There has been much debate recently as to whether or not putting links in press releases can help you rank for certain phrases.
Even though Matt Cutts insists that links in press releases do not benefit rankings, many SEOs are suggesting otherwise.
Barry Schwartz discussed the possibility that press release links can benefit rankings to an extent after conducting a small experiment. Schwartz managed to rank Cutt’s blog for the phrase “leasreepressmm” simply by putting the anchor text in a press release.
However, this is obviously a highly uncompetitive phrase that may be easier to rank for with the addition of a press release links that may have been shared and published elsewhere. Schwartz found that Google not only identified press release links, it appeared to use anchor text to determine rankings.
Schwartz then questioned what Cutts meant by his original statement on press release links and whether this is only the case for competitive search terms or when using particular press release sites. So what are we to make of this? Should we be focusing on putting links in our press releases just in case they help rankings?
A press release is there to increase your brand awareness online. Distributing a press release with anchor text to spammy instant publication websites with the intent of ranking for that phrase is not recommended. If there is any truth to press release links helping you rank, it likely will not last for long and will go the same way as article submission sites did where people attempted to manipulate the rankings through spammy article backlinks.
As a result, it is best to stick to what you know Google recommend, trusts and works. Write press releases that contain helpful links only to provide publishers with further information. Attract your links naturally with good quality linkable content.