When NOT to Send a Press Release: 8 Situations Where Silence Is Smarter

Not every business update deserves a press release. Learn when to hold back, protect your credibility, and save your distribution budget for announcements that matter.

The Discipline of Restraint

In a world where everyone has a platform and every update feels share-worthy, knowing when NOT to send a press release is just as important as knowing when to send one. Distributing a press release about something that is not genuinely newsworthy does not just waste money—it can actively damage your credibility with media contacts, dilute the impact of your future announcements, and create a public record of mediocrity.

At UtahPressWire, we believe in honest guidance. That means telling clients when their announcement is strong enough for distribution and when it would be better to wait for a more impactful moment. This guide covers the eight most common situations where businesses should resist the urge to issue a press release.

1. Routine Business Updates

Changing your office hours, updating your website, refreshing your logo, or rearranging your product lineup are not press-worthy events. These are normal business operations that happen constantly and do not affect anyone outside your organization in a meaningful way.

The test: Would a journalist at your local newspaper write a story about this? If the answer is no, it is not press release material. Share routine updates on your social media, in your email newsletter, or on your blog—channels where your existing audience expects this type of information.

Exception: If a routine update is part of a larger story, it can work. Changing your hours because you are expanding to serve a growing customer base is newsworthy. Changing your hours because you feel like opening later on Tuesdays is not.

2. Vague or Premature Announcements

Press releases should announce things that have happened or are definitively going to happen. Announcing something that "might" happen, is "in discussions," or is "expected to" materialize puts your credibility at risk if plans change.

We have seen businesses distribute press releases about partnerships that never closed, product launches that were delayed by six months, and expansion plans that were quietly shelved. Each of these creates a public record of a commitment that was not honored, and journalists who covered the original announcement will remember being misled.

The rule: Only distribute a press release when the announcement is confirmed and you are prepared to back it with action. If the deal is not signed, the hire has not accepted, or the product has not passed testing, wait.

3. Self-Congratulatory Announcements Without Substance

There is a difference between a genuine achievement and corporate self-congratulation. Press releases that exist primarily to say "we are great" without providing newsworthy substance are the ones that end up unread in editor inboxes.

Examples of self-congratulatory releases that lack substance include announcements that you are "committed to excellence," celebrations of internal metrics that have no external relevance, declarations of being "the best" without third-party validation, and anniversary announcements that do not include any forward-looking news.

The fix: Attach substance to sentiment. Instead of "We are proud of our team," announce "Our team completed its 500th project this quarter, serving clients across four Utah counties." Instead of "We are committed to customer satisfaction," announce "Our customer retention rate reached 94 percent in 2025, up from 87 percent the previous year."

4. Responses to Competitors

Issuing a press release in response to a competitor's announcement almost always backfires. It draws attention to your competitor, positions your news as reactive rather than proactive, and signals insecurity to anyone who reads both releases.

If a competitor launches a new product and you respond with a press release about how your product is better, you have given their announcement free amplification while making your own brand look reactive. The market will compare the two releases and draw their own conclusions—which may not favor the company that felt compelled to respond.

Better approach: Focus on your own milestones and let your results speak for themselves. If you genuinely have a superior product or service, demonstrate it through your own proactive announcements rather than reactive comparisons.

5. Internal News That Does Not Affect the Public

Hiring a new office manager, implementing a new internal software system, reorganizing your departments, or completing employee training are internal operational matters that do not warrant press releases.

The distinction is between news that affects your customers, community, or industry and news that only affects your internal operations. A new CRM system is internal news. A new customer portal that improves how clients interact with your business is potentially external news.

The test: Does this announcement change anything for anyone outside your organization? If it does not create a new capability, service, or benefit for external stakeholders, it belongs in an internal memo, not a press release.

6. During a Crisis You Are Not Prepared to Address

If your business is facing a crisis—a lawsuit, a product recall, a public controversy, or a major operational failure—issuing unrelated press releases in an attempt to distract or redirect attention is transparent and counterproductive.

Media professionals will see through the tactic immediately. Worse, the press release creates an additional opportunity for journalists to ask about the crisis you are trying to avoid. Every interview request, follow-up question, and media inquiry generated by your press release becomes an opportunity for the crisis to come up.

Better approach: Address the crisis directly with appropriate crisis communications, or remain silent until the situation is resolved. Do not use press releases as a smokescreen.

7. When Your Release Is Poorly Written or Unfinished

This should go without saying, but we see it regularly: businesses submitting press releases that contain grammatical errors, factual inaccuracies, broken links, missing contact information, or incomplete sentences. Every press release you distribute becomes a permanent public document. Distributing one that is poorly written creates a permanent record of carelessness.

The fix: Proofread your release at least three times. Have someone else review it. Verify every fact, date, name, and URL. If you are not confident in the quality of your writing, use UtahPressWire's Full-Service package and let our professional writers handle it.

8. When You Have Nothing New to Say

The most honest reason not to send a press release is that you simply do not have news. And that is perfectly fine. Not every month or quarter will produce a press-worthy announcement. Forcing a press release when you do not have genuine news leads to weak, forgettable content that serves no one.

The businesses that get the most value from press releases are the ones that use them strategically—distributing when they have something meaningful to share and holding back when they do not. This discipline ensures that every press release you distribute carries weight and maintains the credibility of your brand in the eyes of media professionals and the public.

How to Evaluate Whether Your News Is Press-Worthy

Before committing to a press release, run your announcement through these five questions.

Is it new? Press releases announce things that are happening now or in the near future. If it happened months ago or is a restatement of something already public, it is not timely enough.

Is it specific? Vague announcements create vague responses. The more specific and concrete your news, the more likely it is to generate coverage and provide value to readers.

Is it relevant beyond your organization? News that affects only your internal team is not press-worthy. News that affects your customers, community, or industry has external relevance.

Would a journalist cover this? Put yourself in a reporter's shoes. If you received this press release, would you consider writing about it? If the answer is not a clear yes, reconsider.

Does it support your business goals? Every press release should serve a strategic purpose—building credibility, improving SEO, entering a new market, or attracting talent. If you cannot articulate what the release will accomplish for your business, it may not be the right investment.

The Value of Patience

The best press release strategies are built on patience and discipline. Wait for announcements that genuinely matter. Craft releases that do justice to those announcements. Distribute through channels that ensure maximum impact. And resist the temptation to fill the gaps between genuine news with press releases that exist only to maintain a distribution schedule.

Your credibility is your most valuable asset. Protect it by distributing press releases only when you have something worth saying.