PR writing workshops
Get the word out through media and blogger relations
“I truly believe that one tip I learned from Ann has enhanced the interest of the media at least threefold, as we received better media coverage than expected at several events.”
— Carl Walton, U.S. Postal Service
Find out what others say about Ann’s PR writing workshops
Reach bloggers, journalists and readers through media relations with these writing workshops:
- How to Write the News Release 2.0. Get posted on portals, help Google find your site, reach readers online and more
- Think Like a Reporter. Make your copy more relevant to your reporters — and to your reporters’ readers
- Anatomy of a Press Release. Are your media relations materials among the 3 percent to 45 percent that actually work?
-
PR writing review. Analyze and improve your own copy
Each of these modules is an hour and a half long.
Full-day workshop = four modules
Half-day workshop = two modules
Check out Ann’s other writing modules.
Learn about Ann’s most popular workshops.
Mix and match modules to serve your team’s unique needs.
Want to help your team members polish their skills? Bring a Wylie Communications Inc. writing workshop to your workplace or conference. Contact Ann Wylie for details.
Need to sell your training program to management? Check out our white paper, “Why Invest in Training?”
How to Write the News Release 2.0
Get posted on portals, help Google find your site, reach readers online and more
“Valuable ideas and insights into current press release writing styles and new methods of delivering pitches and news releases.”
— Vikki Ford, staff writer, Truckee Meadows Community College
Find out what others say about Ann’s PR writing workshops
In this session, you’ll learn:
- How to optimize your releases for search engines as well as for readers
- Why jargon, buzzwords and other gobbledygook hurts communication worse online than in print
- How to craft links that help Google find your Website and that work for most news portals
- How long your online release should be
- Where to put links — and what to link to — to make the most of your SEO opportunities
- How to write better headlines, decks and leads for your online release
Think Like a Reporter
Make your copy more relevant to your reporters — and to your reporters’ readers
“I walked away with a simple shift in thinking that automatically changed the way I approach a piece.”
— Kyle Christopherson, Minnesota Supreme Court
Find out what others say about Think Like a Reporter
Two-thirds of editors surveyed by Thomas Rankin Associates said that fewer than half the releases they receive are relevant to their publication. No wonder most news releases wind up in the trash!
In this session, you’ll learn how to make your pitch or release more relevant to the media — and to the media’s audience members. Specifically, you’ll learn how to:
- Make your story idea more important, valuable and rewarding to the media’s audiences by using a simple, four-step process
- Apply the formula readers use to determine what to read — and what to throw away
- Tap two rewards of reading to boost interest in your story
- Go beyond “new and improved”: Find out what editors are really looking for in your pitch or release
- Answer the reader’s No. 1 question
- Make a two-minute perspective shift that will increase the chance that the editor will run your story
- Push tantalizing reader benefits to the top of your message with a simple translation process
- Use a three-letter word that can focus your copy on the relevance to the reporter’s reader
- Nudge your material closer to the media’s interest by answering the audience’s question: “WIITM?”
Anatomy of a Press Release
Are your media relations pieces among the 3 percent to 45 percent that actually work?
“Put me one step ahead of everyone else writing press releases and trying to get media coverage.”
— Katie Haney, McMurry, Inc.
Find out what others say about Anatomy of a Press Release
Depending on which study you look at, 55 percent to 97 percent of all news releases sent to media outlets are never used, according to Dennis L. Wilcox and Lawrence W. Nolte’sPublic Relations Writing & Media Techniques.
No wonder! Most releases written today are old-fashioned, formulaic and dull. In this session, you’ll learn to create press releases that are among the 3 percent to 45 percent that actually get the word out.
You’ll walk away from this program with checklists, formats, do’s and don’ts and rules of thumb for effective PR writing based on the latest research. They didn’t teach you this in PR 101!
Specifically, you’ll learn:
- How to take advantage of online distribution to get your release posted on portals, help Google find your site, and reach customers, clients and other stakeholders online
- The most important word in your headline and how to make sure you’re not burying it
- Two old-fashioned, unsophisticated, formulaic lead approaches to avoid (chances are, you’ve used one of them this week)
- How long your release should be
- Why getting the gobbledygook out is even more important online than in print
- How to optimize your releases for search engines and human readers
PR writing review
Analyze and improve your own copy
“Ann is one of the few people who can actually teach something substantial about writing.”
— George Stenitzer, vice president of Corporate Communications, Tellabs
Find out what others say about Ann’s writing workshops
Length: Two or more modules
Prerequisites: Think Like a Reporter, Anatomy of a Press Release
Sorry! This program is available for in-house workshops only
In the crunch of writing headlines and meeting deadlines, it sometimes seems as if there’s not enough time to pause and consider how you’re doing. A writing review is a great opportunity for reflection and improvement. In this critique, you’ll:
- Cement the ideas you learn in the workshop by applying them immediately
- Get personal feedback with specific ideas you can use to improve your work immediately
- Gain valuable insights on your work from your peers
- Learn to analyze and improve others’ writing — the best skill you can develop for improving your own work
