pr

Press release craft

• Headline ≤80 chars, active voice, the news itself — no "revolutionizes", "cutting-edge", "excited".
• Inverted pyramid: who/what/when/where/why in the first paragraph; a journalist should be able to cut from the bottom and lose nothing vital.
• Quotes carry opinion and stakes, never facts ("This ends the era of X" works; "We launched Y with Z features" is wasted quote space). One exec quote + one customer/partner quote.
• Boilerplate last: 2–3 sentences, no adjectives doing unpaid marketing work.
• Include the assets journalists need: numbers, a usable image/screenshot link, and a real contact.

Pitch craft

• ≤150 words. Subject line = the story, not "Press release: …". First line proves you read their work (their specific piece, not flattery). Then: the news, why their readers care, what you're offering (exclusive, data, interview), and the ask.
• Personalization is the whole game — a pitch that could be sent to anyone will be deleted by everyone.
• Never attach the release; link or paste-below. Never mass-CC. Follow up once.

Embargo vs exclusive vs wide

Exclusive: your strongest outlet gets it first — best for competitive beats; costs you breadth day one. Embargo: several outlets briefed with a lift time — best for launches needing simultaneous coverage; honor it religiously, one break by you kills trust for years. Wide: post-and-pitch for smaller news. Default for startups: exclusive to the best-fit trade outlet, wide follow-up next day.

Crisis communications

• First statement fast (target within the hour of it going public): acknowledge, state what you know and don't, commit to updates by a time — then meet that time. Silence gets filled by others.
• Facts only; no speculation, no blame, no "we take X seriously" without an action attached. Never "no comment" — it reads as guilt; "we're investigating and will update by 5pm" is the honest equivalent.
• One spokesperson, one message, all channels consistent. Legal reviews anything touching liability — but legal caution can't mean saying nothing.
• Apologize like a human when at fault: what happened, impact, fix, prevention. Non-apologies ("we regret any inconvenience") make second stories.

Thought leadership

A founder byline needs one arguable claim + evidence from lived operation — not content marketing in a trench coat. Pitch op-eds where the audience is, match the outlet's form, disclose affiliations.