When you write a press release (or have someone do the job for you) you want your release to do a couple of things — inform readers of some important company news (e.g., a new store opening, an acquisition of a company, a promotion of a key employee, etc.) and you want it to catch the eye of reporters. With the former, readers generally find your press release online through a news source such as Google News. With the latter, if your release is of interest to a reporter, he or she may quote excerpts from your release or find a story within the release which can then be turned into a fresh article.

The Third Component of Your Press Release

A third component of a press release is Google’s all-important page rank. If your release is posted via a quality distribution service such as PR Leap, it should eventually gain page rank on its own. However, that step is no guarantee — you must link to your online release from a ranked page on your own site.

For example, when I post a press release online I will also list the title of that press release on my PR4 portfolio page. Next, I activate the title by linking it to the release featured on PR Leap (or elsewhere) which essentially gives a “vote” for the release, thereby increasing the chances that this copy will also achieve page rank.

Your Ranked Press Release Helps Your Site

Why is this third component important? For one big reason: The press releases I list with PR Leap each offer active backlinks to my client’s web site (yes, I strongly recommend to my clients that they purchase the upgraded press release package from PR Leap or other service, if available). In some cases these older press releases have achieved page rank which then serves as a nicely ranked link back to their site. I not only write a jam up press release for my clients (wink*wink), but I also help to optimize their sites thanks to one important extra step that I take on their behalf.

For an example of one such press release that has achieved page rank and points back to a client’s site, please check out the following PR Leap release, “Weary Flight Attendants…” which currently has a page rank of 3. In this particular case I happen to also be the client as I wrote the release for another site I own.

You didn’t think that I would let an optimization opportunity sneak past me now, did you?