With the release of the Panda update, many experts believed that this could mean the end of the road for the press release. There are two opposing mindsets up to now. Some experts would say that the press release is dead while some would say it has never been better.
This leads us to the question does press release help SEO ranking?
Google released the Panda update in 2011 which is an algorithm meant to prevent sites with low-quality content to rank high in search results. A report from Search Engine Land claims that wire sites went down in rankings between 60% to 85% after Panda 4.0.
This has led to editorial guidelines being changed, the focus is now directed on informational content as compared to the advertorial type.
Wire services believe that press releases created with high-quality content will not be impacted negatively by the update.
Reputable and best press release distribution service for editorial coverage educate their client’s on crafting releases that are newsworthy and with high quality in mind. Link stuffing and irrelevant information should not be a part of releases.
For those who have been using press releases as an SEO tool, things have changed dramatically and they can start a seo business today.
Gone are the days when spammy press releases were used to get backlinks even if they have no value whatsoever. This is bad news for black hat SEO practitioners.
The white hat SEO companies will hopefully thrive in this situation. Press releases can still give an impact indirectly to boosting SEO. Despite the nofollow links that Google has implemented for press releases, great releases can still benefit businesses.
There are right ways to use anchor texts in your press release you should follow the suggested guidelines:
- Use only 2 to 3 links for every 500 words of text. Do not go beyond this number for anchor text and hyperlinks because it will appear spammy. this may cause penalties or site block from SERPs.
- Place “nofollow” tags in all backlinks of your release to avoid penalties.
- Canonical tags should be used in case large portions of text from your site will be pasted into your release content or if the release will be posted directly on your site.
- Use your top keyword target in the anchor text of your first link because this link carries the most weight.
Some of the best practices to avoid SEO press release penalties are:
- Link stuffing is a practice for black hat SEO marketers. Limit links to 1 to 2 links for your entire release using them as a call to action.
- Refrain from using keywords in your link anchor text, use your brand or company name instead. You can also use “click here” or “to know more.”
- Use no follow links so that Google can ignore your links as part of your SEO. This will help avoid penalties from Panda. These no follow links work, so there is a chance to get traffic to your site.
- If you are using a press release distribution service, verify the number of links they use as no follow links.
- Take down old press releases that were overly optimized. Disavowing links may also help with your SEO, Google has a disavow tool that can help you fix this. You should also add press release sites on your disavow list so that your rankings will not be affected.
Consumers are not the main target of your press release, journalists and media outlets are. So the key performance indicator is the amount of coverage received from the distribution. The main goal of press releases is to connect with media outlets, journalists, editors, and bloggers. It should not be your top strategy for link building and SEO.
