Search Engine Optimizing Your Press Release
As discussed in earlier posts, SEO is one of my new favourite interests; In fact, this interest is nearing obsession. That’s because search engines, along with being the #1 search tool for my target audience as a marketing communicator, blogger and Influencer, are a resource in which I see a brimming, untapped potential that I want to capitalize on.
I’ve been reading alot on the subject of SEO’s and press releases as of late. What I see in this is an opportunity to stray from the $800-a- pop marketwire or PRnewswire fee’s and get noticed for free. According to marketingprofs.com, nearly 3/4 of journalists use search engines to find their story. The role of the communicator who wears the media relations hat has always been a predictive one and with SEO it is ever-important. Knowing what key words are being searched and crafting your releases appropriately to reflect these keywords means the difference between getting picked up and being left in the dust. Try it out: put some energy into SEO and watch your leads get got.
As the owner of a boutique PR agency that specializes in search engine optimized press releases, I can heartily agree that this is the way forward for anyone with a news story to share.
My clients will attest to the results they’ve achieved through proper SEO-enhanced releases, as opposed to the more traditional methods. It’s about time the likes of PRNewswire et al woke up to the fact that people are looking at other, more cost-effective methods of news distribution. Or else they could become as dinosaur-like as AP…
Indeed, Donny, it is the evolotion of PR: these days, anybody can do it. It has never been easier to distribute information quickly, network and communicate with your target audience.
Interesting post. Sorry if my reply is a little long.
I agree that anyone crafting a press release (or any content that will be posted on the Internet) should take search engines into consideration during development – to me this is an important part of any online communications strategy. I do think your entry is missing an important part of an SEO discussion – the linking strategy.
Admittedly, I work for a newswire, but the concept of linking as a by-product of press release distribution is something that shouldn’t be overlooked when considering SEO. Press releases and the embedded links within are sent to hundreds of points on the Internet within seconds of distribution. Newswires also offer press release and search engine optimization tools to assist communicators who may not be familiar with coding or the elements that contribute to good SEO practices. At Marketwire, we are always researching new distribution channels and tools, including those that enable discussion on social media sites.
Another point that is worth considering is that while almost anyone can create a page on the Internet that is fairly well optimized, SEO in general implies a strategy of waiting for search engines to “discover” the content, which is hit and miss. The more prominent newswires have the advantage of not only having a network that pushes content onto the Internet, but we are also recognized as sources for breaking news by news aggregators such as Topix and Google. Our site is crawled regularly by both search engines and news aggregators. The frequency with which other sites are crawled may or may not be the same.
As a final note, I can’t comment on the pricing structure of others in the marketplace, but there’s a great deal of flexibility and several factors that determine the cost of sending a press release (word count, destination, etc.).
Thanks again for the post.
Thank you, Melanie. There are always two sides to the story and your input was instrumental in completing that process.
I don’t see SEO as a tool in and of itself to replace the traditional wire. Rather, it is a relatively misunderstood weapon in the communicators arsenal and one that we stand to benefit from.
Thanks. I appreciate being part of the conversation.
[...] the home page copy) contains the key words embedded within it. Note: This is also true for optimizing a press release. Include keywords in the first few sentences of the [...]
Guerilla Search Engine Optimization 2 « PR Ninja said this on July 17, 2008 at 1:12 pm |