Lexi Mills AMA

Hi, I am Lexi Mills, Head of Digital at Dynamo PRO. Ask Me Anything about PR, SEO, Social, link-building.

I am a passionate believer that PR and SEO work beautifully together, if you have had problems making this happen, want to ask questions about how to make these types of teams work effectively together, tactics, techniques or anything else about the above fields let me know.

Hi Ed, yes sure.  

Firstly: I try to think of how I make something relevant to a consumer, what information do they need? What is their state of mind when trying to find information about something, are they stressed and need a giggle, or do they need a tool that aggregates information? 

Most important I want whatever I create to be a good talking point within a community whether that be at work or in the pub.  I try to think about how someone would talk about it and incorporate that language into my content style.  So for example if it would be a serious point of a conversation, I want the content to look serious and trust worthy.  If it is suposed to be fun, then it should be bright with more relaxed copy. 

The images should optimise for being shared on the right social platforms too, so fit well on facebook for more fun social sharing but if its more business focused then you want the images to look good on linked in.  Irrespective of the target the headline/title should share well on twitter.

I often get asked what SEO's can do to understand what journalist like to write about, either so SEO s can pitch them or so SEOs can write content that is as engaging, my answer is always the same read the news and lot sof it.  at least a few days a month get about 6 papers in and look at how each one reports slightly differently on each story.  If anyone does that for 6 months they will drastically improve their writting and link-building skills.

Hi Patrick, 

The directors positioned the agency well, finding great PR's who can speak technical language and know their consumer press well is tough but is core to what we do. These days we also work on lots of Kickstarter projects, some B2B and of course projects where the clients website is at the centre of their business and therefore require both PR and SEO like bathrooms.com. I've always been a bit geeky so this mix fits me well, I also have an odd passion for finance apps and websites, kind of random I know, but its a very fascinating space!  

We have been planning a site rebuild for quite some time. We are fortunate to have experienced very fast growth of the agency over the last few years, which still continues.  Hence focus on our clients has been our main priority, which means the redesign has been postponed on several occasions.  The site works well for us in terms of functionality, but keep an eye for our new one over the next few months. :)

Hi Victor, I think it really depends on your objectives.  I have some clients where we are targeted on building Google plus profiles for their experts and in this case I put their Google plus profiles into their bylines or when they are quoted. When these profiles are setup correctly these Google plus links add value to the journalists story because they further substantiate why that person is being quoted or why their byline is of value.  Hence it contributes to the Win Win situation that I believe should underpin all SEO work.

cool no problem! To be honest these days I spend more time on creating the onsite content to support my outreach work and as such most of the time the links come without having to ask, because the content is worth linking to and enhances the story for the reader.

Here the link to the TV clip: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-13947771

What I think is important here is that it is actually not clear which is the link we were trying to get in this article.  That's what I think makes great PR SEO/ linkbuilding all links don't look natural they are in fact natural.

When it comes to best links earned, I think that depends on the situation.  Some of my biggest achievements have been getting links for content that was not media link worthy.  I worked with an inforgraphic a few years ago like that, it was super hard to get any links for.  However I got chatting to an editor at MSN and we decided it would be more fun animated.  We then paid for a dev guy to animate it (£50) and got it up on MSN.  I was very happy with that.

I also made a TV show with the BBC a few years back to build a link!  I was proud of that, I felt like I walked the extra mile on that one for sure!

Hi Steve, sure I often ask if they can 'reference' the client/website/content.  Sometimes I ask if they can help the reader find the website being talked about by linking to it. If the journalist seems to not like that idea of linking I let them know that it doesn't have to be followed, just something to help orientate readers and help them find more information.  

Hi Danny, thats a tough one....typos for sure! When your working very fast they can happen far too easily and media hate typos and bad English, so that always upsets me.  Addressing emails to the wrong person can also be pretty embarrassing, but were all human, you just have to apologise and beg forgiveness! I jumped onto a project last year that wasn't going well, I worked for two days and two nights with only a few hours sleep in between to get it ready to take to media. So I was feeling pretty delicate and when I Called story into one news desk the guy who answered said, "That's rubbish" and then hung up.  I was pretty upset by his rudeness.  So I drank some coffee and called back, hoping someone different would answer, they did and the publication ran the story in print and online. It just goes to show if you believe in something you have to be tough and keep at it!

Hi Mike, It's not just big brands hiring ex journos, PR agencies do it too!  They key thing is to start with the consumer in mind and then review and edit in SEO requirements.  Rather than start with SEO in mind and then work in consumer elements.

Hi David, Sure, I always start by giving both PR and SEO teams an intro training session in the other field.  That way when you get them all together they understand the terminology each team uses and what the contraints are with there jobs.  I am always amazed at how effective this is!

Hi Steve, So pleased you enjoyed Brighton SEO, always a good event! I always make sure that we put good quality content on our clients sites so that journalists can link to the website to enhance their story. Some stories just can't be told without referencing a specific webpage, such as this one we did last month: 

Hi Arturo, That is tough, building trust is really important, then you need to need paint them a picture of what they could have, where they could be and what that would mean. I would then draw on the words on Thomas Jefferson, "“If you want something you’ve never had, you must be willing to do something you’ve never done.” 

Hi Isha,  Content marketing is certainly topical. I am a big believer in it because it has the potencial to fee din to many areas of a business, from SEO to the sales cycle right through relationship management and PR.  I think the key thing is getting the priorities set amongst teams and then making sure you have someone dedicated to the task to liase with the various teams. There are some great meet up s and conference around the subject, so it worth having a look at what is going on in your area. 

Hi Arnold, I use the same strategies I used before penguin, finding way to build natural links, not natural looking but truly natural links.  I also make sure that I get my content to a full tier of media and bloggers.  Having specific media material for each group is important, media will want more photographs and interviews where as bloggers want something unique.  Having a tool kit to help a variety of people cover your story/content is key to getting a good diverse link portfolio.

When I am working on a client who is recovering from being hit by an update, you first need to clean up the link portfolio and then be VERY careful about every link you build afterwards.

Hi Stephen, Firstly,theres no such thing as a boring industry, there is always something interesting and someone who will be interested! Some of my favourite projects in the past have been in debt, insurance and security tags, so trust me you will have a few things you can use! I would make sure you get hold of all of your trade publications then set up Google alerts of a bunch of keywords relating to your industry.  When I start in a new area I try to read about 40 articles minimum a week that are being written about that area. You will soon get a feel for what things are interesting to media in that area.  Then you need to put your thinking cap on and start to look at what is happening in your company that would be of interest to them.  Where possible make the story current/ time sensitive and try to get soem exciting images to go with it.  Images can make or break a story.  You may also find getting a freelance PR or agency to come in a do a bit of consulting with you can help you get your head round it quicker. Feel free to give me a call at some point and we can discuss in more detail.

Best,

Lexi

Hi James, all really good questions.

1.) I have trained both in house and agency PR teams around the world and I always try and train people in small groups, everyone learns better from hearing other peoples questions and it makes them aware that they are not alone in learning this new area.  I think the most important aspects of SEO can be taught in an initial 3 hour session.  Try pick an afternoon when they are not launching something.  Open the session by explaining to them how SEO can help them, then explain the basics of how the internet and Search work.  Another great tactic is to buil a tool that provides SEO metrics for their PR reporting, that way they can see the SEO value of what they are doing and will become more interested in the metrics and how they can effect them. Also try sending an email or two ou to the team when one of them gets a great SEO hit with their PR work. To make things fair I often get the SEO teams to put PR metrics onto their reports too, it really help build understanding between teams.  The bottom line is that all information needs to be relevant to them and their day to day job.  I have found opening with the line, "I want to talk you through the foundations of SEO...this will help you day to day and put you in a posistion to earn more in the future" that tends to be pretty effective.

2.) I think some wires can be helpful for PR purposes, especially when you have time sensitive news. I would avoid PR Web and any of the super low priced services, they are not well respected by media and so don't help you get your content seen.  I have tested hundred of wires over the last few years but to be honest PR Newswire and Business wire are still the best I have found.

I wrote an article for PR Week on the new update: http://prweekblog.prweek.com/2013/08/09/no-google-didnt-just-kill-pr-agencies/

I also did an interview with econsultancy on the subject, which may be useful to you: http://econsultancy.com/uk/blog/63211-has-google-really-just-killed-the-pr-industry

3.) If a link is not relevant and a good user experience then your PR work will look spammy and no one will write about it, so you get no PR or SEO value.  I always push for natural relevant links in PR work, even if you have to create pages and content for this purpose. I always include a brand link because the media will want to know more about who is sending them this news, so that link is a good user experience.  Again anchor text can very easily look spammy, your better off not pushing for it to go into PR work and letting them have the best quality PR content which will help them get coverage and hopefully a good branded or relevant link, as aposed to having an anchor text filled email/ press release that no one wants to cover, hence no one wins!

Hi Dani, 

My specialism is not technical SEO, so I don't think I am the best person to advise you on this. I tend to leave that to the many SEO ninjas who are fantastic at this. 

At a first glance I notice that there is very little text above the page fold or even on the page in general.  Also I can see 4,893 total links with only 51 linking root domains.  I would normally expect that ratio to be lower on total links side.  I would really need to take a deeper look at the site and the link profile to make any firm conclusions though.  It might be worth getting yourself a technical site review.  Depending on your budget you might want hunt around for a good freelancer or possibly contact an agency.

Hi Serbay,  Thanks for your questions. Building local links can be very effective however there are other SEO techniques that can help.  I am a big fan of local link-building because when your creating regionally targeted PR/Content you know its going to be of interest to local people where as when your targeting nationals there is less certainty because of the national news agenda. Equally getting good links from good local site not only boosts your SEO but is more likely to feed you relevant traffic, which is what links should be about! 

I agree with the new updates aimed at wiping out the value of over optimised links in press releases, they have no REAL value to anyone and therefore should not count.  I have always said that press releases should have only relevant useful links in them.  

Useful to the journalist who is writing an article on what should be your news worthy content presented in your release and links that add value to the consumer reading the journalist or bloggers articles.  I don't think this update will do any damage to PR people doing good PR, I suspect that is may impact some people who think that filling their release with anchor text links is a good thing to do, however it may spur a few more people to get to grips with SEO and hopefully ring up their clients SEOs and start working more closely together.

I wrote an article for PR week on the new update: http://prweekblog.prweek.com/2013/08/09/no-google-didnt-just-kill-pr-agencies/

I also did an interview with econsultancy on the subject, which may be useful to you: http://econsultancy.com/uk/blog/63211-has-google-really-just-killed-the-pr-industry

I still stand by newswires as one of the ways of getting some of your great content seen by the right people.  I have had great success using PR newswire to help me reach media in new markets where I know fewer media.