Press Release Research: What 129,742 Published Releases Reveal
PR Gun's research desk maintains an ongoing analysis of 129,742+ published press releases and 134,126 headlines — measuring what actually gets published, read, and followed up on across the press release distribution industry. This page indexes every study. All figures refer to published press releases; each study links its full write-up.
The Studies
| Study | Headline finding |
|---|---|
| Best Time to Send a Press Release | 56,606 releases analyzed for day and hour patterns |
| Can a Journalist Actually Reach You? | contact email inclusion ranges 44.4%–99.9% by service; phone 34.6%–73.9% |
| The 500-Word Rule Is Wrong | median published release runs 613–879 words |
| 13.5% of a Day's Releases Land in a Single Hour | publication clusters at the top of one hour |
| Friday Is 46% Quieter Than Tuesday | weekly volume rhythm of the press release wire |
| How Long Should a Headline Be? | 134,126 headlines — median 88–98 characters (13–15 words) |
| The Phone Number Gap | one in three releases gives journalists no phone number |
| 5% of Headlines Are ALL CAPS | headline formatting patterns that hurt pickup |
| Every Service Carries Different News | content mix differs sharply by distribution service |
| 7% of Releases Are Published Twice | duplicate publication under identical headlines |
| Does a Press Release Help SEO? | what press release links actually do for rankings |
Key Numbers at a Glance
- Median published press release length: 613–879 words (not the oft-cited 400–500).
- Median headline: 88–98 characters (13–15 words).
- Contact email inclusion: 44.4%–99.9% depending on the distribution service; phone numbers 34.6%–73.9%.
- Friday runs 46% quieter than Tuesday on the wires; 13.5% of a day's releases land in a single hour.
- 7% of releases are published twice under the same headline; 5% of headlines are written entirely in capital letters.
Journalists and publications are welcome to cite these findings with attribution to PR Gun (prgun.com/research).
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