How PR Placements Can Be Leveraged for Better SEO Results

I’ve spent years helping brands scale through SEO and paid search. And one of the most overlooked opportunities I see is this:

You’re sitting on a goldmine: your PR isn’t just press—it’s SEO fuel.

If you’re investing in PR and not aligning it with your SEO strategy, you’re leaving serious traffic, authority, and revenue on the table. In this article, I’ll walk you through exactly how to leverage PR placements to boost your organic rankings, with real-world examples and a simple execution framework you can start using today.

Why PR Is a Secret Weapon for SEO

Search engines are smarter than ever. They’re no longer just looking at keywords—they’re evaluating authority, trust, and relevance.

That’s where public relations comes in.

Here are three often-overlooked ways PR placements help supercharge your SEO:

1. Natural Backlinks from High-Authority Sites

2. Third-Party Validation That Boosts Google’s Trust Signals

3. Long-Term Domain Equity and Brand Visibility

Let’s break these down and show how they directly impact your rankings.

Proof: Real Companies Using PR to Win in SEO

Britannica: Building Domain Authority Through E-A-T

Consider Encyclopedia Britannica. Competing with platforms like Wikipedia isn’t easy—but through strategic PR, Britannica grew monthly pageviews by over 53%, jumping from 328 million to 507 million. That increase translated to an estimated $3.56 million in monthly revenue.

How did they do it?

By focusing on E-A-T—Google’s standard for Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness. PR placements in reputable publications reinforced their credibility, earning them high-quality backlinks and helping them dominate SERPs.

PacketLabs: PR Legitimacy in a Trust-Driven Industry

Another standout is PacketLabs, a cybersecurity firm operating in a space where trust is non-negotiable. Through a mix of educational PR content and SEO fundamentals, they turned media features and expert commentary into SEO assets. The result? Leads converting at an average deal size of $57,000 per client.

Their success wasn’t just from visibility—it was from credibility that Google could measure and reward.

The Promise: PR Isn’t Just for Buzz Anymore—It’s Strategic SEO

Once upon a time, PR was mostly about media impressions and brand awareness. Today, the smartest marketers see PR as a pillar of their search strategy.

Well-placed press coverage now serves multiple SEO goals:

• Natural Backlinks: Top-tier media outlets linking back to your site improve your domain authority in Google’s eyes.

• Trust and Credibility: PR confirms you’re a credible source—critical for industries in finance, health, cybersecurity, and SaaS.

• Brand Mentions: Even unlinked brand mentions help you rank for branded keywords and improve your entity authority.

When SEO and PR work together, they create a flywheel effect: PR boosts SEO, which increases traffic, which increases brand mentions, which boosts PR visibility.

The Plan: How to Turn Every PR Win Into SEO Results

1. Secure Do-Follow Backlinks

When your PR team lands a feature or interview, ask for a do-follow link back to your website. Even homepage links carry massive domain authority benefits. Ideally, get links to relevant internal pages or cornerstone content.

2. Optimize Anchor Text for Relevance

Where possible, guide publications to use keyword-rich anchor text. For example, if you’re a legal tech firm, “legal workflow automation platform” is more valuable anchor text than just your company name.

This aligns external links with your target keyword strategy—making every backlink more effective.

3. Repurpose PR Into Evergreen Content

One press release can be transformed into:

• A keyword-optimized blog post

• A LinkedIn article

• A resource page

• A case study or infographic

By turning media wins into searchable content, you create long-tail value that continues to support SEO well beyond the news cycle.

4. Monitor Unlinked Mentions and Convert Them

Tools like Ahrefs, BuzzSumo, or Mention can identify places where your brand was mentioned without a link. A quick, polite outreach to the editor or journalist can turn these into valuable backlinks.

5. Boost Your E-A-T with Author Credentials

Make sure your site is reinforcing the credibility you’ve built through PR. Include:

• Author bios on your blog

• Expert quotes or media features

• Logos of media outlets where you’ve been featured

• Credentials, certifications, or awards prominently displayed

This builds a trust profile—one of the key criteria Google uses to assess site quality.

Summary Framework

Let’s tie it all together:

Proof:

Companies like Britannica and PacketLabs used PR to build backlinks, reinforce trust, and fuel long-term SEO growth. The results: millions in traffic, authority, and revenue.

Promise:

PR isn’t just about media hits—it’s a legitimate SEO lever. When aligned with search strategy, it builds authority, drives backlinks, and supports sustainable growth in organic rankings.

Plan:

• Ask for backlinks in every PR win

• Use keyword-optimized anchor text

• Turn media mentions into evergreen content

• Convert unlinked mentions into backlinks

• Display your credentials to strengthen E-A-T

Final Thoughts

If you’re already investing in PR, you’re halfway there. But unless you’re integrating those wins into your search engine strategy, you’re not realizing their full value.

Google wants to rank credible, expert-driven brands. PR is your shortcut to showing Google exactly that—if you use it right.

About The Author

Dave Burnett

I help people make more money online.

Over the years I’ve had lots of fun working with thousands of brands and helping them distribute millions of promotional products and implement multinational rewards and incentive programs.

Now I’m helping great marketers turn their products and services into sustainable online businesses.

How can I help you?

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