How to Write a Press Release for your New App or Mobile Game

Although app developers always have the option to hire a PR Agency, most decide to write it themselves to cut back on marketing costs. That’s perfectly understandable. Usually, you’d have to pay a few thousand dollars per month to hire the services of a good publicist. But if you’re going to write one, you should make sure you’re doing it right. Below we are sharing some good tips on how to dramatically increase your chance of getting published and picked up by bloggers, reviewers and journalists.

All press releases must have an objective, which basically answers what the press release is all about. The objective should be to steer the PR in the right direction; it avoids confusion among your readers, and dictates the tone, style, and information you share in your press release. Simply put, it is the oar to your boat. Even if you want to get to the destination, you can never reach it unless you have a sound and specific goal for the copy. An app press release may be about:

• The new app
• The updated version of the app
• The price or change of it
• New features
• Achievements (this is one of the best PRs you can write)
• Reviews.

Begin with a punchy title

How do you shop for books? More often than not, before you start reading or skimming through the pages, you pick books based on their titles, and you always navigate on those with fancy, compelling, and intriguing headlines.

The process is similar to press releases. The first essential element the readers see is the headline. In fact, it’s the biggest part of the copy, written in headline style and set in bold. If you can’t get this right, you can’t compel the audience to read the first paragraph. But how do you write a good headline?

1. It should summarize the entire press release and meet your objective.
2. The headline must be clear or precise.
3. Keep it short, but not so short that it sounds ambiguous or too rushed.
4. Create test copies. Write the copy in different headlines, send them to focus or core groups, and determine which of the headlines generates the highest open rate.

Make sure it’s current

A press release may sound like a marketing material, but it’s also news; as such, it should be relevant and timely. Create a press release, therefore, in the present tense. It must also be objective, which means avoiding any marketing hype. There’s a better venue for that.

Be precise

Didn’t we say you skip the marketing hype? This means you have to be precise or accurate with the information you share. Nevertheless, you can maintain the PR’s credibility and increase its persuasive power by supporting your claims with facts. Here are some elements you can add to your PR to corroborate facts:

• Expert and user reviews
• Statistics
• Graph
• Infographics
• Tables
• Ratings.

End with a call to action

We can’t tell you how many times we’ve read well-written PRs that force us to ask “So what should I do?” Don’t think that readers are dumb—they’re definitely not! However, the audience would also want to be sure about what you want them to do with the press release. Do you want them to download the app? Subscribe to your newsletter? Send their reviews? Your call to action is the perfect manifestation of your objective; so, in writing it, be as specific as you can. For example, if you want them to call, add your phone number. If you want them to visit a page, give the full URL of your site.

Include PR contact details

This simple omission can mean a lost opportunity for you. It’s very common among journalists and publishers to contact your department or office before they feature the PR. They first verify the authenticity or pieces of information in the copy. They may also be gathering more data, especially if something new has developed that has not been included in the latest PR. Share as many details as you can, including the office address and e-mail address. Write them according to which one you prefer the most.

Insider tips:

1. Add links to your PR. Include any link that points to the app store, review, or any file or page that can further improve your level of authority and credibility.

2. Include videos and images. Optimize them by adding alt tag in images and social media sharing buttons for the videos.

3. Use your app keywords in the PR. Since search engines “read” from top to bottom, keyword prominence is important. Make it a point to add them in the PR title, as well as in the first few words of the first paragraph. Then, pepper them all over the article. Don’t forget to use relevant keywords, too. For example, if your main app keyword is a calorie counter app, you can complement it with the terms “diet”, “exercise”, “diet tracker”, etc.

4. Keep it short. Ideally, the press release should be at least 300 words, but rarely more than 800 words. Divide a long piece into different sections for easy reading. When you have more info, attach it. It could be a report, e-book, or something similar.