A new study published today by Stone Temple Consulting shows that inbound links are still one of the top ranking factors in the Google algorithm, despite many changes in the recent past. The study is a tough read if you are not statistically or mathematically inclined, so here’s the Cliff Notes version:
After looking at several other studies and then using two different mathematical models they analyzed thousands of queries and results, both commercial and informational. The results showed that relevant inbound links are an almost perfect correlation to high rankings in Google.
There is one big caveat however: the content has to be relevant and meet the Google quality standards.
As Rand Fishkin of MOZ has said – you need to 10X the quality of your content. Watch this video.
Digital PR has a lot to offer in this regard. We can create excellent written content. What we need to improve on is visual content. (Note that visual content is expected to be 80% of all content by 2018 – so make sure you are an expert at this too!)
In terms of inbound links we can add value there too. After all, it’s organically earned links that Google values most and PR pros are the experts in earned media. ( Or we should be) All we have to do is adapt our process so that every piece of content that gets published has a link back to our site, blog or newsroom in it. And pitch content to influencers other than the mainstream media.
So it seems that PR is actually the perfect solution for SEO. Who knew?
Read SMART News: How to create branded content that gets found in Search and shared on Social Media
