What is a boilerplate?
A boilerplate is the standard closing paragraph of a press release with the key facts about your organization: what you do, for whom, and since when. Journalists use it as background for their article. You write the boilerplate once and reuse it at the bottom of every press release.
Written by Timon Hendriks · Last updated on 12 July 2026
How it works in practice
A good boilerplate is factual and compact: what your organization does, for whom, where you are based, and possibly since when. Superlatives do not belong in it; a journalist copies facts, not marketing language. Close with a reference to your website for more information.
Because the boilerplate sits under every press release, it pays to keep it sharp. Check a few times a year whether it still holds: numbers age, propositions shift, and new activities go missing fast. Make sure everyone who sends press releases uses the same current version, so your organization is described identically everywhere.
Example
A Leeds installer of heat pumps closes every press release with the same paragraph: what the company does, that it works across Yorkshire for housing associations and homeowners, and when it was founded. When a trade magazine covers their latest project, the editor copies that description almost word for word. The company decides for itself how it is introduced in the media.
Common mistake
Filling the boilerplate with marketing language. Sentences full of superlatives make your release less credible and get cut or rewritten by editors. Stick to verifiable facts.
Frequently asked questions
How long is a boilerplate?
Short: a few sentences to a brief paragraph. Long enough to introduce your organization, short enough to read at a glance.
Where does the boilerplate go in a press release?
At the very bottom, after the body of the release and before the notes to editors with contact details. That way a journalist reads the news first and the background on your organization after.