Want Your Press Release Read? Add Visuals
By Scott Baradell
I attended a Business Wire panel this morning on the value of
adding visuals -- from product photos to video clips -- to news
releases through BW's "Smart News Release" offering. A news
release with a photo attached, for example, is 2.5 times as
likely to be viewed as a text-only release.
The panel featured Chris Wilkins, photo editor for The Dallas
Morning News, and David Kent, photo editor for the Fort Worth
Star-Telegram, as well as a BW exec. They provided the following
recommendations for getting your picture in print (with or
without the Smart News Release service):
-- Preferred format is Photoshop jpeg, at least 300 dpi -- Let
them know if you've altered the photo beyond basic cleanup, so
it can be labeled as a photo illustration rather than a news
photo -- Include a detailed caption in the Photoshop file; many
photos are tossed because the outline info can't be found on
deadline -- With decreases in staffing levels at most
newspapers, more submitted photos are being used than in the
past. However, so many photos are submitted by PR folks that if
your ducks aren't all lined up just right, your submission will
probably end up in the trash. -- Partly as a result of reduced
staffing levels, a greater portion of the paper is produced in
advance than in the past. So submit your photo early whenever
possible -- at least a week before you'd like it to appear in
print.
About the author:
Scott Baradell, an accomplished corporate brand strategist and
communicator who has been the senior corporate communications
executive for two Fortune 1000 companies, leads the Idea Grove.
Most recently, Scott served from 2001 to 2004 as vice president
of corporate communications for Belo Corp.
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