Insights
1. The Benefits of Digital PR with an SEO Focus
Recently, I appeared on the Buzzstream podcast with Vince Nero.
It was a lot of fun discussing various topics related to SEO, storytelling, and pitching journalists.
But, one question stood out.
Vince asked me about the benefits of Digital PR with an SEO focus.
Here's the gist of what I told him…
Our approach to Digital PR has evolved significantly.
We've come to realize that, at its core, this strategy is really about data journalism.
This shift in perspective has transformed how we work with our clients and approach our campaigns.
Demanding more from your numbers
To achieve the best coverage, we need to demand more from our data.
This means conducting bigger studies, employing more sound methodologies, and uncovering further impactful insights.
It's about telling stories in exciting and dynamic ways.
The key is to find the sweet spot where your brand, the industry, and the story you're trying to tell naturally intersect.
When you hit this mark, it makes sense for your brand to be the one telling that story.
This is where you develop your E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness).
It's not all about links for SEO
Data journalism is the practice of finding stories in numbers and using data to create a compelling narrative.
In the context of Digital PR and SEO, it means using data to create newsworthy content that naturally attracts high-quality backlinks and media attention.
So, by focusing on data journalism and brand storytelling, we're aiming for more than just a link.
We aim to earn trust from humans, not just algorithms.
That's because the best SEO thinks of people first.
When done right, Digital PR gets your brand covered in places where actual humans are reading and being exposed to your message. It's earned media.
Creating content you're proud of
The goal is to create content that you're proud to showcase.
This isn't something you bury on your blog; it's content you want to repurpose for social media or feature in your newsletter.
When we get it right, we might even secure coverage in prestigious publications like The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, or The Atlantic.
Ideation for Digital PR
One of the biggest challenges in Digital PR is ideation.
It's not just about using your internal data—that might give you one or two good campaigns. For sustained success, you need to think conceptually and creatively.
Take, for example, our work with Preply, a language learning application.
Initially, we ran studies that were too 'on-the-nose,' asking about language learning regrets.
These didn't resonate.
When we broadened our focus to telling stories about communication, we struck gold. We helped Preply's audience understand that communication is culture, speaking, and language.
One particularly successful study examined how people perceive different ways of beginning and ending emails.
We explored how people can be direct or passive-aggressive in email, and what they perceive as either good or bad at the start or end of an email. It's a topic that's both relatable and has broad appeal.
Look beyond your direct offering
The key is to look beyond your direct service offering and think about the broader industry you're in.
For Preply, we realized that communication is culture, and that's at the emotional core of what the brand is about.
This realization opened up a world of storytelling possibilities.
Overall, I'd say that successful Digital PR with an SEO focus is about telling compelling stories with data.
You need to find that sweet spot of relevance for your brand, and create content that connects with real people.
It's a challenging but rewarding approach that can yield significant benefits for your brand's visibility and authority.
My conversation with Vince also answered these questions:
00:17:45 – Is this the time to go all in on Digital PR in the US?
00:02:14 – What’s a cool piece of content you’ve seen lately?
00:24:42 – How do you select media contacts during your outreach process?
00:30:53 – How would you integrate Digital PR with a product launch?
00:40:09 – Do you leverage survey platforms for data?
Listen to the podcast for more insights.
2. Mediavine takes action against publishers using AI
Ad management company Mediavine is terminating the accounts of publishers who excessively rely on AI-generated material.
The issue gained attention when a Reddit user shared an email from Mediavine explaining their account closure.
The company’s internal tools identified the user’s websites as having an overreliance on AI-generated content. Following a review, Mediavine immediately shut down the account.
In a March 7th statement titled "AI and Our Commitment to a Creator-First Future," Mediavine spells out its opposition to low-quality, mass-produced, or undisclosed AI content.
"We do not monetize low-quality, mass-produced, unedited or undisclosed AI content that is scraped from other websites."
And,
"We’re also developing faster, automated tools to help us identify low-quality, mass-produced AI content across the web.
If previously-vetted websites begin producing lower quality content instead, we will catch it and take immediate action."
Mediavine's stance reinforces its commitment to prioritizing human-created content as AI use becomes more widespread in the industry.
For affected publishers, the financial consequences are significant. With their accounts closed, they lose access to top advertisers, severely limiting their future earnings.
Mediavine’s revenue-sharing model typically provides publishers with up to 90% of ad revenue, so these terminations deal a major financial blow to any site reliant on the platform.
Mediavine is not entirely opposed to AI. It supports its responsible use for tasks like writing image descriptions to aid accessibility.
The company's actions underscore the risks of overusing AI and reinforces their commitment to preserving content quality.
Related:
- Scroll down for some quick thoughts on the dangers of 'synthetic' content: AI peaked and now it's getting dumber.
- I posted about how 'AI-generated content won't cut it' and what to do instead.
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