A mix of major consumer news and high-profile research reports caught the attention of prnewswire.com readers in June.
Let’s look at the five most popular stories on our site last month and review what made them click … and be clicked.
The masses collectively mourned the closure of JOANN, so it’s no surprise that news about the fabric and sewing staple living on in a way nabbed the most views.
Recognizing that impact, Michaels’ subheadline immediately connects with the JOANN faithful, as does the first part of the executive quote.
The rest of the release combines bolded section headers, bulleted lists and data that draw the eye and deftly guide readers through the content. The closing “Special Welcome” for JOANN fans section includes a distinct call to action to drive clicks to a dedicated JOANN landing page on the Michaels site. It’s a good example of the flexibility you have with placing your call to action – if you want to place the link lower in the text, just make sure it’s unmissable.
For its highly anticipated annual release, U.S. News prioritizes formatting and engagement to give its audience what it needs.
There are multiple lists – featuring reader-friendly groupings of three, five and 10 – complemented by strategic bolding, data and relevant links. This is another example of having some flexibility with link best practices. While you generally want to limit the number of links in your narrative to three or so, if your content supports more than that, it’s fine. Just follow U.S. News’ lead here and make sure that any anchor text is clear and direct, And don’t duplicate links.
This is a lengthier, data-heavy release, but it’s much easier to digest than many shorter releases due to its mindful formatting.
It wouldn’t be summer without a fun restaurant promotion, and Whataburger obliges with a short and sweet release.
You can’t go wrong with the combo of a bulleted list next to an image using prnewswire.com’s inline template (one of four complimentary multimedia templates to choose from) for maximum consumer engagement.
While this is a summer promo, Whataburger gives readers something to look forward to throughout the rest of the year with the promise of other seasonal offerings. Lastly, the choice to send on an off-minute in the early afternoon versus right on the hour gives this content an extra boost of visibility.
Fortune lands in the Top 5 for the second consecutive month with another prolific roundup.
The subheadlines tell the stories here, both the Top 3 companies and the record-setting year for women angle. The subs are a perfect combination of sprinkling in key data while still being succinct.
Once readers are in the release – no surprise – they’re met with plenty of data highlights that provide context for this year’s report. The first link is a clear call to action, and other diverse, relevant links are woven logically throughout the release, including a series of feature stories grouped for convenience and clarity just above the boilerplate.
“Unveils” is one of the best headline verbs for your money, and Clarivate uses it here to give some extra oomph to what could be niche content.
Like the other top releases in June, this one contains a textbook example of a bulleted list, complete with a bolded header and strategically bolded data to draw the eye.
Bonus points to Clarivate for placing that list before two longer executive quotes to ensure readers quickly get the information they want most.
About the Author
Sarah Roberts is Director of Customer Content Services. In a previous life, she was a newspaper reporter in the Midwest before permanently retiring her snow shovel and moving to the Land of Enchantment. In her spare time, she enjoys reading, exploring the craft beer scene and petting all the dogs.