Transcript How Press Releases are optimized

Search Engine Optimization
and the
Press Release
Agenda
• SEO basics
• How press releases are optimized
– Front end (what you do)
– Back end (what we do)
• What to expect
• Measurement
Search Engines exist to return relevant results to searchers
Search engine spider (bot or
crawler)
– Visits Web page, reads it,
and crawls links to other
pages within the website
– Indexes Web pages Everything the spider finds is
saved in the search engine’s
index
– Algorithmic categorization Sorts through the Index and
returns results based on
mathematical calculations
home equity loan
News vs Natural Search
•
News search
– Immediate effect
– Exposure on Google News, Yahoo News etc.
– Easy.
• Quantified in PR Newswire Access Reports.
•
Natural search
– Results accumulate over time
– Results driven by individual internet searchers – unique
individual behavior.
– Difficult!
• Quantified in PR Newswire SEO reports.
How press releases (and other
content, for that matter) are
optimized
How Press Releases are optimized:
Front-End Optimization:
• Use well researched
keywords (not jargon)
• Construct your release
with search engines in
mind
• Keyword density
• Utilize anchor text, etc.
Back-End Optimization:
• Format your release for
search engines
(underlying HTML)
• Host release on search
engine friendly site
• Provide useful and
actionable measurement
and reporting
Front End Optimization: Keywords
Keywords: Mind the competition
Using more focused phrases
can connect you with people
who are looking for exactly
what you’re promoting …
without all the competition
Finding the ‘right’ keywords
• Talk to your web team
• Look at your web site – and competitor sites
• Use free online tools
– www.google.com/trends
– http://freekeywords.wordtracker.com/
… And “google” your selections (and colloquial
derivatives, like RV vs ‘recreational vehicle’) to ensure
that you’re lining your message up with relevant
content.
Front End Optimization:
Constructing your Press Release
Tip: “Up and to the left!”
• Write a succinct headline (60-80 characters) and use
your most important keyword towards the beginning.
• Repeat the keywords in the sub-head and/or the lead,
and throughout the body copy.
• Focus on relevance.
• Use anchor text, but also include full URLs
(http://thewholeURL.com) within your text. (Not all sites
render anchor text, so you need to provide readers with
a next step.)
• Utilize a keyword density analyzer, to ensure your
release is relevant for your keywords.
Copy and Paste
Release
Here
Place keywords or phrases here
to check for proper word density
for search engine optimization of a
release.
Checking keyword density
Case Study
Vermont Teddy Bear Co.
December 4, 2007
“PajamaGram” release
Two and a half months later, the
press release is still in the top 10
search results
Checking Keyword Density
Checking keyword density
How PR Newswire optimizes
press releases (back end
optimization)
Extracted keywords
Headline
Lead
Headline
Sub-head
Full release text
Measuring the Results
Push vs Pull
SEO results reveal:
• Whether or not you connected
with your audience.
• If your audiences is searching
for the terms you use in your
communications (you need to
know this either way)
• If your audiences find your
message interesting.
This company is connected with their
audience
• Almost half of all views generated from one key phrase
• High click through % among top terms
To wrap it up
Good public relations SEO depends on relevance:
• The relevance of the keywords you select
• The relevance of your press release for those
keywords
It’s a different kind of communication & engagement:
• SEO is an opportunity to connect with your
audience, to bring them to your message.
Q&A
Need more info? E-mail us at
[email protected]