diff --git a/CONTRIBUTING.md b/CONTRIBUTING.md
index 7cde523..cd5f5ce 100644
--- a/CONTRIBUTING.md
+++ b/CONTRIBUTING.md
@@ -29,7 +29,8 @@ The `develop` branch is the development branch which means it contains the next
 ## Release instructions
 
 1. Branch: Starting from `develop`, cut a release branch named `release/X.Y.Z` for your changes.
-1. Version bump: Bump the version number in `insert-special-characters.php`, `readme.txt`, `package-lock.json`, and `package.json` if it does not already reflect the version being released.
+1. Version bump: Bump the version number in `insert-special-characters.php`, `readme.txt`, and `package.json` if it does not already reflect the version being released.
+1. Update packages: Run `npm update` so that `package-lock.json` gets updated from the version bump in `package.json` in the previous step as well as handle various available dependency updates.
 1. Changelog: Add/update the changelog in `CHANGELOG.md` and `readme.txt`
 1. Props: update `CREDITS.md` file with any new contributors, confirm maintainers are accurate
 1. New files: Check to be sure any new files/paths that are unnecessary in the production version are included in `.distignore`.