Press Releases: How and Why to Include Them in Your SEO

Think press releases are a thing of the past? Press releases, when done correctly, are a powerful SEO tool that helps drive more traffic to your website and increase relevancy for your website. By submitting your press release to press release distribution services you increase the number of back links to your site with relevant content through the newswire services and the web sites to which they distribute content. Just one simple act of submitting a single press release through a distribution service gives your site several relevant in-bound links from trusted websites all over the internet.

But, in order to benefit fully from your press release distribution, you have to approach the SEO of your press releases in much the same way that you would approach the Search Engine Optimization of any page on your website. Your press release has to be drafted keeping your targeted keywords in mind and must contain relevant content to those keywords.

Wait…Hold up… You don’t think you have anything to write about that is news-worthy? Actually you do. You can submit a press release about pretty much anything. You can announce a new product or service, announce a new service area, announce a new hire… anything. You can even submit a press release about your blog. Don’t have a blog yet? (Shame on you) Sit down a take a few minutes to start a blog, write your first blog entry and then submit a press release about it. Press releases are simply too important to not distribute.

There are 5 parts of a press release and we are going to discuss how to create each part. They are:

· T Title

Summary

Body

About the Company

Press Contact

Each part of your press release needs to be created correctly in order to maximize the SEO benefit of the final press release. Here are the 10 steps that you should take when drafting your press release.

Step 1. Choose the keyword(s) that you would like to target with your press release. Your keywords can be one word or more. Choosing long-tail keywords is best to attract visitors that are looking for your products and services. For example: If you are an exclusive buyers agent in Long Beach California and your farming area is actually restricted to the Long Beach Area, you would not want to just use ‘California Real Estate’. A better choice in this scenario would be ‘Long Beach California Real Estate Buyers Agent’.

Step 2. Choose a webpage or two on your website that you will be linking to that has the same targeted keywords. Many press release services will allow you to use anchor text within the body of your press release so choose your web pages carefully and make sure they have not only the same selected keywords, but also that they have relevant content.

Step 3. Create the title of your press release WITH your keywords in the title. What would someone type to come across your press release? Get inside your prospective clients head and then write your title to target that client.

Step 4. Draft the summary of your press release using the most important keyword that you have chosen in step 1. You will need to keep the summary short (less than 150 characters) and include different keywords from the ones that you chose to put in your title. Your summary will be used as a description directly under the title on SERPs (search engine results pages) and using different keywords maximizes the exposure for your selected keywords.

Step 5. Write the content (body) of your press release keeping in mind that it must be in a ‘third-party news reporting’ tone of voice. Refrain from using the words you, your, our, or any word that makes it appear that you are talking to your target audience. This part of your press release must be completely objective and cannot be promotional in nature. Use your target keywords throughout the content of your press release, but refrain from keyword stuffing. Use anchor text to link to exactly two pages on your website. Some newswire distributors will not allow you to include the anchor text but many will, so have your links ready to go for those that do allow anchor text.

Step 6. Create your quote. This is the only place in your press release that you can use your voice to advertise your business. The rest of the press release MUST maintain the ‘third-party news reporting’ voice. Only include one quote in your press release and stick to using only two quotation marks. Don’t break up your quote into two sets of quotes because some services only index the first quote and if it is an incomplete thought it will look very unprofessional.

Step 7. Create your ‘About the Company’. In 3-4 sentences describe your company in the same ‘third-party news reporting’ voice as the content of your press release. You want this to be your company’s ‘elevator pitch’. Include a link to the index page of your site using anchor text. Again, some newswire distributors will not allow anchor text. Most of the time, the ones that do not allow anchor text will allow you to write out the URL of your site as long as you do not precede it with the http://.

Step 8. Determine who your press contact will be and include the information at the very bottom of your press release. Depending on the press release service, you may have to remove this section when you submit your press release in lieu of providing contact information somewhere else on the submission form.

Step 9. Read your press release OUT LOUD. I cannot stress how important this step is in drafting your press release. Reading your press release out loud will identify areas of the press release that ‘just don’t sound right’. Once you have read your press release out loud and have made any necessary corrections to the content you are ready to start submitting your release to distribution services.

Step 10. Submit your press release to 2-5 distribution services. There are many free press release distribution services on the net. Two that I use are przoom.com and 1888pressrelease.com

That’s it! Once you have your press release submitted you will normally have to wait a day or so for the distribution service to approve your press release. Once they have approved your press release, you will have several relevant in-bound links from trusted websites all over the internet.

But wait… there is ONE more thing that you need to do with your press release.

Once you have submitted your press release through the newswire distribution services, you will then need to convert it to a PDF and place it on your site. You should have a section of your website dedicated to news about your company and link the news announcements to your PDFs. You should also link to your PDFs from your blog and link your blog to the news section of your website.

Whew! Sounds like an awful lot for one little press release doesn’t it? Truth is that once you have done it a few times it becomes easy. Try to get into the routine of submitting one press release every month. You can add it to the day that you already have set aside to write your monthly newsletter (you do have one right?) and alter the content a bit to include in your company announcements as well. Getting into this habit will help you to increase traffic to your site with visitors that are already looking for your services. What better way to increase your bottom-line with $0 investment?

-Cheryl Waller
Marketing Consultant SEO, SEM, SMM
www.CherylWaller.com

SEO, SEM and SMM Services by Cheryl Waller

Looking to dominate Google Search engine results for your business?

I am about to share with you 5 of my darkest secrets. (Ok they are not 'really' dark secrets but it sounds better than 'tips') But, before we go any further I must remind you that Search Engine Marketing and funneling more traffic to your site is NOT about tricking the search engines, it is NOT about how much you can pay per click and it is NOT how many websites link to your website. At the end of the day, it is about how well you optimize your website for visitors as well as search engines. The SEO process, when employed correctly, enables potential clients that are ALREADY LOOKING for your product and services to find you easier and faster in that coveted top 10 results of Google for your specific keywords.

My name is Cheryl Waller and I am an experienced SEO, SEM and SMM consultant. I work with client websites to apply various SEO and SEM techniques to NOT ONLY optimize websites, but also dominate Google results for specific search terms.

First off, let me say that it is very important that whether you hire someone to do it for you or if you do-it-yourself, you must optimize using trusted Google webmaster guidelines. Never use black-hat strategies in your Search Engine Optimization process. Black-Hat strategies are dangerous to fool around with and can ultimately get your site removed from the index of most major search engines. Beware of SEO consultants that say they can get xxx links to your website in xxx time. They are probably using black-hat strategies. Search engines actually LOOK for these unethical methods to remove your site from their indices. Black hat strategies use methods such as spamdexing and keyword stuffing. I have helped hundreds of business owners get much higher rankings in the major search engines and improve the overall bottom line of their business without using any unethical or ‘manipulative’ techniques of any kind.

What Do You ‘Do’ to Dominate Google Search Results?

There are several key elements to improve your website rankings:

1. Keyword Research and Selection: As the foundation of your entire SEO project, research your current keywords and figure out what keywords you need to continue to use, what keywords you don’t need to be using and what keywords you should add to your site. Once you have your initial list then it’s time to get to work on optimizing your site for these keywords.

2. Meta Data SEO: Take each page on your website and begin to categorize each page for specific SEO goals. The titles, descriptions, keyword content and on-page navigation should be made search engine friendly and enable your site to be more properly indexed. One of the most shocking things that I find during this step is that many of my clients are using the same titles, descriptions and keywords across many pages… this is actually one of the top 18 Ways to Mess up Your Search Engine Optimization strategy.

3. Website Content SEO: One-by-one take each webpage and optimize the content to be both search engine and visitor friendly. It is important to carefully balance what the search engines want to see with what people will want to read (and more importantly REACT to by contacting you for more information or making a purchase on your site).

4. Inner-Page Linking SEO: Work with your code and navigation structure to make sure that all of your pages are being indexed properly, that there is accurate inner-linking relationships for all of your web pages and that both search engines and visitors will be able to find the information that they are looking for quickly and easily.

5. Link Building and Social Networking: The next step is to submit your site to various websites around the internet using directories, article submission and your social network. These links should be relevant to your website and business. Only place relevant links back to your site. Yes, you can probably find a site somewhere that will give you 14,000 links to your site for $14.95, but how many of those are even relevant to your business, how many are link farms and how many will actually still be there in a week. You DO NOT need 14,000 links to your site… what you do need are relevant links to your business from reputable websites that are trusted by search engines. You do this by developing a link campaign SPECIFIC to your business, not by paying for links or participating in link exchange scams.

How Do I ‘Know’ It Is Working?

Not only can you Google the key word phrases that you chose in the planning phases of your search engine optimization project, but you can also review reports about your site before you start, during the process and at the end of the project. I will forewarn you that even though much of the SEO will affect your site almost immediately, that it may take time for the traffic on your site to convert. That is why you also use Google analytics tools to measure the progress and watch how visitors navigate your site and make improvements along the way. Once you have the traffic to your site, you have watched visitors navigate your site and given visitors exactly what they are looking for when they arrive; then you will start to see significant change in your conversion rates.

So All I Need Is SEO?

No. Remember that it is not JUST SEO, but also web design, SEM, SMM and Social Network Marketing that affects your rankings, traffic and conversion rates. All of these work TOGETHER to funnel traffic to your site and get your website in the top 10 of Google results for your search phrases; naturally! While it is true that SEO alone can help your site, the true is the same for good web design. Having a true understanding of all of the elements, knowing how they all work together and being able to implement a plan that works faster, more effectively, and MOST importantly is time-tested and long-term is what sets you apart from your competition.

What Can You Do for ‘My’ Website?

Glad you asked. Just shoot me an email with the URL for your website and I will be happy to send you back a quick overview of what we need to do with your website to get it where it needs to be and make you more sales. Click on ‘Contact’ at either the top or bottom of my website to send me an email with your request.

-Cheryl
www.CherylWaller.com
Social Renegade Systems


Cheryl Waller is an experienced SEO, SEM and SMM consultant. She has authored several Internet and direct marketing manuals for small business owners and real estate agents. She is a contributing author to several websites and offers free advice on dominating Google search results. She also offers a free video on her Search Engine Optimization website that reveals her #1 Secret to Dominating Google Search Results.

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18 Things You Can Do to Mess Up Your Search Engine Optimization Plan

Search Engine Optimization is just another tool in your marketing bag. If used properly it can bring you more customers, more prospects, and more clients faster than any other form of marketing. But, like anything else in marketing, it requires a plan. Plans require a clear end result to be defined. This is first and foremost in your online marketing plan: your end result (or conversion). What is your desired conversion?

Whatever your conversion goal is, it will involve a living breathing person on the other end of the internet connection. Before the existence of the internet, before the existence of direct mail marketing, conversions involved face-to-face interactions. Keep this in mind while developing your marketing plan. Search Engine Marketing is NOT about tricking the search engines, it is NOT about how much you pay per click and it is NOT how many websites link to your website. At the end of the day, it is about simulating that face-to-face interaction as closely as possible.

When your prospective customer reaches your website, they probably do not know who you are. They are not familiar with your company and most importantly they do not want to be ‘sold’.

But WAIT??? You say. 'I have to make money. I have something to sell. That’s why I spent so much time and money bringing people to my website'.

Yes, but here is something to ponder. When you are shopping in a brick and mortar store, say for instance that you are shopping for a new stove. What are YOU initially looking for? …

INFORMATION!

You want to know what makes the $600 model better than the $400 model. You ask yourself, “do I really need all the features of the $600 model or can I live with the $400 model?” So you are sitting there reading all of the information on the tags. You are gathering information. If a salesman walks up in the first few moments, you tell him that you are ‘just looking’ to get him to back off. It isn’t until you have settled on one or two models that you ask for help. It isn’t until you have gathered all of the INFORMATION that you even glance in the direction of the salesman, fearing that even looking at him before you are ready will cause him to come running across the store and stand two feet from you until you make your final selection.

You don’t want to be ‘sold’. You want to make an informed decision and when you finally do ask for a salesperson, what are you looking for?

MORE INFORMATION!

You are looking for more information to support your buying decision. Only when you have satisfied all of your questions do you ever even pull out that credit card and make the purchase.

Keep that in mind when you are creating your internet marketing plan.

The successful salesman knows that he has products to sell. He knows that he must sell X number of stoves to put food on the table. But most importantly, the successful salesman KNOWS that in order to make the sale, he must know his product. He must have the INFORMATION. He must know how to communicate that knowledge & also how to make the sale passively without being a ‘salesman’.

So, back to how to market ineffectively online….

If you truly want to lose potential customers… if your passion is to sit around all day and figure out how to trick the search engines into ranking your website in the #1 or #2 spot….. If you love paying way too much for pay per click traffic… if you are absolutely sure that you do not need to pay attention to proper Search Engine Optimization... then here are a few sure fire ways to completely waste your time with your website:

• · Use LOTS of cute graphics… especially the dancing cowboy one… everyone loves that right?
  
  
• · Put everything you can possibly think of on the first page
  
  
• · Include links to every single site you can think of
  
  
• · Link exchange with everyone that asks
  
  
• · Ask everyone to link exchange with you
  
  
• · Make your contact information hard to find
  
  
• · List your contact information everywhere and anywhere it fits
  
  
• · Have no sensible navigation whatsoever
  
  
• · Name your home page ‘Home’, your contact page ‘contact me’ etc
  
  
• · Use images to link your inner pages
  
  
• · Have at least three broken links on every page
  
  
• · Use the worst possible picture of yourself and make sure its cropped wrong
  
  
• · Use the same title tag on every single page
  
  
• · Use the same description on every single page
  
  
• · Design your entire site in flash (remember to include the broken links)
  
  
• · Buy 14,000 links to your site for $14.95
  
  
• · Hide text on your website so search engines see it and people don’t
  
  

And the #1 thing you can do to completely waste your time with your website is…….

• · Don’t include any information anywhere about anything having to do with your business