Beeld's hot tips on press releases

"Given that the content is newsworthy, the next essential ingredient is a trustworthy relationship," said Peet. "If you build a great relationship with a journalist, and provide him with interesting material, your story is more likely to be published - a long-lasting relationship without credible and worthy stories is unsustainable."

He told the gathering that badly written press releases go straight to the 'delete' file; moreover, people who send poorly written stories lose any chance of receiving further attention to their e-mails. Information should be factual, catchy, to the point, and tailored to suit that publication's readers and style.

PR practitioners should only send text in their e-mail messages and never attachments, and always insert their name, e-mail address, landline and mobile numbers in the release.

Ingrid said she received over 300 e-mails a day and did not have time to wade through attachments and photographs. "Keep press releases brief, to the point, and no more than two or three paragraphs - please don't send pictures. If we wish to pursue the article, a journalist will make contact, requesting further information and, if needed, visuals."

She passed on the following tips for press release writers: the subject line in the e-mail is a vital tool - identify in it the content of your message; describe whether it is an invitation or product launch, with dates and times, or a succinct line containing the specifics of the story; contact the relevant journalist in lieu of sending all correspondence directly to the news desk.

While recognising that clients enjoyed sending the entire company history to journalists, public relations professionals should educate them on the time pressures journalists faced and the vast numbers of press releases they received daily.

Beeld has over 27 individual products catering to the Afrikaans market.