Optimized Press Releases and SEO
28. Mar, 2008 
1 Comment
Quality press releases have always been an excellent way to drive traffic to a website, improve search engine rankings, and build brand recognition. But not all press releases are created equal. The difference in a release depends on the intended results.
Traditionally press releases or news release were major news events and announcements from large corporations. The cost to make such an announcement was very high and the methods to distribute the information ranged from the telex, fax to relationships and networks of people. The internet and the availability of low cost distribution services has changed this considerably. Any business can now afford to do a press release. This is both a good and bad thing. The shear quantity of press releases now being done has clouded what is “Real News” from just plain marketing and attempts to improve a business’s standings with the search engines. What could be better than a relevant links from a network of high ranking, high traffic news sites? Well not much, and that’s why press releases are more prevalent.
Finding a way to get your press release SEEN is the real trick, and that’s why services that focus on optimized press releases are in high demand. Anyone can write up a 300 word press release and send it out on WebWire for $19 and get a boost in traffic, but the real benefit is when you do the work up front to make sure your release is receiving the maximum exposure, and giving you the biggest boost in your sites link value and traffic.
So in order to compete with the masses now doing press releases as a form of “article marketing” and pagerank improvement you need to do something more. The focus has to be on effective keyword research and the crafting of documents and titles that are being searched for online. The press release will continue to be the most effective avenue of building brand value and improve a websites traffic, but the companies that gain the competitive advantage will be the ones that learn how to optimize their release or use an effective service to handle this process for them.
