Business Tips
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.
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:
"We hope that making the loan's interest-free for a month will provide that extra bit of breathing space. Quick action like this is needed to safeguard jobs and develop new business opportunities."
Just Loans Group
"This is a great brand to bring under the Bigjigs Toys banner and offers us potential in all the markets we serve. The Tidlo range will bolster our core offering and further defines our footprint in retail."
Bigjigs Toys
"We could see a big ambition to grow the business, but a need for capital to facilitate it. By working with James from ABN Amro we’ve been able to make the MBO possible and together with the follow on growth finance through NPIF, there’s a positive outlook for the year ahead and it’s been a great start to the year for the company."
Business Enterprise Fund
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.
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By explaining why you’re doing what you’re doing now, you immediately bring context to your press release.
See the examples below:
"Storytelling renaissance is happening right now, particularly with stories embracing women empowerment. We’re talking non-digital, immediate, face to face, adult and edgy. It’s no wonder these performances will tickle your funny bone, send shivers up your spine, and then warm your heart up all over again"
Instant Teamwork
"After observing the evolution of the healthcare sector, we decided that now was the right time to develop a new range of services in order to respond better to the industry needs."
Business Enterprise Fund
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:
"We reached out to 300 of our tenant users in the UK and discovered that 98% are worried about the rising cost of living. This completely justifies paying someone's rent in December, when outgoings are probably higher than any other month."
Vaboo
"We expect Christmas to be one of the busiest times of the year because of the mad rush and hectic nature of the season. During December, picking a restaurant can be tricky when organising a pre-Christmas dinner with friends, and the KtchUp app simplifies this process "
Ktchup
"The idea came to me after seeing all the Christmas adverts for processed sugary treats for Christmas pudding and dessert. I thought why couldn’t there be healthier, more nutritious version of the trifle for people that don’t want to fall of the wagon at Christmas time and using Naturelly as a pouring jelly was perfect for this brilliantly healthy layered dessert"
Naturelly
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:
"We are delighted to have won the regional finals & be highly commended in the nationals at the Wedding Industry Awards. It is a fantastic achievement to be not simply awarded but equally voted for by our happy customers. We have been successful in our category Finishing Touches for three years running now and to win at the national finals in London has left us over the moon."
Venue Lighting
"Handwriting gives physical form to our thoughts and emotions, it is profound how important being able to write well is to our learning journey and future trajectory in life, as strong literacy skills open the doors to a productive economic future."
Start-Bee
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:
"The days of the old-fashioned sales meeting are over. You can no longer turn up to a meeting with your PowerPoint and your pitch, expecting 20 minutes of your prospect’s undivided attention while you list your product features one by one. These days, it’s all about the sales conversation – and that conversation is all about your customer."
iPresent
"Whether you’re the dad of a six-year-old who has just started to use the family tablet or a 14-year-old with their own connected smartphone and console, this is an issue that affects us all. But while the internet can seem scary for children, our guide recognises that it can also be a huge force for good. Children love to go online. That’s why it is about digital resilience, not unenforceable rules or draconian censorship."
DaddiLife
"examining UK productivity growth on a rolling 10-year basis suggests that the recent UK performance has been among the weakest since official records began and may not be comparable with any period since the early-1820s"
Forum of Private Business
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.
"You don’t wait till they’ve banned all cars from the roads before you let your children walk across. You teach them the skills they need to be safe, even though crossing the road is inherently risky. We hope the ebook helps to do the same for internet use."
DaddiLife
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:
"It’s important to do what makes you happy. Spend money on yourself and the things that you enjoy, whether that is spending time reaching an exercise goal, booking a holiday to look forward to, or even simply eating 5 pieces of fruit each day. These goals can all up our sense of happiness and well-being and contribute to beating the January blues"
Distinctly.co
"We want to share with the Headteachers and teachers attending this event, the powerful results achieved by delivering this Handwriting Scheme, as the raising of attainment throughout our school is a testament to its Method."
Start-Bee
"I’m humbled to be awarded the plaque commemorating the fundraising raffle that I ran over Christmas. I was determined to turn what was a horrible experience into something positive and I’m really pleased that we have been able to raise so much money that will be used to benefit the rough sleepers of the region"
Simon on the Streets
"It’s great that we are among a select few distilleries in the UK choosing to run solely on green energy; we hope that we can inspire more businesses to make a conscious effort to look at the impact they have on the environment."
Cooper King Distillery
Don’t hold back from being a little cheeky when writing a quote. Journalists prefer people that 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:
"Fresh, plus natural is as good as it gets for food,’ says Mark, ‘and we are setting the challenge for 2018 for those who have already broken their "twice a week" gym session resolutions to focus on good fresh Suffolk grown produce as a good and equally healthy alternative"
Taste Collective Limited
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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