By way of an online discussion group, my friend Stephanie West Allen alerted me to an unusual press release written as a story.
It’s the story of an attorney who is taking down her shingle to become a life and executive coach. There’s more to it; as the press release notes, it’s “a story that involves fleeing from another country, working for the CIA, and being involved in a shooting, not to mention short appearances by the then President of the United States, several Foreign Consulates, and a stuffed animal named Batts Maroo.”
I once made quite a practice of analyzing press releases when I was an editor who reviewed dozens of these documents daily. I developed a nice set of guidelines for how not to write a press release based on the mistakes I typically saw. I put on my editor’s hat to determine whether this press release would intrigue me and inspire me to run the story the release represents (while some publications print releases verbatim, most publications would either edit the release or report their own story using the release as a springboard). Here are my thoughts:
- The story aspect of the release is definitely intriguing. The release uses the word “story” numerous times. Most press releases announcing a new business give a dry, resume-like recitation of the entrepreneur’s background and qualifications.
- The release is long — 4 pages (!) when printed as a PDF. Many editors would be daunted by its length and wouldn’t have time to read the whole thing. But they might be intrigued enough by the story aspect to at least put it aside for future consideration.
- The subject, whose name is Sonia Gallagher, makes some revelations that are unusually personal for a press release — that she grew up in a abusive household, that she experienced “demons” and depression, her engagement and wedding, and being sued by one of her law clients. Would an editor be turned off by these intimate details — or intrigued enough to want to learn more? Depends on the editor.
At the very least, this press release is attention-getting, which cannot be a bad thing when you seek publicity. Storied press releases may have great potential.