If you’re releasing music or promoting a show you’re going to need a press release. I’ve come across this great guide to writing music press releases from Chris Cooke at the CMU Insights blog.  Follow these tips and you’ll keep those bloggers and reviewers happy. Here are those ten tips in sixty seconds or less!

Cut To The Chase

Make sure the point of the press release is in the subject line of the email, in the strapline/heading of the press release and in the first paragraphl. Make sure an edited version of your ENTIRE story is in your first paragraph.

Be Neutral

Avoid hyperbole (“the best band since The Beatles”) and keep your press release as factual as possible. Include facts (“recently sold out the Manchester Academy 3”  venue) but avoid unspecified claims (“most exciting”) etc.

Don’t exaggerate, be neutral and factual.

Include A Quote

Include a quote from yourself, or your producer or promoter talking about the topic of the press release.  Testimonial quotes from third parties are also good too!

Always include a quote, even if it is just from yourself.

Put Lists In A List

If you’re listing something (tour dates etc) stick them in a sequential list rather than a table so they are easier to copy and paste.  Avoid tabs for the same reason.

Type up lists of information into an informatted list.

Put Background Stuff At The End

Put history about yourself and your music or any other useful stats in a separate section at the end. Use bullet points and short sentences similar to a Wikipedia entry.

Put non-essential stuff at the end.

Always Include A Photo

You might actually want to link to Dropbox for your high quality image.

If you’re using a high res photo, send via a Dropbox link.

Keep It Simple

Avoid a fancy or complicated layout.  There’s no need to  include things such as band logos unless you’re printing out the press release.

Don’t Use PDFs

You can put all press release text in an email, an email AND send it as a Word doc (to give the recipient their preferred option) but don’t use PDFs.  They’re tricky to cut and paste from!

Include A Date

Always include the date that the press release was issued at the top of the page.

Double Check It

Make sure all the info is correct and spell checked.  Make sure contact details are correct also.

Read the original article in full here.

You can list to the CMU podcast every week, I do!

Got any questions about this post or how you can better market yourself?

Twitter: @60secondmm

Facebook: www.facebook.com/60secondmusicmarketing