A boilerplate for a press release is a company description that caps a well-crafted press release copy. To write a good boilerplate, you need to provide a summary of your business and its mission, vision, goals, and key accomplishments. This information must be articulated in an informative and engaging way to capture the attention of journalists and consumers.
In this piece, we’ll dive deeper into the topic, exploring the question, “What is a boilerplate in a press release?”, and sharing our top tips on writing a quality boilerplate.
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What Is a Press Release Boilerplate?
In public relations, a press release boilerplate is the brief, standardized, and consistent “About Us” statement that offers journalists and your target audience a high-level overview of your company.
The boilerplate is a one-paragraph description that usually goes at the end of a press release and intends to offer critical details about what your organization does. A well-written boilerplate for a press release adds credibility to the article and leaves space for you to include a call-to-action (CTA) and a link to your website.
Components of a Press Release Boilerplate
- Company History
- Company Logo and Tagline
- Aspirations
- Key Data in Numbers
- Unique Selling Proposition
- Benefits and the Market You Serve
- Website URL and CTAs
Company History
You can mention the founding date of your company and include what motivated its inception. If you have been in the business for a while, you can bank on this detail to showcase longevity and credibility.
Company Logo and Tagline
Your signature catchphrase and logo are some of the fundamental elements of your brand personality. They are your brand’s identifying attributes without looking or reading any further and they should make it to your boilerplate.
Aspirations
Stating what your business is about is essential for your boilerplate. Ensure you make it as straightforward as possible. Imagine you are introducing your company to someone who has never heard of your brand. The person should instantly understand your company's vision and plans in an easily digestible way.
Key Data in Numbers
Like awards and other recognitions, impressive metrics make a PR boilerplate stand out. If you are a startup entering your first anniversary in the business with a milestone surpassing your target number of clients, you should include it in your PR.
If you are seasoned in the industry and have thousands of employees, take pride in it and let it be known in your boilerplate. After all, this segment of your PR is reserved for you to show off your company achievements so backing them by numbers is essential.
Unique Selling Proposition
Crafting a boilerplate for a press release enables you to articulate what sets your brand apart from competitors. Be direct and transparent about the unique qualities of your company that distinguish it from others offering similar products or services.
Benefits and the Market You Serve
Describe how your products or services can add value to your customers’ lives. Let readers know the benefits that come with your offers.
Website URL and CTAs
Include the link to your company website toward the end of the boilerplate press release text, alongside your preferred CTAs. This is an efficient way to drive traffic to your web pages, where users can learn more about your organization. It is an excellent start to generating qualified leads and making successful conversions.
Tips on Writing an Effective Press Release Boilerplate
Writing a boilerplate for a press release doesn’t necessarily differ from other types of writing. However, the language requires a certain level of finesse and attention to several things.
Here are our tips on writing an effective and attention-grabbing boilerplate:
- Header comes first: Before you start writing the text for the boilerplate, you need to write a header. Most companies go for “About [Name of Company]”.
- Make a plan: Determine what information you’d like to include in the boilerplate. After that, think about the angle you will use based on the goal of your press release.
- Focus on your brand: Align the tone of voice of your PR boilerplate with your overall brand voice. This showcases cohesiveness and consistency. However, don’t go overboard — keep it simple and don’t give out too much information. Instead, focus on your product or service benefits.
- Highlight awards and milestones: Include useful statistical data, such as revenue, client count, employee count, geographical coverage, number of people served, and years in business. This helps customers learn more about your relevance and legitimacy.
- Encourage interaction with your brand: Add your contact details. In addition to your website, include your social media user handles and other B2C communication channels. All of this should go in the final CTA paragraph.
- Edit: Don’t forget to double check your boilerplate. Go over it meticulously and ensure that all information is up to date before publishing.
These are the most basic steps you should follow. Any additional actions like using press release SEO or regularly reviewing your boilerplate for a press release and updating it as necessary will only aid in sharing your brand’s story.
Press Release Boilerplate Template
The boilerplate for a press release is consistently uniform. While the news may change, this section of the article remains constant, granted with a few minor tweaks over time to align with the brand.
That said, a boilerplate press release has a certain template every company uses. Generally, the layout is as follows:
About [Name of company]
[Name of company] was established in [year] and has since [highlight a noteworthy achievement of the company]. Today, [point out your services or top-selling products]. Our mission is still [outline the brand’s goal and mission + link it to the number of employees and/or awards to showcase your growth]. For more information, contact us at [link to main site].
[Address]
[Contact information of the communications team including email/phone/social media channels]
Press Release Boilerplate Examples
To show you just how easy it is to create a stand-out boilerplate for a press release, take a look at these examples of Visa and Apples’ boilerplates:
Visa
In only 5 sentences, Visa has created an outstanding boilerplate example. It tells you everything you need to know but doesn’t just share information about the company; it also highlights great achievements and prompts you to learn more on its website.
Apple
Apple showcases an excellent boilerplate example that starts with the company’s background, circles around its top products, and concludes with its achievements and goals in an easy-to-digest way.
Purpose of a PR Boilerplate
Journalists have innumerable press releases placed on their desks daily. According to data, 43% of top-tier publishers receive 5 to 50 pitches weekly, and the remaining 57% are greeted with 50 to 500 pitches weekly.
A boilerplate for a press release plays a huge role in your chances of getting notices and should offer consistency that makes it recognizable to journalists and publishers.
These are the goals an excellent press release boilerplate aims to achieve:
- Brand recognition
- Underscoring accomplishments
- Conveying company vision
- Drawing in consumers
- Encouraging readers to take action
- Searchability
- Reusability
Brand Recognition
An effective boilerplate helps you build brand recognition as your company expands in its industry and reaches a larger market. Your brand will gain more popularity among your target audiences and achieve a more diverse outreach through a consistent “About Us” section in your press releases.
Underscoring Accomplishments
Highlight your business accomplishments in your PR boilerplate to help boost credibility and earn the confidence of your target audiences. Publishers are likelier to take in your pitch when you emphasize your company’s accolades and milestones.
Similarly, investors and prospective customers will view your organization in a positive light. They will be more inclined to transact and work with you when you underline your organization’s notable achievements.
Conveying Company Vision
Showcasing your company goals will elevate your status in your industry. This will demonstrate your culture, contributions to consumers on the market, and commitment to delivering excellent quality. Journalists, publishers, investors, and potential clients will react positively to this display of dedication — the way they do to your achievements.
Drawing in Consumers
A well-drafted boilerplate for a press release can help retain existing customers and attract new ones because it lets them skim through what your enterprise does and offers. With the short yet solid information in your PR boilerplate, they can quickly evaluate your business and determine if it will be worthy of engaging with your company.
Encouraging Readers to Take Action
Presenting a strong CTA in the boilerplate section of your PR can influence the subsequent actions of consumers. It can persuade them to sign up for your newsletters and never miss an update. Making a donation, placing a phone call to inquire, and buying your products or subscribing to your services are other possible CTA options.
Searchability
Another one of the practical benefits of a standardized boilerplate press release for your company is that it leads to easier searchability. A uniform boilerplate is an excellent tool for public relations and marketing since it enables publishers and journalists to find your other publicly available documents easily. Consistency of the “About Us” segment in your handouts and other bulletin items makes their research on your business smoother and more convenient.
Reusability
Besides demonstrating consistency in each press release, a reusable boilerplate is advantageous for your company’s copywriters — all they need to do is perform minimal modifications when necessary.
A reusable boilerplate allows you to focus your time, effort, and other resources on the customized content of the press release and your promotional initiatives.
Writing a Press Release Boilerplate Conclusion
A boilerplate is a critical section of PR that piques journalists' interest, convincing them to write about you and market your business in their publications.
Writing a remarkable boilerplate for a press release involves balancing business data and captivating creativity. It should be coherent and uniform across your copies, from your website to your socials, while remaining flexible enough to be adjusted quickly when needed.
A professional PR agency can also help you with this process, so we advise looking for the right agency to partner with for your project.
