Music in the office has been shown to boost both productivity and creativity, which is music to our ears. With office soundtracks across the country ranging from radio stations to the same 10 songs on repeat, it’s safe to say that some songs have more of the desired effect than others.
A good playlist is a staple requirement for working in a PR team, which is why my office Spotify playlist is currently home to over 500, or 33 hours, of different songs. But when it comes to writing a press release here at dayoutwiththekids.co.uk, I’ve got the perfect soundtrack nailed. Taking you all the way from drafting through to sell-ins and beyond, there’s nothing like putting in your headphones and getting in the zone.
Here are the five stages of a press release, as told by Spotify songs:
The song for getting the perfect headline
Without You – David Guetta featuring Usher
‘I will never win this game, without you’ couldn’t be more appropriate when it comes to headlines, as we all know they can make or break your chance at coverage. With a signature David Guetta build up, this tune is the perfect pairing for coming up with that winning headline, swiftly followed by Emeli Sande’s Read All About It.
The hit for writing a press release
Unwritten – Natasha Beddingfield
Staring at the blank page before you is pretty much how all press releases start, but luckily Natasha is on hand with some sterling words of advice that generally include sun, rain and dirty windows. Perfect background music with a subtle writing theme, this 2004 hit has got us through lots of press release drafts, and we also recommend her brother Daniel’s biggest hit for summing up the whole PR process…
The tune that will help you get through building your media list
Everywhere – Fleetwood Mac
We challenge you to find anyone that doesn’t love a classic Fleetwood Mac song, especially when this particularly tune always conjures up memories of a moonwalking horse. But the main reason for this making it on to our PR playlist is that, well, you want coverage everywhere. PR is all about generating coverage, generally with the idea that the more you get, the happier the client is. So put this on repeat and feel free to join in with the ‘Oh I’ part – it makes media list building a lot more fun.
The track for when you get a knock back
Caught Out There – Kelis
You’ve got a perfect press release, a strong news hook and a killer media list – all ingredients for a good sell-in, or so you thought. The journalist you were sure would run the piece has just told you they won’t, the coverage you’d secured in national print hasn’t quite made it to print yet, and a journalist has just put the phone down on you mid sell-in. Press play for the only song that you need to hear right now, thanks Kelis.
The celebratory song for when the first piece of coverage lands?
The World’s Greatest – R Kelly
Nothing quite beats that feeling of the first piece of coverage coming through, so make sure you’re ready to lap it up. This song is the perfect soundtrack for that little bit of hope (when your back’s against the ropes) that you’ve actually pulled this off and will soon be sending your client a full coverage book. Job = done.
Written by Lisa O’Keeffe, brand manager at family-days-out website Dayoutwiththekids.co.uk
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