• Featured Article - Lose The Hype, Keep The Substance
• How to Write Powerful Press Releases - Book From Press-Release-Writing.com
• PRW Introduces Brand New Book To Assist Self-Published Authors

Lose The Hype, Keep The Substance

Hocus Pocus; wave that magic wand and everything you say will be believed by the media. Not! Razzle Dazzle 'em with ten-carat words and gold nugget adverbs. Add some super hype like whipped cream smeared over the whole piece of cake and you will be the pr writer who hits the circular file first! (Translation: trash bin) Maybe hype works in Hollywood films, but remember, that's show biz. Press release writing needs to be subtler while still retaining the excitement.

Carefully written press releases do not need to be dull but neither do they require a lot of hype. Excessive gushing turns media people off. What constitutes gushing in press releases? A bevy of adverbs and adjectives describing said product, idea or business. For example: the 'fabulous,' 'shiny quality of the material makes it 'irresistible.' Instead, describe without fanfare: "The material shimmers like moonlight, casting a glow on the wearer." What's the difference? You find no adverbs or adjectives in the latter sentence yet it paints a vivid picture. Try using active verbs as in the above example: shimmers, casts. Active verbs alleviate the necessity for adverbs. Active nouns (moonlight, glow) eliminate the need for adjectives.

Let's try another example. You're doing a press release on a new book. You write, "The book is exciting, thrilling and interesting." All are adjectives describing the book. It sounds like overused overkill. Instead, notice the difference in the way the following description makes you feel. "The book made me feel as if I were riding a roller coaster. Each bump and dive threw me for a loop. At the end, I felt cheated to lose that high." The difference is the lack of superfluous adjectives and adverbs. Instead, the description elicited a response that would make you want to read the book.

If you force yourself to describe your product using no adverbs or adjectives, you will be surprised that it comes out much fresher and more convincing. This, after all, is what press release writing is all about. Try writing your next press release without adverbs or adjectives and see what happens.