Big Ideas Writing has been writing and distributing press releases for clients for more than a decade, and in that time, we’ve seen significant changes.
In the days before the internet, PR people wrote press releases designed to appeal to specific editors. With the dawn of Google search, writing for search engine optimization (SEO) became the key to success, and including the juiciest, highest-performing keywords was paramount. Now, we have the next evolution of organic search opportunity for press releases: AIO, or answer information optimization.
What is AIO and Why Does it Matter for Press Releases?
Simply put, AIO refers to the frequency your company or service shows up in an answer within a chat platform like Claude, ChatGPT or Gemini. These platforms rely on large language models trained on publicly available information, like your website, reviews, and backlinked content. They continuously reference high-authority, well written, and thoughtfully structured content found across the internet.
Because press releases are typically published on reputable, frequently indexed sites, they help reinforce your company’s online presence and increase the chances that AI platforms will surface your information when users ask related questions. Therefore, the more your content is positioned online through channels such as press releases, the more likely it is to appear on AI platforms.
The PRNewswire 2025 State of the Press Release reported that 49% of customers surveyed said they now track new metrics related to AI, such as company appearance in overviews and featured snippets. The AI-optimized press release has emerged as a best-practice approach to maximize visibility and improve reader engagement across earned, owned, and paid media.
However, well-crafted AI-Optimized press releases are written with both human editors and machine systems in mind. They pair newsroom storytelling principles with technical formatting that helps search, summarization tools, and media monitoring platforms in AI accurately interpret and distribute the story.
When done well, an AI-Optimized press release leads to:
✅ Increased media pickup
✅ Improved keyword relevance + search visibility
✅ More accurate AI summaries and reposts
✅ Higher audience engagement and Click Through Rate (CTR)
✅ Easier reuse in social, email, and editorial workflows
Do’s For Writing AI-Optimized Press Releases
The good news about writing AI-Optimized press releases is that many of the classic principles of writing a traditional news release still apply. In other words, the recommendations appeal to both LLMs and humans. In many cases, the need for the classic recommendation is even amplified, like many included below in our list of “do’s” for writing an AI-Optimized press release,
Do Prioritize a Clear, Single Newsworthy Message.
This has always been a well-held principle to ensure that the human reader does not lose the main point of the article. Today, AI systems aggressively summarize information. They need the newsworthy message to be clear and stated in plain, rather than cryptic or clever, language. Also, the audience should be able to understand the benefit of the information they are reading. The takeaway should be effortless.
Do Use Structured Formatting.
Both humans and AI respond to well-formatted, easily scannable content. At Big Ideas Writing, PRNewswire helps ensure our press releases are optimized for AI. Make your release easy to read, and humans will embrace it as well as AI. A recommended structure includes:
a. Headline (H1 or H2)
b. Subheadline (H2 or H3)
c. Dateline
d. Lead paragraph
e. Key announcement details
f. Bulleted benefits/data
g. Supporting quotes
h. Company context/background
i. Call to action
j. Company Boilerplate
Keep your headlines clear, concise, and easy for AI to interpret. Avoid clever wordplay, as it can confuse or mislead AI.
Do Keep Language Neutral and Factual.
As always, remember that a news release is not an ad, but an announcement of something worthy of attention. The same holds true for an AI-optimized press release or any of your business content, for that matter. Examples of worthy news include:
- A product launch
- A milestone achievement
- A promotion or new hire
- An organizational response to a current event
- A planned event or opportunity for those outside the organization
If your news release is not written objectively and is blatantly self-promotional, both humans and LLMs will see through the hype, and your message will not have its intended impact. Overuse of hyperbole and excessive adjectives, without supporting data, reads like fluff.
One way to address this is to swap adjectives for specific language. For example:
❌ “The new computer system will be a game-changer for our accountants,” said John Smith, company CFO.
✅ “The new computer system will cut our billing time in half,” said John Smith, company CFO.
Do Write for Humans First—Optimize for AI Second.
Remember, at its core, your job is still storytelling and engaging readers. Your AI-optimized press release must still read like journalism and tell a compelling story. AI optimizations should enhance the clarity of the message, not replace substance.
Do Provide Reliable Data and Sources.
Both humans and AI rank and quote content with factual depth. Use research reference links and make sure they connect to reliable, authoritative sources.
For quotes, ensure they are from influential subject-matter experts with online relevance. Use specific, factual quotes that can stand alone for use in AI summaries.
Multimedia, such as videos and PDFs, is also found by AI and appreciated by humans. Include them in your press releases where appropriate.
Do Use Bolding for Keywords and Phrases.
Although this is not an AIO requirement, bolding information signals importance. And it will be interpreted as such by both LLMs and humans. In a recent webinar on writing press releases for AIO, Emily Greifeld of The Pollack Group recommended that using bold and italics can help AI differentiate significant text from the rest. Other sources, including PRNewswire, also suggest bolding text, but sparingly.
Don’ts for AIO Press Releases
Writing a press release for AIO gives us some new things to watch for and change up before we actually release our news. Here are a few “don’ts” to check for before you press “send.”
Don’t Bury the News Lead
It’s essential to get to the critical information right away. It makes the main message easy to find and lets readers know immediately why the news is essential.
Don’t Stuff the News Release with Keywords.
You are writing for humans first and AIO second. It’s fine to use SEO keywords, but use them naturally, including them in the first part of your release and in sentences where they are most relevant. This will make the AIO keyword in the main message easy to find. Plus, nobody likes to read the same words over and over!
Don’t overwrite.
Use the essential details, but don’t write more than is necessary. Long, flowing paragraphs are not typically applicable to AIO. Too much information is also off-putting to humans.
Don’t use passive voice.
Use subject/verb constructions to write your sentences in the active voice, so the subject is acting within the sentence. Such sentences are also shorter, easier to understand, and more direct. In contrast, in the passive voice, the subject is being acted upon. Here are some examples of each:
❌ The proposal was approved by the manager.
✅ The manager approved the proposal.
❌ The gourmet meal was prepared by the chef.
✅ The chef prepared a gourmet meal.
❌ Billy was called upon by Mr. Smith to answer the question.
✅ Mr. Smith called on Billy to answer the question.
In summary, to optimize your press release’s appeal to AI models, it’s important to adhere to all classic press release writing recommendations, along with some different organizational and formatting techniques to help your content be found. Remember that the purpose of an AI-optimized press release is not to replace human strategy; it’s to help your story travel farther, faster, and more accurately.
If you’re interested in distributing a press release or want to make sure yours is optimized for AI before sending it out, contact karen@bigideaswriting.com. I’d be happy to help you with your press release drafting or distribution!
