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Examples of Great Quotes for a Stand out Press Release

At JournoLink we have found that many businesses often struggle to construct impactful quotes, for use in a press release. To help you create an excellent quote that will help your business, stand out when you are launching a new service or project, we decided to put together a list of great examples from our customers.

Writing an engaging quote for your press release can be difficult.  Businesses often throw a quote into a press release that has no relation to the news they are sharing. Adding a quote that does not enhance your press release is pointless.

Quotes can bring the human angle to a press release – so they need to add interest and value. If your business is sending out a press release to announce a relaunch, for example, a classic mistake would be a quote like ‘We’re delighted to announce our relaunch. It not only needs to sound good, but it needs to add something of value to the story. People to know why you are relaunching, and how it will be of benefit to them.

Quotes should always be used to add interest to a press release; people want it to feel personal rather than just another corporate soundbite.

A quote should not be used for the ins and outs of what you want to say, such as what you are doing, or when, save that for the content.

Use it to bring a personal or emotional angle to your story to really interest readers in what you have to say.

Because you might need some concrete examples we have put together a list of quotes from some of our Journolink customers that really helped them put their business on the map.  They can be used to help you craft your own insightful, attention-grabbing press release.

Share Why You are Doing Something to Personalise Your Story

Explaining the why of your story in a quote can be useful as long as you keep it succinct. It will make your story look more personal and engaging.

Some examples below:

Why Share Your Story Now?

Sometimes the reason why is not easily explainable in a short quote. A more interesting angle can be to explain why now.

At JournoLink we have always found it to be a big plus to add some context and some external elements to your story. It makes it feel more realistic and engaging and actually connected to what is going on in the market. This is what journalists are looking for:  stories that are connected to the news and to the market.

If your business has done something or produced something that is related to a topic that is all over social media, capitalise on that and share it in a press release.

By explaining why you’re doing what you’re doing now, you immediately bring context to your press release.

See the examples below:

Some of the Different Types of Quotes for PR

1- The problem-based quote

The ‘issue-based’ quote is one of the simplest to write as it works well to connect your business with journalists and other businesses, as everyone likes problems to be solved. 

What is the issue that you managed to resolve? If you can relate it to the sector or market you’re operating in, it will help the journalist visualise the big picture. If the journalist can see the story visually, they are more likely to write about your company.

Including statistics and reporting data can enhance this type of quote.

See examples here:

2- The emotional quote

We cannot emphasise enough how using emotion in your press release can help with engagement and drive attention to your PR. People respond strongly to genuine emotions being expressed, so capitalise on that when including quotes in your press release.

Quotes are ideal for this because they bring a human angle to your story. Including emotive words or sharing a personal experience will help you trigger empathy from the readers. People appreciate honesty.

For instance, if you send a release about the GDPR, a good quote would be around this: “Over half of our time is now spent with lawyers working out how to comply - our business is near collapse”. The world ‘collapse’ will make an impression and people will feel empathy for you.

Here are two more examples:

3- The assessment-based quote

Another way to write a quote that stands out from the crowd is to base it on an assessment, ideally an assessment that you have carried out. If you cannot do this, then use a generic assessment instead.

Using an assessment based-quote will legitimise what you are saying, and will better reinforce that this is a factually based quote. A well-written press release should help the journalist visualise a story.

Here are three good examples:

4- The figure of speech: Use an analogy or a metaphor

Using a figure of speech in a quote can be an effective means of attracting attention from journalists as it is both relatable and will make it easier to visualise. Which is very good if you are writing an article or blog.

Journalists and bloggers often shorten quotes to make them catchier, so a metaphor or analogy can help readers understand your point quickly.

 Look at the great example below.

5- The inspirational quote

At JournoLink we have found, that an inspiring quote added to your press release is an excellent way to arouse empathy and humanise your story. Use words that will have an impact on your reader, talk about your achievements, your struggles, or even talk about universal themes. You want your quote to connect with the reader, and inspire them to check out your product or service. Make it relatable.

See examples below:

6- The humoristic or punchy quote

Don’t hold back from being a little cheeky when writing a quote. Journalists prefer people who have an opinion to share as opposed to a  dull statement of no interest. Sometimes introducing humour or sarcasm can make the difference. If you have a funny video, related to your quote, you can also include that, as videos have been shown to increase engagement.

See examples of humorous quotes below:

A good quote can make all the difference in a press release, so make it count! Remember that your quote should always add value to your content.

Make it memorable and relatable, so always use good quotes for a standout press release.

If your quote adds nothing to your press release, or can be removed without having any effect on the PR, then it is not the right quote.

Play about with quotes until you get one that makes your press release sing!

If you want to feel inspired, take a look at some of the companies we have worked with.

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