We’re weeks away from a general election and releases are being fired across to the Mercury’s politics desk from across the county. Very, very few of them  will ever see the light of day.

Why? It’s not because of bias, or laziness, or lack of space – it’s simply because they’re no use. Those crafted mailouts candidates proudly send out simply don’t cut the mustard in newsland.

There are a list of schoolboy errors as long as my arm. But my biggest gripe is this: Why are you sending out a press release in the first place?

Sounds like a stupid question, but why are you even sending out a press release? What’s wrong with picking up the phone to a reporter and giving them the essence of your story, and letting them weigh-up whether it’s newsworthy before wasting your time tapping out a quote and background information.

Perhaps you think a press release gives whatever you’re trying to say more gravitas. Journalists sit up and take notice  if a message is headed with ++PRESS RELEASE++ right? Wrong.

By sending out press releases you’re in crowded company. Government departments send out press releases, sure, but so do the firms behind I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter, Vileda floor mops, and Compare the Meerkat. A press release doesn’t bestow an otherworldly quality on what you have to say. It doesn’t make it any more likely to get into print.

If you really want to be effective, pick up the phone. It means you can have a chat with the reporter about how they plan to cover the election, and what stories and issues they’re looking into and how you can help.

And, if you’re really lucky, they might be able to tell you how to turn your press release – too often just an opinion on headed notepaper – into an actual news story.

Just saying…