Have you been looking for a way to increase visibility and promote your business online? A well-crafted SEO press release can be an effective tool to help boost your search engine rankings and attract more attention to your website.
Learn how to write an optimized press release here.
The main function of a press release is to generate online publicity in a cost-efficient way. With quality SEO and attention-grabbing content, you can increase online traffic on your website, as well as increase exposure to your brand.
If you are wondering how to write a press release that gets attention from reporters, let's discuss it.
In this article, we cover things you can keep in mind while creating your press release, and how to effectively use SEO in your press release.
The primary goal of press releases is to write a newsworthy story that can grab reporters’ attention. The specific goals can range from spreading brand or product awareness to increasing website traffic.
Whatever the goal might be, a press release needs to be focused, well-structured and compelling.
Your press release should always be written with the audience in mind. When creating content, it’s important to ensure that your content has a purpose and is relevant to readers. Think about the kind of content that your target market would find useful and craft your SEO press release accordingly.
Consider their questions and seek to answer them within the release.
Keywords are essential in helping your SEO press release get found by search engines. Include relevant keywords naturally throughout the headline and copy so that your content can be easily discoverable.
Be sure to use relevant, specific terms or phrases that better describe the content of your press release.
For example, if you’re writing a press release about a new product launch, include keywords such as ‘new’, ‘product’, and ‘launch’ in the headline and copy.
One of the best ways to ensure your press release can be found online and receive widespread attention is by timing it properly.
Conduct research in advance to determine when the peak times are for press release distribution.
Focus on getting your press released during these peak periods for a greater chance of it being seen, read, and shared.
Images, videos and audio clips can enhance your press release and create a better experience for readers.
However, it’s important to optimize all elements of your press release before you distribute it.
Many search engines “read” these rich media files just like they would read words, so you should include relevant keywords in the titles, captions and descriptions of any audio or video files that are included with the press release.
An SEO press release is written for both readers and the search engine. On one hand, you have to make it sound as natural as possible; on the other, you have to weave in keywords and phrases so that the search engines will know to rank it for the keywords that matter.
Given the sheer bulk of content posted on the internet every day, rather, than every hour, it is crucial to keep Google in mind.
Otherwise, you might end up on the third or fourth pages of Google, which, let’s be honest, may never be found. This brings us to our next point:
Keywords are the most crucial element that will determine whether your press release will succeed or not. We are talking SEO, which means finding the right keywords and sprinkling them optimally throughout the content.
Specific words and phrases: The primary keyword (or phrase) used is usually competitive (generic), while the secondary phrases are more specific to the content of the release.
Keyword Density: While finding the right keywords is important, how frequently they are used is also a part of SEO. There is no one right formula for this density. It varies from content to content and depends on your SEO team and writers. For reference, one keyword per 200 words is considered a rough benchmark in the enterprise SEO community.
Again, since we want to be appealing to the reader and journalists, a classically structured SEO press release would increase readability and help your digital marketing. And if you are wondering about that specific structure, we have a handy guide for you.
The headline or the title tag is the most important tag for search engine optimization. This will be taking precious real estate in Google search results. You want something that will get clicked.
To be effective, it has to be catchy, it has to convey what your press release is about, and it must contain the primary key phrase.
You can also incorporate the name of your brand in the headline, but a little subtlety goes a long way. In case your press release is about a new product itself, the brand name will quite naturally be a part of the headline.
This is where you are introducing the readers to the main content. You have a little more space to elaborate on the title and explain what they are about to read. So, try to keep it short and crisp. You can include a few details to intrigue the readers to want to read on, but don't give everything away just yet!
This summary should also contain your primary keyphrase along with one or two (depending on the length) secondary keywords. Be sure to keep it natural because you can always add additional keywords in the body.
This one seems like the easiest to write, but it can be tricky. As we have mentioned, you are writing this for both readers and search engines.
Firstly, find out the right balance of keywords to be placed in the body. Search engines aren’t really fans of keyword stuffing, and it can hurt the strength of SEO press releases.
We recommend your keywords every 200 words.
Secondly, the content needs to contain the details in an organized manner.
In the first paragraph, you can talk about the 5 Ws:
Then, in the following one or two paragraphs, you can move on to the details of the event or the news. To make this more interesting, try to include relevant and verified statistics and images.
Get a quote from an exec. This will provide your readers with more context and proof of the story. You may also include hyperlinks to help readers find pertinent information surrounding the main news.
For a press release to be successful, it must be real news and not an ad about the brand itself. The boilerplate is what introduces the readers to the company (if they do not know much already).
The Boilerplate includes a brief history of your company and its vision and mission. This is a great spot for hyperlinking your company’s website or anywhere you want to direct the readers. You should also include contact information in case journalists and bloggers want to contact the company.
This isn’t a step that your SEO press release needs to follow strictly. However, it engages the reader well and adds a sense of immediacy. Ultimately, you want your readers to visit your "money page".
Try to use the smallest number of words possible to address the readers about the core message one final time.
Also, note that if you include a call-to-action, try to include the company’s contact information after this step.
After submitting the press release, make sure that it is displaying correctly on the intended sites or networks.
Read through to ensure the keywords used in the press release are optimized correctly and that there are no typos or factual inaccuracies.
It helps to review using incognito mode so you are seeing it as a reader would and not affected by any search engine optimization (SEO) techniques you may have applied.
Before we sign out, here are some closing thoughts.
Press releases are considered rather short-lived because they are essentially news. And the news gets old in a day. If you want yours to age well, it has to be noticed by search engines and then read by people. That’s why both the clinical and the artistic aspects matter.
If you are planning on doing a press release often, you can create an online press room on your website since one release can only contain a certain amount of information.
You can provide a link to this room on all of your releases so that readers can stay up to date.
Also, keep track of your website traffic, sales figures, and every other success parameter.
An SEO press release is written for both readers and search engines. But, SEO is always evolving. So, don’t be afraid of experimenting with different strategies.
NewReputation has written and distributed thousands of press releases for our clients. We can help you optimize your press release for SEO and make sure it reaches maximum exposure.
Contact us today to receive a free quote.
SEO and PR can collaborate in a number of ways to increase brand awareness, drive traffic and strengthen web presence.
Despite the distractions of modern society, press releases are still highly effective in promoting a brand or message. It is still a central part of the public relations (PR)executive's job to distribute press releases.
Yes, press releases can still provide links. They won't help your SEO because they don't follow links. John Mueller, Google's search engine manager, has his thoughts on the matter. "So we try not to link from press releases or other things because we know that companies usually release press releases.
Your press release will be distributed locally or to all states for around $350. Your top markets and regional markets will increase the cost by up to $600. Sending your press release nationally will set you back around $800. PR Newswire offers international distribution options.
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