How We Gained 124 Links With PR (A Step by Step Guide)

PR CASE STUDY

In just one year of running PR activity for our client – a Rome based tour company – we have been successful in securing over 100 links and over 300 pieces of coverage, including links on some of the strongest sites going – we’re talking MSN, Lonely Planet, Business Insider, The Telegraph…to name just a few!

Not only did our PR work result in hundreds of pieces of top tier coverage for our client, we also saw traffic to the client site increase 182.59% year on year throughout the duration of our PR activity. This was through a combination of increased referral and organic traffic to the site. Referral traffic to the site grew as a direct result of users clicking through to the client site from PR coverage, while organic traffic experienced a boost due to improved visibility for the site – thanks to the SEO impact of the backlinks we achieved.

Our key goals for our client were to:

• Gain strong backlinks on top tier sites
• Gain coverage on reputable news and travel sites
• Increase traffic to the client site

And the results?

• 124 backlinks to the client site
• 76 links with a DR of 50+
• 337 pieces of coverage
• Coverage on top tier publications including MSN, Telegraph, Lonely Planet, Yahoo, Business Insider and Huffington Post
• 182.59% YOY increase in site sessions
• 257.24% increase in referral traffic to site
• 159.53% increase in organic traffic to site

Read on as we break down exactly how we achieved these results, so that you can do the same for your own business.

WHAT IS ONLINE PR?

We break our PR activity down into three separate strands. These are:

• Reactive
• Proactive
• Creative

When you manage to hit the right spot from each of these angles you are almost guaranteed a PR success story.

Read on to find out more about how we approach each of these three elements.

REACTIVE PR

Reactive PR activity is pretty simple really – while PRs undoubtedly need journalists in order to achieve results, believe it or not, sometimes journalists need us too!

Reactive PR is about capitalising on those times when the journalist needs us. This could be journalists who are looking for a quote from a travel industry expert; a package to include in a round up, or a recommendation from a destination specialist.

If you can provide a journalist with the exact missing information they need for their story, it is a pretty safe bet that they are going to use that information in their article,  which means some swanky coverage for you – easy!

Where to Find PR Requests from Journalists

Ah, we hear your cry and don’t worry, we have the answer!

First things first, it is possible to find journalist requests absolutely free. This means, so long as you are willing to put in the time and effort, you can kick off your PR activity without spending a dime!

One free resource which we have found to be useful in sourcing journalist requests is HARO.

HARO:

Help a Reporter Out (HARO) is a free online service where journalists post requests outlining any information they need for a story they are working on.

You can subscribe to the mailing list and will be updated on a daily basis of requests from journalists, spread across topics ranging from healthcare to tech to travel – their email alerts handily break each request into relevant categories so you can hone in on your specific niches.

Twilert:

Another cost-effective solution for keeping on top of journalist requests is Twilert.

For those who may not know, Twilert is an email alert which keeps you posted on any new tweets containing any specified keywords.

The most popular Twilert for keeping on top of journalist requests is the aptly named #journorequest, which is widely used by journalists and bloggers looking for story tips.

Taking this a step further, you can also set up Twilerts for more general phrases relevant to your brand – in this case phrases such as “travel industry expert” and “interview with travel specialist” which may throw up opportunities to provide expert quotes and insights for a journalist’s story.

Twilert subscriptions start from just $9 per month, but of course, if you’re on a strict budget you could cut out the middle man, and simply head over to Twitter to search for recent #JournoRequest tweets yourself.

Specialist Services

There is also a multitude of specialist paid media services, which you can use to keep updated with journalist requests.

One commonly used paid resource is Response Source which is one of the biggest names in the media database world, and covers a wide variety of sectors – great if you want to keep updated on requests across a variety of different niches.

There are also a number of resources specifically focused around certain niches. If you’re in the travel industry we highly recommend using TravMedia, which is the main platform we use for our reactive PR activity.

If you’re not in the travel industry, have a search to find other similar services in your own niche.

TravMedia is a media network specifically focused on the travel industry, and is used by journalists working on travel stories to get tips and packages from travel brands.

With TravMedia you get an email each time a request is posted by a journalist, meaning you can hop straight on it.

HOW TO PITCH TO JOURNALISTS

As with any sales approach, the most effective strategy is to keep it simple and concise.

Firstly, make sure you refine down the recommendations you’re sending over to the journalist and don’t overpitch.

Your chances of success are far greater if you send the journalist a ready to use nugget which fits the brief perfectly, rather than a back catalogue of every product you’ve ever sold.

If you send over too many irrelevant requests to the same journalist you might find yourself on their blacklist.

At the absolute maximum, never send over any more than three suggestions in one email.

Often, journalists will request a specific subject header, and in some cases a particular format to the body of the email. If they do this, make sure you follow their instructions or your email will most likely end up in their trash folder.

If the journalist hasn’t set out any specific instructions, the below format typically works well for us:

Subject: TravMedia Response – Nighttime Adventures

In the subject line make it clear you are responding to their request and replicate the same title which they have used in their request, so that they instantly know your email is something of relevance for them.

Body:

Hi [insert journalist name]

Hope you’re well and had a great weekend!← Friendly opening greeting

I saw your TravMedia request looking for night adventures around the world and I wanted to let you know about the amazing night tour of the Colosseum with Roma Experience: ← Get straight to the point as to why you’re contacting them

Roma Experience’s Colosseum Under the Moon tour, is the perfect choice for travellers who want to explore the fascinating sight as a VIP. The Colosseum averages around 4 million visitors every year, but the exclusive Roma Experience night tour is limited to just 25 participants, meaning you can enjoy your visit free from crowds. The small group size ensures all participants feel immersed in the tour and are able to hear and interact with the expert tour guide easily.

This special tour also offers participants access to restricted areas of the Colosseum including the arena stage and the underground dungeons, which it would not be possible to visit during the day.

This exclusive new night tour is a unique and special way to see the Colosseum whether you are visiting the world-famous amphitheatre for the first time or want to explore the ancient ruins in a whole new light, quite literally.← Brief description of product/relevant information

https://www.romaexperience.com/rome-tours/night-tour-colosseum/ ← Link to relevant on-site info/product

I hope this is of use and please let me know if you need anything else at all. ← Friendly sign-off

Thanks,

[Your name]

Does it really work?

Well the above email got us a sweet link on one of the fastest growing travel news sites out there, so we’d say yes, yes it does.

Through our reactive PR work with this client we have secured coverage on sites including MSN and Yahoo.

Top Tip: An extra advantage of TravMedia is that, unlike other sources, the platform provides you with the journalist’s email address, rather than having you respond to the journalist via the platform.

This means you can keep a note of the contact details of every journalist who posts on the platform in your contacts database, which will come in handy when you move on to the next step – proactive PR.

PROACTIVE PR

When you think of PR, the first thing that comes to mind is no doubt press releases. While they may not be anything novel, press releases are the bread and butter of the PR world, and a well-crafted and well-distributed press release is still a surefire way of picking up a heap of coverage.

Just look at the coverage we got on Lonely Planet, Telegraph and Robb Report for our Rome client – all from press releases.

Finding Ideas for Press Releases

Just because press releases aren’t a new concept, doesn’t mean they need to be boring. Picking the right topic for your press release is one of the most important factors in ensuring your release hits the mark.

When deciding on a topic for your press release you should make sure it ticks off one of the following:

• New
• Unique
• Timely

If it fits all three, even better!

To give this more context, ideas may include a new product you have just launched, a specialist service which only you can provide or an exclusive offer being run in conjunction with the release of a new movie or in celebration of a notable anniversary.

Press releases we created for our client include:

• Launch of a new VR tour (new, unique)
• Launch of underground Colosseum tour (new, unique)
• Launch of Colosseum at night tour (new, unique)
• Spooky Halloween tours in Rome (unique, timely)
• Leonardo da Vinci anniversary tour (new, unique, timely)

The most important factor when deciding on a press release angle is remembering that you are providing a journalist with a story. If you can’t see what the story is behind your release, don’t send it!

How to Write a Press Release

There are many different ways in which to write a press release, but to paraphrase the common saying, “Writing a press release is like playing the piano, first you must learn to play by the rules, then you must forget the rules and play from your heart.”

As you’re just getting started, let’s begin with learning how to play by the rules, before we start going off key.

As we mentioned earlier, the purpose of a press release is to send a journalist a story, so many of the same principles which apply to writing a news story also apply to writing a press release.

With any news story, potentially THE most important element is your headline – if you don’t have a clear headline, you most likely don’t have a story!

In news a headline is what draws a reader in, and with a press release your headline is what will draw a journalist in. If you have an enticing headline, a journalist can envision how they will frame their story and why it would appeal to their readers.

An example of a strong headline would be:

“Brand new Rome at night tour showcases Colosseum in a whole new light”

Once you have your headline sorted, the next step is making sure you cover the 5 Ws and the H – another core news principle, which should also be applied to your press releases.

Not a clue what we’re talking about? The 5 Ws and the H are the six questions which any news story should answer. These are:

• Who?
• What?
• Where?
• Why?
• When?
• How?

Given that the journalist has to answer all six of these questions in their news story, it only makes sense that you provide them with the answers to each of these questions in your press release.

So now you know what to cover, but where do you start?

Well let’s go back to the core news principles and this time discuss the news pyramid. The news pyramid is the standard structure which journalists use to format their story. The rules of the pyramid are that you start with the most important information at the top of your piece, leading down to the least important background information at the end.

This formatting works for multiple reasons – firstly it gives the reader the must-know information right from the start quickly and easily. It also means if the editor needs to chop off the last paragraph of the story for space reasons, no important information will be lost.

When writing a press release, think of the journalist as both a reader and an editor. This means following the pyramid structure will allow them to:

• Immediately access the information they need to understand and take interest in the story
• Stop reading or chop off the end of the release without worrying about losing key facts

Essentially, writing a successful press release is all about making the journalist’s job easier – provide them with all of the information they need for their story, show them exactly how they can angle the story, and structure the story in a sensible format.

The easier you make it for the journalist, the greater chance there is that they will use your release.

We typically send out one press release per month for our client, and we use timely hooks to focus the release by keeping on top of what is new with the client; monitoring for new trends in the industry, and tracking the latest news headlines, pop culture events and momentous dates.

Top tip: As the key goal with online PR is gaining links which will boost your SEO performance, increase the chances of having a link to your site included in the article by adding at least one link to your site within the press release. If you hyperlink a relevant phrase in the text there is even more chance the journalist will simply copy this into their own write up too.

How to send out a press release

Now, no matter how great your idea is or how well you’ve written your release, if you send it to the wrong people you won’t get any coverage – fact.

A scattergun approach of throwing your press release out into the wild and hoping it sticks, is not the way to go about your outreach. Instead you want to take a super-targeted approach.

As Liam Neeson may say, “I will look for you, I will find you, and I will have you read my press release.”

Now remember that contacts database we spoke about earlier, this is where that comes in handy.

If you’re set up on a system such as TravMedia, every time a request comes in from a new journalist add them to your database taking note of their name and contact details as well as the publication(s) they write for and the general topics and style of writing which they tend to cover. You can Google their name to find out more about their writing and interests.

If you aren’t set up on a media database, or even if you are, there are other ways to find contacts to add to your database too. The simplest way is to just keep on top of the latest articles being written across your key niche publications and researching the authors. If you continue to do this on a regular basis you’ll build up a comprehensive contacts list in no time.

Of course, there’s no need to stop there. While we have a very, very full list of contacts which we will always refer to in order to find relevant contacts for each of our press releases, we also always do further bespoke research for every release we send out.

By bespoke research, we mean that we actively search to find journalists who have already covered a story similar to that which we are sending out, as chances are, they’re going to want to cover our story too!

For example, if you’re sending out a release about a new luxury hotel for Valentine’s Day it’s very easy to find a list of journalists who have an interest in writing luxury Valentine’s pieces. Simply head over to Google news, set your time period to around 1st Jan-14th Feb the previous year and search for terms such as ‘luxury valentine’s getaways’ and the ‘the best luxury hotels for Valentine’s day’ to find a whole host of journalists who wrote about this the previous year.

What do I say?

As with reactive PR, it’s best to keep your email short, sweet and to the point when sending over a press release.

We tend to follow a similar format to this:Subject Header: Press Release Headline

Body: Hi [journalist name]

I hope you’re well and had a nice weekend!

I saw your recent article about unique ways to explore some of the most popular European cities, and I’m just getting in touch to let you know about Roma Experience’s brand new Colosseum by night tour, which I thought would be of interest to you for [publication name]. ← Personalised reference as to why this release is relevant to them

The VIP tour allows access to areas not available during the day and offers the opportunity to see the Colosseum in a whole new light, quite literally. ← Brief highlight of the information in the release

You can find out more about the new tour in the full release below.

I hope this is of interest and please let me know if you need anything further at all.

Thanks,

[your name]

—

{embed press release} ← Journalists typically prefer a press release embedded within an email rather than attached, as it is less fiddly and takes up less storage in their inbox

Where to find a journalist’s contact details

About to hit send but realised you don’t actually have their email address? It’s actually pretty easy to find a journalist’s email address if you know where to look.

First up, if it’s a staff writer at a publication you’re contacting, all email formats at one publication are typically formatted the same way – so if you already have one person’s contact details from that publication you can typically adapt this to get everyone else’s email too.

Whether staff writer or freelancer, most journalists will include their email address on their Twitter and in some cases LinkedIn. Most journalists usually also have a personal website which you can find just by Googling their name, and this will typically have all the contact details you need.

Another super handy tool we use for finding journalist’s contact details is Hunter. This simple service lets you search for individuals within a company, just by using their full name and the domain of their business. Hunter will provide you with an email address based on actual web results for the individual’s contact details or a best guess based on the typical email format for this company. Better yet, it’s totally free to get started on Hunter. Another alternative worth checking out is Voila Norberts email finding tool which works in much the same way.

GETTING CREATIVE WITH PR CAMPAIGNS

Now let us be clear, every single part of your PR activity should involve creativity – but our third strand of our PR process is where we start to think even more outside of the box.

While reactive responses and proactive press releases are typically very much focused around promoting the brand and specific products or services, our creative campaign is where we can start to think a little more left field.

You see, our creative campaign is the strand of our PR activity which is more separated from promoting the brand or product itself, and much more focused on simply bringing in those top tier backlinks through creating something which journalists are going to want to talk about. And boy, it sure does bring in those links!

To be precise, our most recent creative campaign for our Rome client gained a total of 80 links in less than one month.

So what makes up a creative campaign? Well it can be whatever you want! But typically our creative campaigns usually comprise of one of the below approaches:

• Hosting a stunt
• Offering a quirky discount or giveaway
• Creating a new unusual/themed product offering
• Launching a new initiative or petition
• Conducting a survey
• Running a competition
• Creating a shareable asset
• Teaming up for a brand or charity partnership

Our latest PR campaign

Our latest campaign for our Rome client consisted of offering an Instagram boyfriend service as an optional add-on for travellers. The campaign took off so much, the service has since developed into its own separate offering.

This quirky new product was a spin on the much-hyped ‘Instagram boyfriends’, the moniker given to those patient partners who take perfectly ‘candid’ shots of influencers racking up the likes on Instagram. With this new offering anyone could have their very own Instagram boyfriend for the day and the chance to get those sought after shots for their own Instagram page.

The practicalities of the campaign were actually very simple; the ‘Instagram boyfriend’ was nothing more than a professional photography service which customers could select as an add-on when booking their tour, however framing this with the ‘Instagram boyfriend’ tag gave the offering a current edge and tied into the recent trend and data around the rise of ‘Instagrammable holidays’, which is what made this a story for journalists.

The Results

• 265 pieces of coverage
• 80  links
• 36 links with DR of 50+
• Coverage on top tier sites including MSN, Lonely Planet, Stuff, Business Insider and Vanity Fair
• 8,000+ referral visits to site from coverage gained
• 2,931% YOY increase in referral traffic to site during campaign time period
• 231.96% YOY increase in organic traffic to site during campaign time period

Brainstorming ideas for PR campaigns

If everyone else jumps off a bridge are you going to do it too? No, Mum!

But if everyone else is picking up coverage left, right and centre by offering free products to people who get their brand logo tattooed on them or providing a money- back guarantee to couples who get divorced after honeymooning with them, then you probably should do that too.

The point is, the best way to get ideas for your creative campaigns is by monitoring what everyone else is doing that is getting them the headlines and links that you want.

We are constantly tracking the top key publications in our niche – which for us includes Lonely Planet, CN Traveller and Travel + Leisure – to find inspiration for our next campaigns.

In fact, our Instagram boyfriend campaign was inspired by other similar campaigns we had seen, including a hotel offering an Instagram sitter service, another hotel which had trained its staff in Instagram photography and a private jet which was available to rent solely for photoshoots to fool for your followers.

Pick out some of the key publications in your niche and monitor them every day to find out which creative campaigns, stunts and quirky offers are getting coverage then see how you can twist a similar idea to fit your offering.

Promoting PR campaigns

Just like with your press releases, promotion of your PR campaign should be hyper-targeted. Luckily, doing the research in the first place to find ideas for your campaign makes the targeted outreach process that much easier.

If you have based your campaign idea on other campaigns receiving coverage, your first step is to contact all of the people who covered the campaign which inspired yours.

When outreaching our Instagram boyfriend campaign we contacted all of the people who had covered the other Instagram travel campaigns which had inspired our own.

We gathered a list of all of these sites through using a paid tool called Moz which allows us to track every site which had linked to the original story or product. On top of this, we also ran a Google search for each campaign to identify any further coverage which wasn’t listed in the Moz database.

If you’re not in a position to sign up for Moz, simply conducting a Google search will allow you to find much of the coverage for the campaigns you are tracking.

We completed our outreach for this project by taking a wider outlook, and reaching out to journalists who had covered other quirky travel services and Instagram travel stories. Finally, we reached out to those publications with a readership which fit the demographic likely to be interested in the service we were offering, in this case 16-35 year old females.

Job done!

Getting started with your own PR

Feeling inspired? It’s time to get started on your own PR activity using the steps we’ve outlined above.

Get moving by first writing a list of everything that makes your business special and unique, and a timeline of everything new that you have planned for this year.

Next, read up on the top headlines across your niche and start identifying which news has come from a PR story – no doubt you’ll find this is a lot more than you ever realised.

As you get familiar with the press coverage in your niche, it’s time to start thinking about how you can use your own USPs and insights to craft opportunities for coverage on these target sites.

And don’t worry if not every press release, journalist response or campaign hits the mark. If you continue your PR efforts over the long term you’re bound to see coverage picking up, and as you do you’ll also start seeing the long-term SEO impact for your site too.

You can also read more about how PR tied into our wider work with Roma Experience to bring an improvement of 2,800% in organic traffic here.

Good luck!