AP Stylebook serves as the ultimate guide for technical writing rules in journalism. If a writer is ever unsure of how to use a comma, hyphen, state abbreviation, academic title or any other aspect of American English journalism, the AP Stylebook has the answer.
Journalists requested that the Associated Press consider changing the term from “Web site” to “website” for a variety of reasons. Here at Lovell Communications, we agree with most of the reasons other writers give for choosing one over the other and we have been using “website” as our standard for years.
The format of the word itself is not as significant as the process that initiated the change. The Associated Press made their decision based on feedback from journalists, through Twitter, blogs and every other form of instantaneous communication.
Our communications have reached a point where the public can now influence the authorities. This is an important convergence in the worlds of social media and journalism.
What else do you think the AP Stylebook should consider changing?
More Than Words
by Rebecca Kirkham on February 23, 2010 | 1 comment
in Corporate Communications, public relations
Many years ago when I was trying to decide what I would do with my life, I told my parents I was considering a career in communications. I’ll never forget my dad’s response. “What are you going to do with that degree besides stand in the unemployment line and ‘communicate’ about how you can’t find a job?,” he said. Ouch.
Luckily, I didn’t let his opinion deter me. Today I’ve worked in public relations for more than 15 years and I love what I do. More importantly, I see tremendous value in it. It takes great skill to understand all sides of an issue and articulate your position in such a way that persuades people and moves them to action.
Too often, however, people forget that being an effective communicator is about more than finding the right words; it’s also about finding the right message. Sometimes that means sorting through page after page of data to find that one statistic that perfectly supports your position … or immersing yourself in a company’s business to understand the essence of who they are so you can find the best way to share it.
The right message is almost always the result of asking the right questions. Whether that means exploring unpleasant ‘what ifs’ and worst case scenarios or asking the “dumb” questions no one else wants to ask, it’s a communicator’s job to ferret out the truth and build their position around it.
So while my dad may have had a point (PR folks are a friendly bunch), I’ve come to realize that being an effective communicator takes more than glad-handing and rhetoric. Among many other skills, it requires a natural curiosity, dogged determination and an appreciation for data and sound logic.
That’s a tough pill to swallow for us right brained types, but hopefully, it’ll put my dad’s mind at ease about my future employment prospects.
The News Release – More Important Than Ever?
by Ashley Webb on January 14, 2010 | no comments
in Media Relations, The Media, public relations
A new study released Monday by the Pew Research Center’s Project for Excellence in Journalism investigates where news comes from in today’s rapidly changing media landscape.
A week-long examination of all the local media outlets in Baltimore suggests that while the news landscape has rapidly expanded, newspapers remain the primary source of information. Nearly 50 percent of the public got its information from the print media, while almost 30 percent relied on local TV. Niche media, such as specialty papers focused on business and law (approaching 15 percent), radio (under 10 percent), and new media (approaching five percent) were the other sources.
The study conducted an “examination of six major narratives” produced during the week and found that “most of the ‘news’ people receive contains no original reporting.” Eight out of ten stories “simply repeated or repackaged previously published information.”
And, of the stories that did contain new information, 95 percent came from newspapers. Blogs, Twitter and local websites played a limited role – working as an alert system to break news more quickly.
So what does this mean for PR professionals?
As newspapers get slimmer and reporting staffs continue to shrink, well-written news releases are becoming more important than ever. I found the following statement from the report quite interesting, although I’m not surprised.
“As news is posted faster, often with little enterprise reporting added, the official version of events is becoming more important. We found official press releases often appear word for word in first accounts of events, though often not noted as such.”
So remember to keep a news-like tone (no marketing hype) when writing your next news release – it may increase the likelihood of securing a worthy placement.
Eight Common Errors in Writing
by Ashley Webb on December 1, 2009 | 3 comments
in Copywriting, Corporate Communications
Writing is a large part of my job, and as a communications professional it is my job to make sure my writing is accurate and error-free. Thank goodness I have grammatical gurus as colleagues because making a few common errors in writing can hinder a great communications message!
Here are eight common errors that I hear, read and struggle with most often:
1. Confusing affect with effect. This is one the most common errors people struggle with, including myself. Remember that affect is usually a verb meaning to influence and effect is almost always a noun meaning result (usually preceded by the word the).
Examples:
- Your attitude affects the way you look at your work.
- The effect was overwhelming.
- (Effect as a verb) He will effect many changes in the company.
2. Using could of, would of, should of. These phrases are born from sloppy speech patterns using would’ve, could’ve and should’ve. The correct usage is could have, would have or should have.
3. Confusing that with which. If you can drop the clause and not lose the meaning of the sentence, use which; otherwise use that. A which clause is surrounded by commas.
Examples:
- I remember the day that we met.
- The team, which finished last a year ago, is in first place.
4. Treating singular nouns as plurals. I see this mistake all the time! There are a handful of nouns that seem to be plural in form but are actually singular and, thus, take a singular verb.
Examples:
- The staff gets bonuses at the end of each year.
- The couple gives donations to the local shelter.
5. Confusing complimentary and complementary. Complimentary refers to a compliment or in reference to something that is free. Complementary refers to someone or something that completes someone or something else.
Tip: A simple way to distinguish complimentary from complementary is to remember that complementary means to complete and both begin with comple-.
Examples:
- They received complimentary tickets to the show.
- The husband and wife have complementary careers.
6. Repeating yourself. This is a mindless mistake I see and make on a regular basis. PIN stands for personal information number; therefore, you cannot say PIN number without being redundant. Similarly, it is redundant to say CD or DVD disc.
7. Using over when you mean more than. If you’re referring to numerals or if the amount is countable use more than. Over refers to spatial relationships.
Examples:
- The employee worked more than 40 hours last week.
- The dog jumped over the fence.
8. Confusing lie and lay. Even the grammar gurus have trouble with this one! The action word is lay. It takes a direct object. Lie does not take a direct object and indicates a state of reclining. So you lie down on the sofa (no direct object), but you lay the book on the table (direct object). So the present tense seems pretty easy, but then everything goes haywire because lay is the past tense of lie. Here’s a chart that may help you decipher the difference in the present, past and past participle.
|
Present Tense |
Past Tense |
Past Participle |
|
Lie |
Lay |
Lain |
|
Lay* |
Laid |
Laid |
* Requires an object
When I need a quick refresher I visit Grammar Girl. Her site has some “Quick & Dirty Tips” that’ll do just the trick!
What writing errors do you see or struggle with most often?
What the … ?!
by Rosemary Plorin on September 24, 2009 | 1 comment
in Punctuation
An article earlier this week in the Chicago Tribune reminded me that today is National Punctuation Day. Sadly, the sun will likely set with this special day unrecognized by most. As a defender of written language (and as a professional who pays a mortgage and purchases health benefits based on my ability to communicate well) I would be remiss to let the day pass without a nod.
So, in honor of English teachers everywhere (especially you, Ms. Sturgeon and Sister Mary Hildebrand), I offer a quick tutorial on three oft misunderstood punctuation marks.
The semicolon. Poignant, decisive mark that rarely sees appropriate stage-time. The cabernet franc of punctuation.
Use the semicolon to separate two complete but closely related sentences.
“At her core she was a grammar marm; she could not let the national holiday go by unnoticed.”
This mark is also appropriately placed between compound elements in a list.
“Authenticity to both style and substance dominated her language in professional matters; in casual conversations at home, work or play; and in dialogue or debate with those of similar grammarian interests.”
The ellipsis. Seinfeld successfully transitioned this punctuation mark to spoken language in the 1997 episode “Yada yada yada.” (N.B.: the Seindfeldism requires no punctuation.)
The ellipsis notes a lapse or omission in a thought or quote. Use it for brevity, when an original quote or passage is just too darn long, or discretion – when a sentence contains elements too racy or distasteful for general audience consumption. The mark is comprised of three dots (periods) and is treated like a word, meaning, it is appropriately placed with a space before and after the triad.
“Clandestine episodes in the library between the grammar student and professor … were replayed as treasured memories long after matriculation was complete.”
The interrobang. Not unlike the guy in the Mac commercials, this punctuation combo meal is fairly ubiquitous, though few know its proper name.
The interrobang (or interabang) combines the exclamation point and question mark. In its most authentic representation, the two characters are actually morphed together into a single mark; as most electronic typefaces do not support the interrobang, side-by-side placement of the two marks is also acceptable. While not an officially sanctioned punctuation mark, the interrobang has widespread use as an interjection that denotes the mixture of query and excitement.
In its most common appearance, the interrobang partners with the ellipsis: “What the … ?!” A second example: “The budding writer flung the ribbons and wrap from the abbreviated Oxford English Dictionary and grasped her grandfather tightly about the neck, “Oh, Papa, how did you know?!”
Old Fashioned Communications
by Rosemary Plorin on March 27, 2009 | 10 comments
in Social Media
I have always been infatuated with the written word. Long, florid, romantic narrative … precise, exacting prose … tight, haunting poetry. I love the formality of language – the dependable balance of a well-constructed sentence, the subtle but undeniable framing of a compelling tale. I love well-spun speeches, convincing editorials, pithy ads, brilliant lyrics to unforgettable songs.
So as a devotee and protector of this precious art, the invasive growth of social media worries me.
I certainly understand its appeal and its necessary role in culture. I’m on Facebook; I get it. But is there a connection between the viral explosion of social media (think: kudzu) and, what I perceive to be, the steady decomposition of everyday language?
Hmmmm…. Let’s see.
Twitter limits comments to 140 words.
All posts to Facebook begin “[Your name here] is …” (fascinating verb, “is”).
Common text language mingles letters, numbers and miscellaneous characters to replace standard words and expressions (i.e. CU L8R … gag).
With so many people (82 million Americans, according to recent estimates) spending so much time (even more than they’re spending on email) saying so very little in these online forums (“Rosemary is … eating cornflakes”), our society is clearly being influenced by the culture – and limitation – of the Internet.
Google “death of the apostrophe” or “is the semicolon necessary” for evidence we are surely sliding into Dante’s basement in a wicker purse.
I realize the social media train has left the station, and I’m not suggesting we try to alter its track. But as technology makes our communication more terse and less personal, let’s make time to write elegant, handwritten letters, reflect on thoughtful commentary, tell winding stories around the holiday dinner table followed by loving, memorable toasts.