How many words to write in your media release

The perfect word count for a media release is easy: whatever the editor asks for. But when you plan to send your news release to a range of industry publications, there are some rules of thumb to follow.

If you have a particular publication or magazine in mind for your press release, look through an edition and see how many words are normally devoted to particular types of stories, then check with the editor before you begin writing.

Ideally, media releases should be tweaked to suit each publication’s style, but this is not always realistic. When writing a single release for distribution to several editors, WriteRelease’s journalists stick to some pretty common guidelines for articles in industry or specialist publications.

New product releases
Try to keep new product releases under 300 words. Anything longer than that is likely to be shortened by the editor – who won’t pause to consult you about what can and can’t be cut.

Opinion pieces and case studies
Case studies about customer applications and opinion pieces about industry developments should be around 600 words. Simple language in short sentences will help you keep the word count down while communicating your message very clearly. Few readers of industry magazines can devote either the time or attention required to finish longer stories.

Technical articles
Because you are offering the reader useful, detailed information, technical articles can be as long as 1200 words but be careful – the higher word count is not a licence to waffle. Keep it very much to the point.