Speaking of Business: Tailor news releases to readers’ interests

Q: You stated in your column that the best way to get your press release printed is to write what is of interest to the readers as well as the editor of the paper. What I need to know is what is of interest to them? What do they prefer to print? Can you give us more detail?

A: A survey of managing editors and publishers from over 10,000 U.S. newspapers by News USA, shows new trends. Top editors want the following type of news:

* Health information of any kind is most popular, according to 64 percent of the respondents.

* Advice from senior executives came in second at 58 percent.

* Editorial cartoons were voted third most popular with a 54 percent rating. This came in 50 percent higher than requests for editorial comments.

* The most desired length is 250 words, said 55 percent of those polled.

* Graphics, cartoons and photos are in high demand by 76 percent, 62 percent and 58 percent respectively.

* Almost all editors welcome more consumer-oriented material.

Also when writing news releases, actually refer to them as news releases, not press releases. Why? Because press release are associated with PR people trying to publicize something and, consequently, the media does not see it as news.

Here are six general rules to follow to write better news releases:

1. Put the best, most important idea in your lead. Make it concise by writing crisp, short-worded sentences.

2. Be brief. Break up long sentences and keep paragraphs short.

3. Eliminate clutter. Look out for redundancy and extraneous facts.

4. Avoid generalities. Be as specific as possible.

5. Weed out adjectives and adverbs; understatements go a long way with the media.

6. Make sure it gets in the hands of the right person.

Prevent your news releases from being discarded before they are read. Remember editors and producers are inundated with releases daily. To help your information stand apart from the rest try doing the following:

* Send the release in an odd-shaped or themed envelope.

* Think big: giant-sized packages won’t be ignored.

* Deliver it in person if it is extremely special news.

Q: I have a great new idea that I believe is ready for market. I have had two offers to buy the technology, but only for a 10th of the real value. I am having a hard time getting people to see the real value of my new automotive technology. How can I get any person to give me top dollar for my technology?

A: In order to reach the market, somebody has to produce your technology, and somebody has to sell it. In fact, as your invention moves toward the market, your business skills will become more important than technical skills. You will need increasing quantities of time from people who have these skills, and, of course, you will need more money.

Most inventors are great at inventing and less skilled in the world of business. You will need to develop the market for the technology: The sooner you can prove out the technology’s key points to a potential buyer, the sooner you can sell the technology. What are the key points? Key points are obtained through market research and by developing technology-commercialization plans.

To help prepare your technology plan, you should find talent that has experience with startups and launching new technologies. You should seek out a marketing expert, a project manager and a technical engineer.

A marketing expert from the field in which your technology caters most to would be best. When looking for a project manager you will want to find an individual who has experience running a project and keeping people on task while staying under budget. As far as finding the best technical engineer, you want to find someone who can and will assist you in modifying your technology to best fit the key selling points to your potential buyers.

Remember the key here is to sell the technology, not reinvent the wheel. As we state on our Web site, get the product to market by using existing businesses and consultants. This will improve your time to market, reduce capital outlay, improve your return on your investment and will allow you, the inventor, to do what you do best — “invent,” rather than manage a company.

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