How effective are Guest & PR Publications – a Case Study Analysis of London Business News

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Many more people are enquiring about getting published in the London Business News Magazine hence why I had a deeper look into case studies I have analysed as the digital marketer and SEO strategist at ClickDo and the editor-in-chief at this magazine.

I want to start by highlighting that the magazine has recently reached 15,000 visitors in a month, meaning it gets over 500 visitors daily who spend an average time of 4 minutes on the site.

For people looking to get published or featured on London Business News or who are in search of guest posting and digital PR opportunities, the platform is becoming more attractive with such metrics. With nearly 30k actions and a solid on-page time spend the chances of achieving clicks and conversions with guest blogging here are increasing, besides the obvious SEO benefits.

The London Business News magazine offers different forms of publications as a media platform, and I had a closer look at the performance of these different formats in terms of SEO and exposure – please remember that the shared statistics are correct as of the date of this publication and are subject to change.

The magazine publishes content covering categories like business, technology, property, and hospitality as well as directory posts and listicles which feature top-rated businesses.

It invites anyone looking to share expert advice, business insights, tips, and hacks to get featured, so there is an opportunity for all types of businesses as well as experts and authors to get guest content live. But what do you get out of a guest or PR publication on this site?

I summarise my findings in this clip:

Let’s start by looking at the most common and affordable format – the guest post.

Guest Post Case Study: How to overcome Jet Lag when travelling from London to New York

Editorial articles and guest posts go up regularly on this news site.

This specific article has been performing very well as a guest post (the editorial articles perform well too). As you can see it has reached a significant amount of engagement within one year with over 1k clicks and nearly 19k impressions from Google alone, excluding additional engagement from Bing, Yahoo, and direct clicks for example.

This post has been ranking successfully because it covers popular related keywords such as “how to overcome jet lag” or “travel from London to New York”, which it ranks for on Google. For a guest post to achieve this, it’s important that it targets keywords with a lower keyword difficulty and that it is optimised for search engines in terms of the images and article metadata. I have created an SEO copywriting course at the SeekaHost University where I share more about SEO content optimization and on my personal blog I reveal how to create an article that Google will send many readers to.

Interview Case Study: Entrepreneur Interview with Nevine Country, Playdate App Founder

Moving on to another popular publication format, here is an interview case study. You will see a section called Business Spotlight when you come to the London Business News website and that’s where interviews, opinion pieces, entrepreneur stories and event coverage are featured.

The advantages of such a publication format become clear upon seeing the statistics, especially if it is linked with a brand launch or another significant business announcement.

As you can see in the screenshot below this interview ranks on Google for keywords such as the entrepreneur’s name, the brand name as well as other related search terms such as “single parent dating app”.

This helps with introducing a brand to the market in connection with a personal story while being found for search terms that would establish a brand that is not yet established and searched for. It also benefits the entrepreneur by building their personal brand alongside their business brand. For a founder, an interview offers the opportunity to publicly back the brand, product, or service and showcase the personal journey and motivation.

For the interview to be this effective the Q&As need to be SEO optimised based on the focus and USP, which must be incorporated strategically for the best possible outcomes and performance. An interview publication is also beneficial for a Google Knowledge Panel for example, which serves as a great online asset for any entrepreneur and I offer further guidance on how to build a Google Knowledge Panel for anyone attempting this.

I have been the interviewer and interviewee, which helps me with analysing and advising on this PR format better. Check out this video, where I was interviewed about the LBN magazine:

Social Media Case Study: Gaining additional Exposure through Network Shares for BVS Mortgages Interview

Social media shares add an additional exposure factor to a publication. The LBN magazine shares all the published posts on their channels, which can boost the exposure of the publication significantly as the below example shows.

Through related hashtags and tags, social signals boost the brand and entrepreneur and if they already have a solid network, their connections might also share their interview, providing the brand with even more exposure and engagement. This in turn boosts their website and brand name online so every interviewee should ensure that they utilise their social media channels as well for any publication related to them and their brand.

Entrepreneur Story Case Study: British Entrepreneur Lucy Rout’s Tabuu Pill Cases

Entrepreneur stories with a unique angle are another speciality at the LBN magazine. This format helps the entrepreneur and their business to be referenced effectively on the Internet. Readers are intrigued by the human story behind a business and the entrepreneur story provides an insight into the background of a business and the motivation as well as the people involved from a storyteller’s view.

As you can see in the data below this entrepreneur story has received over 3000 impressions on Google alone over the last 3 months and ranks for several keywords including the entrepreneur’s name, the brand name and related search terms which helps to introduce the brand to people that might have never come across it.

The entrepreneur themselves can share this story about them and their business as a testament to their work. Success stories intrigue many looking for inspiration in the business world hence why this format provides a great boost in terms of marketing and SEO.

Media Release Case Study: Wellbeing App Shoorah Partners with Seedrs

Press release publications which are called media release publications are another format that’s been popular. This particular case study shows how a tailored and keyword-optimised release can achieve significant results, especially shortly after publication which matters for more time-sensitive publication formats such as this.

The below statistics show that the media release immediately ranked on Google and within the first week received over 2000 views. It continues to rank for search terms such as “shoorah app”, the founder’s name and other related search terms helping the brand to be referenced more widely, providing it with more exposure and credibility.

Additional media were included to boost engagement with the release, but this can also lead to gaining more followers on referenced channels. Everyone submitting press releases is encouraged to make them more unique and engaging to achieve better results and the team provide their advice for SEO press release publications.

Additionally, it is worth noting that all publication formats in the London Business News magazine provide an SEO boost through a backlink, which search engines use to rank a website and evaluate its authority. Building backlinks helps to build trust and credibility and I discuss this with the top ClickDo SEO consultant Fernando in more detail in this video:

To get your submission approved it should follow the magazine and search engine guidelines to ensure optimal performance. The team review all guest contributions and is selective, but they share the editorial feedback that will help to make the publication as effective as possible.

They consult about the best keywords to use, the best ways to incorporate hyperlinks and references as well as media materials. Alternatively, one can make use of their content writing or review services.

If you feel that this magazine would be a good place for you to share your insights, news or innovations then get in touch with me at info@manuelawillbold.com and I’ll be happy to offer my assistance with a possible guest feature here or on other suitable publications.

Follow me on YouTube and my socials where I regularly share marketing and SEO insights as in this video: