Big ML | Content Generation

Using GPT-3 to Write a Press Release

In this article we are going to be using GPT-3 to write a press release. Press releases can be hard for business owners to write because they are often not familiar with the format or style of a press release, or what information should be included. But GPT-3 can help you with that.

If you are just tuning in check out the [Table of Contents]. And if you’ve been following along then at the end of the previous article, [Summarizing long emails and other text], we covered how to get started using OpenAI’s GPT-3.

Generating the Press Release template with GPT-3

To get started we’ll think about what the components parts of a press release are:

• Headline
• Subhead
• Dateline
• Lead
• Body
• Boilerplate
• Call to Action

When generating complex documents, it’s important to think about what structure you’ll want the document to have, as you can use this to hint to the model what shape you want your output to be.

It also sometimes helps to re-word the prompts a few times and see what impact it has. I normally have multiple tabs open and switch between them as I work.

And if you don’t know the structure you want, you can also try letting the model figure it out for you like in this example where we let the model do all the work. We start by giving it the bare minimum of context as seen here: that we are releasing a new product, the name of it, what it does (tracks coffee intake), and that we want a long press release.

We are releasing a new product called CupsApp. It is an app which which tracks coffee intake.

We are announcing CupsApp. Here is a long Press Release:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The output is immediately recognizable as a press release and does a good job of making it seem real. Of course, it’s full of bogus facts that need to be swapped out, but as a template and starting point it will do.

CupsApp Launches Revolutionary New App to Track Coffee Intake

SAN FRANCISCO, CA (September 9, 2016) – Today, CupsApp is launching its new app to help people track their coffee intake. The app, available for free on the App Store, allows users to set a daily coffee limit and then track their progress throughout the day. The app also provides tips on how to reduce coffee intake, and users can share their progress with friends and family.

“There are a lot of people who want to reduce their coffee intake, but they don’t know where to start,” said John Doe, founder of CupsApp. “With our app, they can set a limit and then track their progress. We also provide tips and resources to help them along the way.”

CupsApp is the latest product from the team behind the popular productivity app, Desk. Desk has been featured in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and Fast Company, and has been downloaded by over 1 million people.

“We’re very excited to launch CupsApp,” said Jane Smith, CEO of Desk. “Our team has a lot of experience helping people be more productive, and we think we can help people reduce their coffee intake as well. We’re committed to helping people live healthier lives, and this is a great way to do that.”

CupsApp is available for free on the App Store. For more information, please visit www.cupsapp.com or contact John Doe at john@cupsapp.com.

From Template to Press Release

Starting with the headline, let’s have GPT-3 help us iterate on it a few times. The input used is below; note the “that get the reader excited” part of the prompt. Subtle hints like that can substantially change the tone and style of the output text.

Here is the headline for a press release: CupsApp Launches Revolutionary New App to Track Coffee Intake

Here is a list of alternate headlines that get the reader excited:

And the output, with a temperature of 0.95:

– CupsApp Launches New App to Track Coffee Intake

– CupsApp Launches Revolutionary New App to Help Coffee Lovers Track Their Intake

– CupsApp’s New App Lets Coffee Lovers Track Their Intake and Stay on Top of Their Caffeine Fix

– CupsApp’s New App is a Revolutionary Way for Coffee Lovers to Track Their Intake

And now using one of the new titles I’ll work my way forward through the template, allowing GPT-3 to make the necessary adjustments.

The body will require some manual editing to fill in the parts that GPT-3 can’t do for you like adding in direct quotes for example. You’ll want to replace the generated ones with real quotes.

But statements about your company and its history can be generated if the model is given enough context. Here we’ve added context about what CupsApp is and included hints about the tone:

This text is from the body of a press release announcing CupsApp. CupsApp is an app that helps you track your coffee intake and order coffee. It is made by the developers of TeaSeeps. It is written in a professional tone and convinces the user that they should download CupsApp:

And this is the output we got:

If you‘re a coffee enthusiast, there‘s a new app that‘s just for you. CupsApp is the perfect way to track your coffee intake and ensure you never run out of your favorite brew. The app also makes it easy to order coffee from your favorite cafes. CupsApp was developed by the same team behind TeaSeeps, so you can be sure it’s a quality product. Give it a try today and you’ll never go back to your old coffee routine.

Now if we were to replace the name and contact information in the final paragraph and fill in some real quotes, I think we’d be well on our way to generating a press release.

Saving time with AI writing tools

What do you think? Can this tool can help you write press releases faster? Or is something missing causing it to fall short of expectations? We’d love to hear from you.

Next up we’ll talk about other marketing materials that big ML models can help you create. From brochures to presentations and sales letters, GPT-3 can be a big help. This series continues with [Creating marketing materials].

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