Every PR expert is aware of the news release’s influence.
Press releases are a fantastic method to disseminate important information, whether launching a new product, notifying the public of a merger, or sharing other noteworthy details.
But how does it affect your SEO efforts?
If you’ve been around for a while, you might remember when they were employed by search engine optimizers as a technique to stuff keywords into their websites. Is that still functional?
Furthermore, if there is a relationship between high-quality press releases and search ranks, how do you balance optimising them for search engines with maintaining journalistic standards?
These are undoubtedly difficult questions to answer, but don’t worry—we’re here to help.
Please continue reading about press releases and their use in your web marketing plan.
What is A Press Release
As you undoubtedly already know, a press release is an official statement informing the media about a newsworthy event.
With the ultimate goal of having it included on a reliable news platform, it enables you to swiftly distribute news (and help build the narrative surrounding it) to a network of journalists.
An illustration of a Google Cloud press release is shown below:
Image Source: googlecloudpresscorner.com, August 2022
As you can see, the press release begins with a title that offers readers a summary of the news, expands on that information in the subhead, and then delves further into the facts as the story continues.
The most crucial information is presented first in what is known as an “inverted pyramid,” which is how students and budding journalists frequently write these.
Organisations send press releases for a variety of reasons, as we’re sure you’ve guessed by now, including:
- To establish a good name.
- To receive media attention.
- When something goes wrong, it’s helpful to publicise your side of the story first to control the crisis.
Companies now have a new motivation to submit press releases: to obtain links from reliable news websites. This is a result of enhanced media technology and a shorter news cycle.
And so improve SEO.
Are Press Releases Still Relevant?
Does it still make sense to use press releases in your digital strategy if you’re not receiving SEO credit for links from news sites?
Quick response: Yes.
There is one crucial point you must, however, bear in mind. You’re issuing a press release for that reason.
Does it:
Publicise a significant event that your firm is hosting.
Declare the launch of a new good or service.
Increase awareness of your brand.
Stop a crisis from blowing up?
Write the press release if you can check any of these boxes with a “yes.”
However, cease if you’re using it to build links to your brand-new website.
Even if the “newswire” links to you, it’s possible that this won’t improve your position in Google’s SERPs.
However, that last statement isn’t entirely accurate. Press releases can be utilised to improve SEO, but not as you expect.
How To Optimise A Press Release To Benefit SEO
Press releases don’t directly affect search rankings, although they can indirectly improve them.
You might, for instance, gain attention by appearing on a news website.
After reading your release, they visit your site in droves, which increases traffic.
If people enjoy your website, they’ll stay and see other pages.
Additionally, if your material is outstanding, they’ll link to it or share it on social media, giving you (you guessed it!) quality links.
And they’ll improve your SEO.
So, spammy backlinks are obtained from poor news sources?
No.
Tons of new admirers’ backlinks and traffic?
Yes.
That is how a news release is “optimised” for SEO.
How to Write a Press Release and Distribute It
It’s time to get down to writing and disseminating press releases now that you’ve been persuaded of their significance for your digital marketing initiatives.
It’s much simpler than you might imagine to write them. These three simple steps will help you design your first one:
1. Make a newsworthy move
No, it doesn’t count if you change the colour of your carpet. It might be of tangential interest unless you work at the White House.
However, “newsworthy” doesn’t always equate to “big.”
You can organise an event.
Or you may research a topic that interests your audience.
A product or service can also be improved by making minor adjustments.
Once you’ve selected your newsworthy event, be sure to exceed expectations.
Put your all into it.
2. Craft An Entertaining Press Release
Start with a compelling title that will pique the interest of your reader.
Similar to the one from Starbucks.
A press release should be concise and written like a newspaper story.
When crafting their story, journalists adore being able to copy and paste directly from an article.
Essential pointers to bear in mind while you draft your press release:
- Make your writing third person.
- Be succinct (400-500 words is an excellent rule of thumb).
- Include screenshots and other eye-catching visuals.
- Be direct and to the point (kill the fluff).
- Address readers directly (cut the jargon).
3. Contact The Appropriate Journalists With Your Press Release
Avoid spamming 100 journalists, hoping one of them would write about you.
First, conduct research.
For instance, you just conducted research that showed 56% of mothers are dissatisfied with the lunch program at their school.
Locate someone who writes in a relevant field rather than sending your press release to anyone whose email address you can find.
It’s a terrific idea to obtain this information using a platform like Buzzsumo.
Conclusion
It should be evident that press releases can be an effective SEO tool—but only when used correctly.
It won’t help if you constantly send press releases to bloggers, journalists, and media outlets to get some attention.
On the other hand, they can be pretty helpful if you’re contacting pertinent (often specialised) publications or other individuals who are likely to be interested in your newsworthy (never forget this point) event to increase traffic, fans, and following links.
Remember what you’ve learned here: Distribute your releases to the appropriate audiences, keep them current (again, no carpet colour changes), and they’ll help your site climb the ranks.
Small businesses like yours may improve every aspect of their search engine optimization with D’Marketing Agency assistance in order to rank better on search engines.
Wondering what we do? To find out more about our approach to search engine optimization, Contact D’Marketing Agency. When you’re ready, contact us so we can help with your SEO.
