How to benefit from an effective Press Release

Introduction

Greetings from Marc Eff of Kovapot. I hope you are doing well!
I’m back again with another Musicians guide to an effective press release that can reap lots of benefits for you.

You can only reap what you have sawn! So let’s get to the seed sawing right away.

A press release is a form of marketing that is designed to get your music career off to a good start. By writing and sending out press releases, Musicians can boost their music careers in myriad ways. 

I shall constantly use PR as an acronym for a Press release so don’t get your PRs mixed up!

What is a press release (PR)?

According to Wikipedia (I love Wikipedia!) A press release is an official statement delivered to members of the news media to provide information, create an official statement, or make an announcement directed to a public release. 

It contains important information about the subject of the release and should be no longer than one page in length.

Who are the recipients of a press release?

Normally a press release is sent out to journalists and media publications to get press coverage.

The release should include everything that a journalist would need to write about the topic in question and still be very interesting enough to cause the journalist to write about it in the first place.

The “Don’t Do’s” for an effective Press Release that reaps benefits

Don’t make it seem like an advertisement. 

Selling your product too hard and ignoring the real purpose of a press release (news!) is one of the number one ways to get blacklisted.

Use a press release as a medium to spread your news to inquisitive parties, whether it’s the media, your customers, prospects or stakeholders.

The only thing you should be selling here is a story that creates a connection and makes people interested in your brand and that’s how a press release can lead to sales.

Don’t write in all caps. 

Writing in all uppercase is an easy way to discourage readers from your release because it comes across as yelling. 

Use only caps lock necessary words, such as CEO – not a sentence or a phrase that doesn’t need it. There are other ways to capture the reader’s attention instead of writing in caps lock!

Avoid sounding informal or using excessive jargon

A press release is aimed at a variety of audiences and you should be writing for all of these potential audiences, not just one. 

Using wordy sentences to show off your sophisticated lingo or sounding too technical grammatically may cause readers to abandon your release simply because they don’t understand it. 

All acronyms should be written in full and use simplified terms for words that are industry specific to grow readership.

Common uses of a press release

Press releases are a valuable tool that can be used in a variety of mediums – on your website, in a blog, repurposed into a video and more. 

Generally speaking and For enlightenment purposes, here are some common uses for a press release:

• General news
• New product launch
• Events
• Quarterly reports
• Crisis communications
• Charity
• New hires
• Acquisitions
• Partnerships
• Awards

If you are anything like me you would want to get immediately to how all this can be helpful for a music artist. And here comes your answer.

How do you get your music career off to a good start by using press releases?

Every beginner musician desires a good start in the music business so they can start making money through their music early on! Press releases are an excellent way to get that ball rolling and you can use them to:

• Introduce yourself to new markets and audiences
• Announce new releases, including concert dates and merchandise
• Create buzz about your music career by building awareness around existing fans or attracting new ones.
  We go detailly into this in subsequent chapters…

Benefits of sending out an effective Press Release 

• Press releases are good for getting your foot in the door if you’re looking to promote yourself as an artist.
  
  This can be extremely vital if you don’t have much of a following yet and want to get your name out there on social media or other websites, where you can link back to increase your chances on SERPs

• Press releases are a great way to get your music in front of new audiences. When crafted well it can attract publications to future you in their magazine or blog. This can lead to more exposure opportunities for you and eventually sales

• A Press release can also enhance the exposure and recognition of your work, which will help you build up anticipation around future releases. It’s also a good idea to send out press releases when you release a new album or EP. This will help to build hype for your release

• A press release can also get people excited about what’s coming next and encourage them to stay tuned to more entertainment from you. Imagine announcing a future event where fans purchase tickets before an official date is ever announced.

• In addition, if someone reads an article about one of your tracks on a website, magazine or blog (or even sees it mentioned somewhere else), they may decide that they want to check you out by searching for more information online about you and your interests.
  
  This could lead them back towards purchasing something from your artist’s website or other online stores like Nsay Digital as well! (pardon my self-promoting escapades to a non-BS platform proudly powered by Cameroonians for Africans)
  
  

How do you write an effective Press Release that reaps benefits?

First, you need to decide what angle you want to take. Is your music geared towards a certain audience? Are you trying to promote an album, single or EP? 

Then, write out the most interesting facts about your work and how it differs from other artists. You can include information such as who produced it or who provided samples or backup vocals for the project; this will help readers become interested in learning more about your work.

For an effective press release that reaps benefits, you should include the following elements:

• Headline
• Summary 
• Dateline
• Body
• Quotes
• Contact info

Using these shall give the media all the info they need to write about your work. Some bloggers are too busy to investigate your case, so providing all this info will motivate them to compose a narrative.

Headline

This is presumably the most critical element of your press release. According to a post from digitalagencynetwork.com, we only have about 3 Seconds To Take Over The World or in our case capture the reader’s attention. 

A good example of a successful press release headline would be “New album from [band name]!”

So your headline needs to be catchy and appealing. Think of it as the subject line of an email. 

If it naturally feels grabbing to your eyes, you’re more likely to open that email. Of cause, anyone would read if the first few lines of your PR are good!

While investing your time into this think of the person who is going to read. Try to imagine What they are looking for and What would be something newsworthy for them?Recognize, that you’re pitching yourself for others to write about your project.

Summary of news story

Resume your relevant information like a subheading. The most common practice is to condense the most crucial details in a line or two.

Here is a good example of a press release to see this.

If you have quotes from relevant media, you can include them in a summary to establish authority. 

 Bullet points are ideal to keep the message short and engaging, so make sure you use them if you see your press release is getting too long. It is also possible to share a link to the video or the album.

Dateline

Start with city and Country, followed by month, day, and year.

Use the formats “For immediate release” or “To be released on xx” at the top of your press release to let writers know when they can publish the story.

For example, you want to share all the details for the upcoming December charity music event where you’ll be participating. You’ll start the first line with:

For immediate release
CMR, Douala. September 4, 2022.

Body

The body is where you explain what’s going on in detail. The most important news goes first. It should answer the “Who, what, when, where, why” questions and include all of your main points

The first paragraph should include an overview of 

• What happened (e.g., “Our new album was released yesterday!”), followed by some details about how you got there: 
• What kind of music did you make? 
• Why did you decide to go with this particular approach? 
• How did fans react when they heard these songs for the first time? 

This gives readers something substantial to lock onto while they’re reading through 

You can add more details after your first paragraph: talk about yourself as an artist, or a story relevant to your big announcement. 

Write in the third person, be clear and make it easy to read.

Some things you can add to the next paragraph, depending on your news, are: 

• Your music genre, 
• Details on your album/tour, 
• Song titles, and 
• Previous reviews, if available.

Finish this section with a conclusive paragraph where you tell them what to do next. Maybe to watch your video, listen to the record, contact you, buy your ticket, and so on.

It’s common practice to end this section with the word “END” or “###” to clarify that is the end of the message.

Quotes

Testimonials are essential to helping people believe what you say online. If reputable people are talking about you or your work online, here is a chance to let the world know via your press release.

Include the quote from the most relevant people involved: that can be you, your manager, producers, quotes from a previous tour, or what any journalists said about you that’s approving.

A word from your record label or manager. Or even something you’ve said could suffice!

Avoid being caught in the habit of overhyping yourself and endeavour to use simple language. The more natural and genuine, the better.

Let’s say it’s your first time playing at a local venue in your city. You can quote members of the band expressing how excited they are to leave the rehearsal room finally. Or even quote the venue’s manager on how they got your band’s attention.

Contact info

Make yourself easily reachable. It is so crucial to your survival and I even mension this in the article on how to craft stunning electronic press kits for musicians

Include name, phone number, email address, and any other way media can find you and reach out to you. 

Writers, bloggers and even journalists will seldomly contact artists to ask more questions or details about their press releases.

An extra section like an artist Bio is recommended and can serve as a chance for you to expand on specifics that can be useful for editors.

Also, don’t forget to add links to your website, social networks, a press photo album, and most importantly, links to your music (in case of a record release).

There’s no specific rule about word count. But a one or two-page document is commonly used.

Ways to unleash an effective Press Release to the world

Now that you have your press release ready, it’s time to spread that thing to the world like it’s wildfire.

First, you’ll need to decide if you’ll publish it on press release distribution websites or if you’ll send it yourself.

Second, if you’re sending a printed press release, you can also send a physical album, if that’s what the press release is about.

If you’re sending emails or posting a press release on your website, you should add a link to your music files.

Avoid attaching big files to emails, especially if you’re sending High-quality audio. Make it easy for the journalist by adding a link to the document to an unlisted YouTube video so they won’t have to struggle to get it.

You can also contact bloggers in your area that can be interested in covering your story. Your Stunning electronic press kit can be a giant leap for you here since it already contains enough juice to make a good impression.

A few Music Press release examples

• Arlo McKinley-Music Single PR
• Dean Lewis – Album PR
• Sofia Camara – New Single
• Yungblud – Album PR
• EM Beihold – New single and music video PR
  
  

Summary

A press release is a short article that is written in a professional tone. It should be written in the third person, which means it addresses the issue at hand in an objective manner. 

By writing and sending out an effective Press Release that reaps benefits musicians can boost their music careers in diverse ways.

A press release can:

• Boost your reputation. When you have a lot of press, it shows that you are an up-and-coming artist and people will want to listen to what you have to say.

• Attract new fans. A good PR can help bring in new fans and make them interested in your work.

• Get musicians more opportunities for publicity, such as radio interviews or television appearance slots at concerts or festivals where they might not be able to get otherwise without the help from their PR team (or even if they do have one).
  
  

Conclusion

Now you know how to craft an effective Press release that yields all the benefits you long for without spending a dime!

A press release is an easy way to promote yourself as an artist without having to spend a lot of time or money on advertising.
Press releases are also great for musicians who want their music career off to a good start!

Keep it brief (no more than one page). Any person of interest should be able to quickly skim through your message and understand what you’re trying to say.

Include all relevant information about yourself, including links where people can purchase your music online if they like what they hear in the article
Don’t lie or make false claims about yourself or your music

Did I omit anything? Post it in the comments.


The journey to being enlightened is never ending and I also hope to learn from you!
Marc Eff Of Kovapot.