How to Write a PR/FAQ (with an Annotated Example)

What a PR/FAQ is

A PR/FAQ (Press Release + FAQ) is the core artifact of the Working Backwards method. You write it as if the product already shipped - then use it to decide whether it’s worth building at all. The discipline is simple: if you can’t make the idea compelling and honest on one page, building it won’t fix that.

The press release structure

The press release is about one page and follows a fixed shape:

Headline. The product and its core benefit, in one line a customer would actually care about.
Sub-headline. Who it’s for and the outcome, in one sentence.
The problem. What the customer struggles with today - concrete and specific.
The solution. How the product solves it, in plain language.
Customer quote. A fictional but honest testimonial.
How to get started. The first step a customer takes.

An annotated example

Here’s the opening of a PR/FAQ for an imagined product - an AI tool that summarizes long meetings - with notes on why each line works.

Press release (excerpt)

Recall turns every meeting into a one-page summary before you leave the room. (Headline - a concrete benefit, not a feature list.)

For managers who sit in six hours of meetings a day, Recall writes the notes, the decisions, and the action items automatically. (Sub-headline - names the specific customer and the outcome.)

Today, the person who runs a meeting also has to remember it. Notes get half-written, decisions get re-litigated a week later, and action items quietly disappear. (Problem - specific and recognizable, no jargon.)

“I used to spend my first hour every morning reconstructing yesterday’s meetings. Now it’s done before I open my laptop.” - a pilot customer (Quote - only true if the product genuinely works.)

See more complete, scored examples in the examples gallery, or grab a starting template.

The FAQ structure

The FAQ is the harder, more valuable half. Split it in two:

Customer FAQ

How much does it cost?
How do I get started?
What do I need for it to work?
How is this different from what I use now?

Stakeholder FAQ

What will this cost us to build and run?
What’s the single biggest risk?
Why are we the right team to build it, and why now?
What has to be true for this to succeed?

The test that matters

After you’ve written both halves, run the so-what test: is this meaningfully better, faster, easier, or cheaper than the alternative? If not, change the inputs and rewrite - covered in the complete guide.

Mistakes to avoid

Marketing voice. Write like a reporter. Superlatives mask weak ideas.
A vague customer. “Busy professionals” isn’t a customer. Name them.
Dodging the cost question. If the economics scare you, that’s the finding.
Stopping at draft one. The first version exists to be rewritten.

FAQ

How long should a PR/FAQ be?

The press release is about one page. The FAQ adds two to five more pages depending on the idea's complexity. If the press release runs past a single page, the idea is usually still too vague.

What goes in the press release vs. the FAQ?

The press release states the customer, the problem, the solution, and a customer quote in plain language. The FAQ handles everything the press release deliberately leaves out: pricing, how it works, what it costs to build, the biggest risks, and why now.

Should the customer quote be real?

It's fictional but it must be honest - it should only make sense if the product is genuinely good. A quote that could describe any competitor is a sign the product isn't differentiated yet.

What's the difference between a PR/FAQ and a PRD?

A PR/FAQ decides whether to build something; a PRD specifies how to build it. The PR/FAQ comes first - once it survives the so-what test, you expand it into a PRD.

Generate a full PR/FAQ from your idea

Answer a short guided interview and get a complete press release, FAQ, scored verdict, and PRD - free to start.

Start your PR/FAQ

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