We've Paid to Optimize our Web Site. So Why Aren't We #1?

Most companies today have already invested in the search engine optimization (SEO) of their web site to improve search engine rankings by keyword. However, for many this effort has been a disappointment, as the home page did not rise to the first half of the first page of search results -- where an estimated 60% of the Internet business is generated.

So, what went wrong? The answer, it turns out, is not what was done, but what was not done. Simply put, most companies are not utilizing additional, available SEO techniques that are critical to reaching the top spots. Namely, optimized press releases and RSS feeds.

"Optimizing a web site is only a piece of the SEO puzzle. Without optimized releases and RSS feeds, there will be gaping holes in your online strategy and it will be difficult, if not impossible, to get to the top of the rankings," says John W. Elliott, CEO of Power PR (www.powerpr.com), a business to business marketing public relations firm that now offers clients a complete search engine optimization program including RSS feeds.

Optimized press releases

A critical component of search engine ranking involves the number of web sites that link back to the home page. Naturally, the ranking and relevance of these other sites is a factor. The goal, then, becomes to generate a large number of quality links to the home page.

How is this accomplished? Marketing public relations firms - long charged with promoting news and feature article stories for print -- are now offering search engine optimization programs that involve optimizing and distributing news and feature articles on the Internet. These articles have embedded links back to the home page and, as they are published throughout the Internet, provide a large volume of high quality links that impact a home page's ranking.

According to Elliott, what is surprising is the speed at which optimized articles impact news and search engine rankings. Within days of distributing an article, many companies find themselves at the top of news search engines such as Google and Yahoo! News. This often results in a dramatic increase in website traffic, as well as call-in leads. Perhaps as important as the response, these news engines are considered highly relevant news sources by the major search engines, further boosting home page rankings.

RSS Feeds:

RSS (Really Simple Syndication) feeds are quickly gaining the attention of business to business marketing public relations firms. Power PR, for example, is actually now offering RSS feeds as part of its search engine optimization program.

RSS makes it easy to display high-quality, relevant news on your site, and to syndicate your news and content elsewhere. You can use an RSS feed for a variety of types of content: product news, press releases, and technical articles.

People who read RSS feeds are typically opinion leaders and early adopters. One of the best ways to reach these early adopters is PRESSfeed an RSS service designed specifically to increase the effectiveness of online PR and marketing efforts.

Best of all, the major search engines love RSS feeds and view them as legitimate news sources. Therefore, having an RSS feed on your site will provide a major boost in your search engine optimization efforts.

For more information about Search Engine Optimization using marketing publicity, contact John Elliott at (310) 787-1940; Fax (310) 787-1970; www.powerpr.com.

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