The Small Shifts That Turn a Good Press Release Into Earned Coverage

Do press releases still matter? The short answer, absolutely.

According to Cision's 2025 State of the Media Report, 79% of 3,000 journalists globally rely on press releases to generate story ideas. The appetite is there. For organizations with a compelling story to tell, that's a significant opportunity, and it often comes down to a handful of small but important shifts in approach.

The big truth:

Journalists are skimming for one thing: a story worth telling. The releases that earn coverage lead with a clear, compelling news angle that makes a reader outside of your organization lean in. It sounds simple, but it's the most common place where great stories get lost.

What’s getting in the way:

• Leading with the announcement rather than the story. "
  Company X Launches New Product" tells your audience what happened. A stronger angle tells them why it matters, and that's what gets a reporter's attention.
  

• Writing for internal audiences instead of external ones
  Polished, precise language builds trust. Heavy jargon and superlatives tend to work against you with journalists seeking clarity and credibility.
  

• Pitching to a broad list instead of the right reporters
  Even the strongest release loses traction when it lands with someone who doesn't cover your space. Targeting is one of the highest-leverage moves in media relations.
  

• Missing the elements that help reporters say “yes”
  A data point, an outside voice, a clear story angle. These are the building blocks that make a journalist's job easier and your release more compelling.

What works well:

• Start with the news angle
  The thing that genuinely interests someone outside of your organization. A useful gut check: why does this matter today, and to whom?
  

• Think about your subject line the way a journalist would write a headline
  It's the first thing they see, and often the deciding factor on whether they keep reading.
  

• Don't underestimate the value of a brief, personal note
  Two sentences explaining why this story fits a reporter's specific beat can do more than a perfectly polished release on its own.

The bottom line:

The organizations earning consistent coverage are sending releases that feel like they were written with a specific reporter and reader in mind. That shift in approach is often the difference between a release that turns into a story and one that gets lost in the inbox.