By John | Contributor, CEO Medium | Business Media Strategist
With 9+ years in financial services and digital publishing
In my experience helping business owners get featured in publications like Yahoo Finance and CEO Medium, the ones who get covered aren’t always the biggest companies — they’re the ones who tell their story the right way.
Introduction
You just launched a new product. Signed a major partnership. Hired a key executive. Or maybe you simply want your business to stop being invisible.
A press release is often the first step — but most business owners write them wrong. They’re too long, too promotional, or structured in a way that makes journalists delete them before they finish the first paragraph.
In this guide, you will get the exact press release format working in 2026, a free template you can copy today, and real examples showing what a strong press release looks like versus a weak one.
Whether you are writing your first press release or your fiftieth, this will save you time and get you better results.
What Is a Press Release?
A press release is a short, structured document sent to journalists, editors, and media outlets to announce something newsworthy about your business. It follows a specific format designed to make a reporter’s job easier — the faster they can understand your story, the more likely they are to cover it.
Press releases are used to announce:
- New product or service launches
- Business milestones or funding rounds
- Executive hires or leadership changes
- Partnerships and acquisitions
- Events, awards, or recognition
- Company expansions or new locations
Done right, a single press release can earn you coverage in dozens of publications — driving traffic, building credibility, and putting your brand in front of thousands of potential customers.
The Standard Press Release Format in 2026
Every effective press release follows the same basic structure. Here is what each section does and why it matters:
1. Headline
Your headline is the most important line in the entire document. It needs to tell the full story in one sentence and make a journalist want to keep reading. Keep it under 100 characters. Write it like a news headline, not an advertisement.
Weak headline: ABC Company Announces Exciting New Product Launch
Strong headline: Boston Startup Raises $2M to Bring Same-Day Delivery to Independent Restaurants
2. Dateline
The dateline appears at the start of the first paragraph and includes your city and the release date.
Example: BOSTON, MA — March 18, 2026 —
3. Lead Paragraph
This is the most critical paragraph. It should answer the five W’s in two to three sentences: Who, What, When, Where, and Why. Journalists skim press releases and make decisions based on the first paragraph alone. If your lead is weak, nothing else matters.
4. Body Paragraphs (2–3 paragraphs)
Expand on the story with supporting details, context, and background. Include data or statistics if available. Explain why this news matters to your audience.
5. Quote
Include one or two quotes from a key executive or stakeholder. Quotes give the story a human voice and are often pulled directly into articles. Make them substantive — avoid generic lines like “We are excited about this opportunity.”
Weak quote: “We are thrilled to announce this new partnership and look forward to serving our customers.”
Strong quote: “Most small business owners have no idea how to get media coverage. This partnership gives them a clear, affordable path to getting featured in the publications their customers actually read.”
6. Boilerplate
A short paragraph at the end of every press release describing your company. Think of it as a two-sentence company bio. Keep it consistent across all your press releases.
7. Contact Information
Include a name, email address, and phone number for media inquiries. Journalists need a real person to reach if they want to follow up.
8. End Notation
Use three pound signs (###) centered at the bottom to signal the end of the press release. This is standard in journalism.
Free Press Release Template
Copy and fill in the blanks:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
[HEADLINE: Describe your news in one compelling sentence]
[CITY, STATE] — [DATE] — [Company Name] today announced [what happened]. [One sentence explaining why this matters or who it affects].
[Second paragraph: Expand on the announcement. Add context, background, and key details. Who is involved? What problem does this solve? What makes it significant?]
[Third paragraph: Supporting data, additional details, or secondary angle of the story.]
“[Quote from CEO or key executive that adds a human perspective and explains the significance of the announcement],” said [Name], [Title] of [Company Name].
[Optional: Second quote from a partner, client, or industry expert.]
About [Company Name] [Two sentences describing your company: what you do, who you serve, and where you are based.]
Media Contact: [Full Name] [Title] [Email Address] [Phone Number] [Website]
Real Press Release Example: Strong vs. Weak
Weak Example
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
XYZ Marketing Announces New Services
XYZ Marketing is pleased to announce that they are now offering new digital marketing services to their clients. The company has been in business for 10 years and is excited to expand. They offer SEO, social media, and content marketing. For more information, visit their website.
What is wrong with this: No news hook. No data. No quote. No explanation of why this matters. A journalist reads 200 press releases a day — this one ends up deleted in under five seconds.
Strong Example
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Marketronium Digital Agency Launches AI-Powered SEO Service That Cuts Client Reporting Time by 70%
WORCESTER, MA — March 18, 2026 — Marketronium launched SmartRank, an AI-powered SEO reporting platform that reduces the time clients spend on weekly performance reviews from four hours to under 45 minutes. The tool is now available to all small and mid-sized businesses in New England.
The platform pulls real-time data from Google Search Console, Google Analytics, and social media channels into a single dashboard, automatically generating plain-English summaries that non-technical business owners can act on immediately.
“Our clients were drowning in spreadsheets and disconnected reports,” said Victoria Wilson, CEO of Marketronium. “SmartRank turns a confusing pile of numbers into a clear action plan in minutes.”
About Marketronium: Marketronium.com is a Worcester-based digital agency serving over 200 small businesses across New England since 2015.
Media Contact: Victoria Wilson | info@marketronium.com | 508-000-0000
Why this works: Clear news hook, specific data point (70% reduction), strong quote, local angle, easy to follow format.
5 Common Press Release Mistakes to Avoid
- Writing it like an ad A press release is news, not marketing copy. Remove words like “revolutionary,” “industry-leading,” and “excited to announce.” Replace them with facts.
- Burying the lead Your most important information goes in the first paragraph — not the third. Most journalists will not read past the second paragraph if the first does not hook them.
- No clear news hook “Company updates website” is not news. “Company redesigns website after 60% of customers reported difficulty checking out on mobile” is news. Find the angle that makes your story relevant to people outside your company.
- Missing contact information If a journalist wants to run your story and cannot find your phone number, they will move on to the next release. Make it impossible to miss.
- Sending it to the wrong people A press release about a new restaurant in Austin should go to Austin food writers and local business journalists — not to a tech reporter in San Francisco. Research your targets before you send.
How to Distribute Your Press Release
Writing a strong press release is only half the job. You also need to get it in front of the right people.
Option 1: Direct outreach Build a media list of journalists and editors who cover your industry and location. Send personalized pitches rather than mass emails. This takes more time but produces better results.
Option 2: Press release distribution services Services like PR Newswire, Business Wire, and Globe Newswire distribute your release to thousands of media outlets automatically. Costs range from $150 to $1,000 per release depending on reach.
Option 3: Get featured in a business publication Rather than hoping a journalist picks up your release, you can work directly with business publications to secure a dedicated feature story. This gives you more control over the narrative, more depth of coverage, and a permanent, SEO-indexed article about your business.
At CEO Medium, we work with business owners to craft and publish feature stories that get them in front of the right audience — without the uncertainty of traditional press release distribution.
Final Thoughts
A press release is one of the most cost-effective tools a business owner has for earning media coverage. The format has not changed much in decades because it works. What has changed is how many press releases journalists receive every day — which means yours needs to be tighter, more specific, and more newsworthy than ever.
Use the template above as your starting point. Focus on the lead paragraph first. Make every word earn its place. And always ask yourself before you hit send: would a stranger outside my company care about this?
If the answer is yes, you have a story worth telling.
Want to take it a step further? CEO Medium helps business owners get featured in dedicated articles that reach thousands of readers in your target market.
