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Sunday, March 3, 2013

Out With the old, in With the New: Overused PR Words


The perfect press release is like a work of art. If done correctly, it can be an exceptionally beneficial tool for your client. However, if done incorrectly you risk damaging your reputation with journalists and bloggers – essential relationships to have and maintain as a public relations professional.

Our industry involves choosing your written and oral words carefully, and press releases are no exceptions. Although you may believe you are thinking on a different wavelength than your PR competitors when writing your releases, we are all guilty of overusing words that make our clients seem better, smarter or more alluring than the rest. These predictable words tend to lose their luster, and ultimately their meaning and value.

At the end of 2012, SHIFT Communications collaborated with Marketwire to sample 5,000 press releases from the course of the year. As a result, the 50 most overused words in press releases were revealed. The goal was for PR pros to use these words with discretion or find applicable substitutes in 2013.

The following are the top 10 most Overused PR Words of 2012. See the infographic for the top 50! Be sure to keep these words in mind as you’re writing press releases this year.

1. Global
2. Forward
3. Leading / Solutions
4. International
5. Growth
6. Well-positioned
7. Announced
8. Best
9. Performance
10. Experience

This guest blog post was written by PRowl Public Relations staff member Samantha Miller.

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