I’ll be honest: most press releases are terrible. They’re written in corporate-speak, buried under jargon, and announce things nobody cares about. Journalists delete 95% of them without reading past the subject line.

AI won’t fix a boring announcement. But it can help you write a press release that’s clear, newsworthy, and formatted the way journalists expect — in about 15 minutes instead of 2 hours.

The Press Release Prompt

“Write a press release for [company name] announcing [what’s being announced]. Key details: [who, what, when, where, why it matters]. Target media: [industry publications, local news, tech press, etc.]. Include: headline (under 10 words, newsworthy angle), subheadline, dateline, lead paragraph (who/what/when/where in 2 sentences), 2-3 body paragraphs with supporting details, a quote from [person, title], boilerplate ‘About [Company]’ section, and media contact information. AP style. Under 500 words.”

What Makes It Newsworthy

Before you write anything, ask: why would a journalist care? AI can help you find the angle:

“I want to write a press release about [your announcement]. Help me find the newsworthy angle. Consider: Is there a trend this fits into? Is there data or a statistic that makes this significant? Does this affect a specific audience in a meaningful way? Is there a human interest story here? Give me 3 possible angles, ranked by newsworthiness.”

The best angle is rarely “we launched a product.” It’s “this product solves a problem that affects X million people” or “this is the first time anyone has done Y.”

The Quote That Doesn’t Sound Like a Robot

Press release quotes are notoriously bad. “We’re excited to announce…” is not a quote — it’s filler. AI can do better:

“Write a quote for [person name, title] about [announcement]. The quote should: sound like something a real person would actually say (not corporate-speak), add insight that isn’t in the rest of the press release, and be under 40 words. Avoid: ‘excited,’ ‘thrilled,’ ‘pleased,’ ‘leveraging,’ and ‘synergy.’”

The Pitch Email

The press release is only half the battle. The pitch email to journalists matters more:

“Write a pitch email to a [beat] journalist about this press release: [paste or summarize]. The email should: have a compelling subject line (under 8 words), open with why this matters to their readers (not why it matters to us), summarize the news in 2 sentences, include one compelling data point or angle, and end with an offer to provide more information or arrange an interview. Under 100 words total. Journalists get 200 emails a day — this needs to stand out.”

Distribution Strategy

AI can also help plan your distribution:

“I’m distributing a press release about [topic]. My target audience is [audience]. Suggest: 5 specific publications or journalists I should pitch (with reasoning), the best day/time to send, 3 social media posts to accompany the release (LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook), and a follow-up email template for journalists who don’t respond within 3 days.”

Common Press Release Mistakes

1. Burying the news. The first sentence should contain the announcement. Not background. Not context. The news.
2. Writing for your CEO, not journalists. Your CEO wants to see the company praised. Journalists want a story. Write for journalists.
3. No data. Numbers make press releases credible. “Revenue grew” is weak. “Revenue grew 40% year-over-year to $10M” is a story.
4. Too long. 500 words max. Journalists won’t read more. If they want details, they’ll ask.
5. Sending to everyone. A targeted pitch to 10 relevant journalists beats a blast to 1,000 irrelevant ones.

The Realistic Expectation

Most press releases don’t get coverage. That’s normal. But a well-written, well-targeted press release with a genuine news angle has a much better chance than the corporate fluff that fills most journalists’ inboxes. AI helps you clear the quality bar faster — the strategy and targeting are still on you.

Related reading: AI for Case Studies — Write Client Stories Faster · AI for Webinar Promotion — Emails, Ads, and Landing Pages · 15 ChatGPT Prompts for Content Marketers

🛠️ Need email subject lines for your pitch? Try our Email Subject Line Generator.