How to Make Sure Your Press Release Gets Seen

What’s the point in slaving over a press release if no one sees it?Once upon a time, you would create it and send it to a few editors of local newspapers and magazines. Its fate was then in their hands – if they liked it, they printed it. If they didn’t, it was consigned to the bin, never to be seen again.Now, things are a bit different. You can distribute your release to various online services, re-post it on news websites, include it in your own blog and email marketing. Not only that, if people like what they read, they can share it with others.Before you start jumping round the room with glee, even if you publish it online, it will only be seen if it shows up in the search engine results. If you don’t pay close attention to the rules of SEO, you might as well take your chances and send out your press release the old fashioned way.6 ways to make your press release visible

As a writer, it is up to you to give your release as much chance as possible to be seen. The following 6 tips will help you achieve this:1. KeywordsIn the online world, there’s no getting away from keyword research. Think about the words and phrases people are most likely to use to search for you.For example, if you’re a coffee shop in Ipswich, using ‘coffee shop’ is a bit too generic (and you’ll have hot competition to rank well). Choose 2 or 3 keyword phrases that are highly specific to your business. For example, ‘Barney’s coffee shop Ipswich’ includes the company name, what it is and its location.2. HeadlineThe headline you choose will also act as your title tag or page title. Therefore, it is vital your primary keyword phrase and company name appear in it (with your keyword phrase at the beginning).In the world of SEO, it is your title tag that Google reads first because it tells it what your content is about.3. Short and powerfulStaying with your headline for the moment, Google only displays 65 characters in the title tag (including spaces) so your headline should be no longer than this. Of course, that is easier said than done. Normal practice suggests that a headline between 60 – 80 characters is acceptable, but your keyword phrase must be at the beginning.4. First paragraphAs you already know, the first paragraph of your press release is vitally important. It should contain the most important and relevant information. Therefore, your primary keyword phrase must appear in the first paragraph.5. HyperlinksThe beauty of publishing them online is that you can include hyperlinks. By linking your keyword phrase back to your website, you are telling Google that it is a website that contains highly relevant copy. And Google loves that.

6. NewsworthyThis one doesn’t have anything to do with SEO, but it is still very relevant.Your press release has to be newsworthy. Unlike the old fashioned printed version, when yours appears online, it’s there forever.So, if you put something out there that is a thinly veiled advert, you could be seriously damaging your company’s reputation.One thing you have to remember is that no matter how well you SEO it, results won’t happen overnight. Have patience and eventually you will see your press release being picked up in the search results.Being online, it will remain visible forever, providing you with a potential source of traffic for a long time to come.