Press releases are a useful tool to get your chapter news out to the local media. When writing a press release, be sure to include the following:
- The name of that quarter’s selected charity.
- The amount donated.
- How the money will be used.
- A direct impact quote from the charity’s representative.
- A quote from someone within your chapter.
- A statement about your chapter (such as total amount donated within the community to date).
- “Since 2006, 100 Women Who Care Jackson has given back over $670,000 to our community.”
- Date, time and location of your next meeting.
- “Our next meeting will be held on May 5, 2016 at 7:30 pm in the Community Library Room located at 123 Main Street in Anytown, State.”
- A call to action for people reading the article to act upon (such as how they can learn more about your chapter, including how to join).
- “To learn more about 100 xx Who Care ABC, or become a member, please visit their website at www.xyz.org.”
- A contact within your chapter in case the media has questions and needs to contact you for more information.
- Include a hi-resolution photograph from the check presentation which includes the names of each person in the photo, their roles and where each person is from (as the publication may expand the reach of the story to each person’s geographic location).
For a good tutorial on how to write a press release, all you have to do is Google the topic and select between the many articles, how to’s and samples provided. WikiHow has a good article along with samples that you can utilize.
For more in-depth bulleted hints, please check out notes taken (and graciously shared) from a 2013 conference that was attended by members of the North Suburban Chicago chapter leaders on How to Write and Distribute a Press Release.