Press releases were once a favorite tactic for quick backlinks. Marketers would distribute keyword-rich announcements across dozens of wire services, collecting links with optimized anchor text. By 2017, that approach had largely stopped working, and many people wondered whether press releases still had any SEO value at all. The answer was nuanced: press releases were no longer a direct ranking shortcut, but they remained a valuable tool for visibility, brand awareness, and earning genuine media coverage.
How AAMAX.CO Uses PR to Strengthen SEO
Modern press and outreach strategies require a careful balance between visibility and search engine guidelines. AAMAX.CO is a full-service digital marketing company offering web development, digital marketing, and SEO services worldwide. They help businesses craft newsworthy announcements, promote them to relevant audiences, and turn coverage into authority-building opportunities. By aligning PR efforts with a comprehensive SEO strategy, their team ensures announcements contribute to long-term brand growth rather than risky link schemes.
What Changed Before 2017
Google's Penguin updates, beginning in 2012, targeted manipulative link-building practices. In 2013, Google clarified that links in press releases distributed for the purpose of manipulating rankings could violate its guidelines. Webmasters were advised to use nofollow attributes on such links. By 2016, Penguin became part of Google's core algorithm, operating in real time. As a result, by 2017, keyword-stuffed press releases with followed links were ineffective and potentially risky.
Direct SEO Value of Press Releases in 2017
In 2017, most major press release distribution services applied nofollow attributes to links, meaning they passed little or no direct ranking value. Duplicate content syndicated across many sites also offered minimal unique value. Google representatives repeatedly stated that press release links should not be expected to help rankings directly. The era of using press releases as a link-building shortcut had ended.
Indirect SEO Benefits Remained Strong
Despite limited direct link value, press releases offered meaningful indirect SEO benefits. A genuinely newsworthy release could catch the attention of journalists and bloggers who then wrote original stories with editorial links. These earned links carried real authority. Press releases also increased brand mentions, which helped search engines associate a company with specific topics and industries.
Brand Visibility and Trust
Press releases helped businesses appear in news searches, industry publications, and branded search results. When potential customers searched for a company name, seeing recent news coverage built credibility. This trust influenced click-through rates and conversions, contributing to overall marketing success.
Best Practices for Press Releases in 2017
Successful press releases in 2017 focused on genuine news: product launches, partnerships, research findings, funding announcements, or community initiatives. They used natural language rather than keyword stuffing, included branded or naked URLs rather than optimized anchor text, and accepted nofollow links as standard. Most importantly, they were paired with targeted outreach to relevant journalists rather than relying purely on distribution.
Publishing on Your Own Site First
A smart tactic was to publish the full announcement on the company's own newsroom or blog before distributing it. This allowed the original page to be indexed first and gave journalists a canonical source to reference and link to. It also kept valuable content on the company's own domain.
How the Lessons Apply Today
The principles established by 2017 still hold. Digital PR has evolved into a powerful link-earning strategy focused on data-driven stories, expert commentary, and creative campaigns that journalists want to cover. Brand mentions matter even more today as AI-powered search engines rely on reputation signals across the web. Specialized GEO services leverage authoritative coverage to improve brand presence in generative answers.
Integrating PR With SEO Strategy
Press releases work best as part of a coordinated plan. Align announcements with content marketing, social media, and email campaigns for maximum reach. Track brand mentions and earned links to measure impact. Professional search engine optimization includes outreach and digital PR as part of authority building, while broader digital marketing efforts amplify each announcement across channels.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Avoid releasing non-news simply for links, overloading releases with keywords, using exact-match anchors, and distributing to low-quality networks. These practices offered no benefit in 2017 and could still trigger algorithmic issues today. Focus instead on quality, relevance, and real audience interest.
Measuring the Impact of Press Releases
Because the SEO value of press releases became indirect by 2017, measuring their impact required looking beyond simple link counts. Marketers began tracking metrics such as the number of original articles written by journalists, unlinked brand mentions, referral traffic from news coverage, and increases in branded search volume following announcements. These indicators provided a more accurate view of how press activity contributed to visibility.
Monitoring tools made it possible to discover new mentions and reach out to publishers to request links where appropriate. Comparing organic traffic trends before and after major announcements also helped reveal correlations with broader brand interest. By measuring outcomes this way, businesses could justify their investment in press releases and refine their approach, focusing on announcements and distribution strategies that generated the greatest real-world attention and authority.
Conclusion
Press releases were good for SEO in 2017 only in an indirect sense. They no longer delivered direct link equity, but they generated brand visibility, media coverage, and opportunities for earned editorial links. The businesses that succeeded treated press releases as communication tools rather than link schemes. That same approach remains the right way to use press releases and digital PR for SEO today.
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