While there are several types of press releases (such as the general news release, event release, product press release, financial/earnings releases and, more recently, the social media release), press releases very often have several traits of their structure in common. This helps journalists separate press releases from other PR communication methods, such as pitch letters or media advisories. Some of these common structural elements include:

• Headline — used to grab the attention of journalists and briefly summarize the news.
• Dateline — contains the release date and usually the originating city of the press release.
• Introduction — first paragraph in a press release, that generally gives basic answers to the questions of who, what, when, where and why.
• Body — further explanation, statistics, background, or other details relevant to the news.
• Boilerplate — generally a short "about" section, providing independent background on the issuing company, organization, or individual.
• Close — in North America, traditionally the symbol "-30-" appears after the boilerplate or body and before the media contact information, indicating to media that the release is ending. A more modern equivalent has been the "###" symbol. In other countries, other means of indicating the end of the release may be used, such as the text "ends".
• Media Contact Information — name, phone number, email address, mailing address, or other contact information for the PR or other media relations contact person.

Letters are usually short, as they must sometimes fit in a limited space. Many newspapers require that letters to the editor be under a certain number of words, often 250 or 350 word limit, and may attach other conditions, such as prohibiting anonymous letters, letters that contain misinformation, are meant to libel someone, are obscene or in poor taste, or meant to resolve a personal conflict. In at least one case, a publication redefined its guidelines and use of the form, based on the evolving needs of the publication and the community it served. Other frequent conditions include limiting writers to one published letter within a specified time period (often, one per 30 days) or limiting the publication of letters on controversial topics after a certain time period, especially if the debate takes an emotional toll on the involved parties.

Public Service Announcements (PSAs) provide a small amount of information in an upbeat, conversational style. PSAs may reach folks who are not regularly reading the local print media. They can be used either to advertise your event or to provide more "timeless" information on Zero Waste. Many radio stations will run PSAs free-of-charge. One drawback to PSAs is that one often does not know exactly when the PSAs will be aired, if at all.

How To Do It

Follow these steps when you want to use PSAs to publicize an event:

Step 1 (Four weeks before event): Contact area radio stations on which you wish to air your PSA. Confirm the format for submitting the PSA, including their preferred length in words or seconds. Determine the cost, if any (most public stations and some private stations will air community announcements for free, as long as the events are open to the general public). Determine when you can expect the PSA to air after the station receives it, and ask how far in advance of airing the PSA the station needs to receive it.

Step 2 (Three weeks before event-or earlier, if the station requires more lead-time): Write your PSA. Read it out loud and listen to how it sounds when spoken. Edit it. Make sure it includes relevant information about the event, and include a phone number that listeners can call should they have questions.

Step 3 (Two and a half weeks before event): Submit PSA to station and ask when it will start to be aired.

Step 4 (Two weeks before event until event): Listen for PSA at intended air time or call station periodically to ask when the PSA aired. If the PSA does not seem to have been aired (or is obviously aired at odd hours when no one will hear it), contact the radio station to inquire.

Tips

• Keep your PSAs legible and use sentences that flow well and allow easy interpretation by the reader.
• Read your PSAs out loud to check readability.
• Consider submitting two or three different versions of PSAs that contain essentially the same information-most radio stations like a few options with different lengths!
• Use a catchy opening sentence that poses an important question related to the subject or which states a relevant and intriguing fact.
• Don't include too much date, time, and place information that listeners won't retain.
• Provide a contact phone number and repeat it at the end of the announcement.