SEO & Press Releases in 2014

If you’re planning on publishing a news article on your website and distributing it though a paid press release distribution service… now you must make sure that any optimized anchor text links are “no follow”. This is according to an update of link scheme definitions published by Google late last year.

If you’re feeling frustrated by these never ending changes: you are not alone. It can be overwhelming to keep up with it. At the same time, search engine optimization just might get cleaner. The brands who prefer to “do it right” (as opposed to taking aggressive shortcuts) will finally get rewarded.

So if you’re still looking for that one simple solution to get on the front page of Google… it’s not a mystery. Just do it right!

Build a brand. Build an audience. Be original. Truly original—not the “pass copyscape” kind of original. As far as press releases go, it’s not about search engine optimization. Press releases are about brand awareness.

The problem with using press releases as an SEO strategy is when a brand pulls fluffy topics out of thin air just to get a news article put together… and it’s useless. It’s not interesting to the general public, let alone to your target audience. A good press release should have substance. It should truly be about news, and the optimized links won’t matter.

In 2014, continue to use press releases but without the anchor text. Forget about the SEO aspect and use this strategy to reach relevant media. You’ll still get better visibility in search engines, without the links. Use your news articles to build relationships, not build links or keyword optimization.