Information You’ll Need for an Event Press Release
Before you start writing your press release gather all the pertinent information for the upcoming event using the
inverted pyramid
.
This information includes the following:
The Five W’s
When you hear “the five W’s,” you might flash back to middle school language arts class.
Just like back then, the five W’s are the pillars of storytelling and a good press release must tell a good story about your event to incentivize reporters and readers to learn more about it.
- Who?
Always make sure to highlight notable attendees, hosts, speakers, and anyone worthy of note.
- What?
Describe what the event is. Focus on key aspects of the event that are likely to spark public interest.
- When?
Give specifics regarding the time and date of the event.
- Where?
Where will the event be held? Make sure to give a specific location.
- Why?
This is also the so what? section. Answer why is the event being held and its importance to the sponsors or community you’re hosting it for
Quotes
Once you’ve got the Five W’s, go to the event leaders and ask for some quotes. Try to get quotes that sound natural, not ones where you can tell the speaker obviously didn’t say the words but poured over their keyboard for hours in search of the correct verbiage.
Simply have a conversation with an event leader, ask them if you can record, then later re-listen and pull out that golden quote that supports the press release.
When the Event Already Happened
If the event already happened, you’ll want to gather:
The Five W’s (Past Tense)
Yes, these five W’s are still relevant even after the event has passed, but you’ll need to take a different approach.
Think highlight reel:
- Who?
Who and how many attended the event.
- What?
What notable things happened at the event? There’s usually something interesting that happened that wasn’t initially planned for.
- When?
When did the event occur?
- Where?
Where did the event take place?
- Why?
Why was this event put on and what impact did it have?
Quotes in the Past Tense
Again, you’ll want to aim for natural-sounding quotes here. But instead of focusing on the good that could come from the event, get quotes about what happened and how it impacted the community.
Writing the Press Release for an Event
Now, let’s learn how to write a press release example for an event. When writing press releases, the number-one idea to keep in mind is to write like a journalist. Here are some rules to stick to:
- Write your press release like it’s a news article
– If it looks like news and smells like news, you might entice a journalist into turning your press release into a full-blown article. This also means familiarizing yourself with and writing in the AP Style that journalists use4. The less work a journalist will have to do to adapt your release to a news article, the better.
- Use active voice
– This is one of the longest-standing tenants of strong writing. For example, “The Young Man’s Choir hosted a Thanksgiving food drive” is stronger than “A Thanksgiving food drive was hosted by the Young Man’s Choir.”
- Avoid fluffy language
– Journalists are inundated with fluffy emails detailing the “Dozens of Eager Dog Lovers Attended the Wonderful Dog Grooming Expo on the Lush Forest Park Lawn” and “Incredible Turnout at the Annual Block Party Sparks Amazing New Friends and Neighbors.” Those emails get deleted without ever being opened. Don’t get deleted. Keep it simple. Cut the extra adjectives and adverbs and stick to the action.
- Provide a contact for the media to get additional information
– Most reputable media organizations will not follow up on a press release without doing at least a little actual reporting. By providing a contact number, the journalist can get in touch with you and ask follow-up questions.
What a Perfect Press Release Looks Like
Here is an example of press release format for an event you’ll want to follow:
- Start with your company’s name.
- Then add the contact information.
- Write the date of the release.
- Next, craft a catchy press release headline to grab the attention of your target audience.
- Write the body of your press release, using an inverted pyramid style of delivering information. That means you should organize the information by the most important to least important.
- Type ### at the bottom. Yes, that’s three pound signs—or hashtags if you’re Gen Z. That designates the end of the release.
There are also other
press release templates
that you can follow.
If you want to learn more about different formats, check out our resources on the
AP style press release format
and
how to cite a press release
.
Now Let’s Write a Sample Press Release
We’ll look at a set of facts about upcoming fictional (and a little fantastical) events then organize them into a model you can use when learning how to write an effective press release for an event.
Press Release Example for Events in the Future
Use this example to help you craft a press release for a future event.
The Facts
Exotic Evan’s Excellent Events, sometimes known as EEEE, will hold its first music festival, Moon Fest on the moon. The festival will be held on Oct. 25-27, 2030, at Griffith Park Observatory in Los Angeles, CA. The festival will feature headliners such as Drake, Taylor Swift, and The Rolling Stones, who will become the first band to perform on the moon. Attendees will be able to watch the performance on screens, captured from the observatory’s telescope.
Tickets will go on sale in January 2025. Over 250 bands will perform over the three-day festival. Beer and wine revenue will be donated to fight global warming. “This is one of the most important events to happen in Los Angeles,” Evan Riera, the owner, and CEO of EEEE said. “We’ll be able to fight global warming while seeing the first concert on the moon. How cool is that?”
Contact information is Mia Hawthorne, who can be reached at 555-555-5555 or
mia@EEEE.com
. The press release should go out on October 31, 2021.
Putting It All In A Press Release
Exotic Evan’s Excellent Events
Contact
Mia Hawthorne
555-555-5555
mia@EEEE.com
For release Oct. 31, 2021.
Rolling Stones to Perform
a
t New L.A. Festival
The Rolling Stones will become the first band to perform on the moon in 2030 at the first annual Moon Fest to be held in Los Angeles.
Exotic Evans Excellent Events (EEEE) will host Moon Fest Oct. 25-27, 2030, at Los Angeles’ famous Griffith Park Observatory. The Rolling Stones will headline the final night of the festival with a show performed from a stage on the moon. Their performance will be broadcast to screens at the festival grounds through the Griffith Park Observatory telescope.
Aside from the main event, Drake and Taylor Swift will headline the earlier nights, playing from planet Earth, and over 250 bands from across the world will perform during the daytime.
“This is one of the most important events to happen in Los Angeles,” Evan Riera, the owner, and CEO of EEEE said. “We’ll be able to fight global warming while seeing the first concert on the moon. How cool is that?”
Proceeds from beer and wine sold on the festival grounds will be donated to fight global warming.
Tickets go on sale in January 2025.
###
Press Release Example for Events in the Past
Next, let’s take a look at a fictional past event.
Facts
On Dec. 2, 2021, the Big Pines Animal Shelter held its 9th annual Fluffy Frenzy Festival in the shelter parking lot. Over 200 dogs and cats were adopted, including one giant tortoise named Rick Shelton. Rick is over 100 years old and was rescued from a wildfire in the 1980s in Oregon. He became a famous Instagram Animal, but when his owner could no longer care for him, he was given to the shelter. His new owner will give him many acres to roam free.
More than 1000 people attended the festival, and every animal was adopted. There is now a waitlist for new animals that come into the Big Pines Animal Shelter. “This is the ideal situation for an Animal Shelter. These amazing pets are in new homes before they even set foot inside our shelter!” Nancy Cabrera, the director of the animal shelter, said. Aside from animals, there were four local food trucks and craft beer to drink.
Sal Fredrickson can provide information about the event. He can be reached at 222-222-2222 or
salfred@BPAS.com
. For release. Dec. 3, 2021
Putting It All In A Press Release
Big Pines Animal Shelter
Contact
Sal Fredrickson
222-222-2222
salfred@BPAS.com
For release Dec. 3, 2021.
Fluffy Frenzy Festival Adopts Hundreds of Animals, Including Famous Tortoise
Over 200 cats and dogs found new homes at the Fluffy Frenzy Festival, including an Instagram-famous tortoise.
The Big Pines Animal Shelter held the ninth annual festival on Dec. 2. The event drew so many potential pet owners that the shelter not only adopted all of its housed animals but now has a waitlist for dozens of future pet owners.
Over 500 people attended the festival, playing with the animals while enjoying local craft beer and food trucks.
Among the fluffy friends adopted was one pet without fur — Rick Shelton, the Instagram-famous tortoise with more than a million followers that was the sole survivor of a massive wildfire in Oregon in the 1980s. Rick was given to the shelter when his owner could no longer care for him. A rancher adopted him and promised to give him dozens of acres to roam free.
“This is the ideal situation for an Animal Shelter. These amazing pets are in new homes before they even set foot inside our shelter!” Nancy Cabrera, the director of the animal shelter, said.
###
Both examples get straight to the point and present the information in a newsy way. They invite the journalist to read on by highlighting the most unique aspects of the events first while providing easy contact information if the journalist wants to find out more.
Get the Press Release Guidance You Need with ACCESSWIRE
Though you’ve learned how to write an event press release, you don’t have to tackle this task alone. ACCESSWIRE is here to help. With no hidden fees, ACCESSWIRE is one of the leading distributors of press releases in the industry.
Reach out to us for a
free consultation
.
Sources:
How Stuff Works. How Press Releases Work.
HubSpot.How to Write Press Release. (Free Press Release Templates + Examples).
Five Channels. Ten Sensational Press Release Examples (And How to Craft Your Own).
The SMB Guide. How to Write an AP Style Press Release.
Prowly. 13 Press Release Templates for Any Occasion.
