In the midst of a rapidly evolving news cycle, breaking news alerts play an increasingly critical role in audience engagement. With polarized political landscapes, global pandemics, and natural disasters, the speed of alerts and their accuracy is more important than ever. As a result, media organizations are under increased pressure to deliver timely and relevant information to their audiences in an efficient manner.
Whether you’re an event planner or a journalist, knowing how to write an impactful alert is a key skill for reaching your target audience. Whether it’s a one-page announcement for local reporters or a press release distributed to the wire services, media alerts are an excellent way to inform journalists about your organization’s events and initiatives.
While a media advisory and a press release are similar, they differ in content. A media advisory is more like an invitation to your event, whereas a press release is the information you send to a reporter before the event.
When writing a media alert or press release, focus on the story angle that is most relevant to your audience and their community. It’s also important to include your contact information so that reporters can follow up with questions. Often times, alerts and releases are less than a page, so make sure to keep the length to a minimum.
When you create an alert, choose the delivery time that works best for you and click “Create.” After creating an alert, it will appear in the “My Alerts” field. You can edit or delete it by clicking the respective icon.