In the highly competitive digital landscape of Western North Carolina, local businesses need every advantage they can get to stand out online. While traditional SEO tactics remain essential, digital PR has emerged as a powerful complementary strategy that many Asheville businesses are still overlooking. At PushLeads, we’ve seen firsthand how strategic digital PR can transform a company’s online visibility and authority, particularly in our unique mountain market.
Walking through downtown Asheville, you can’t help but notice the diverse mix of local businesses—from craft breweries and farm-to-table restaurants to boutique shops and wellness centers. Each of these establishments has a story worth telling, and digital PR provides the perfect vehicle to share these narratives while simultaneously building valuable backlinks that boost search rankings. In our experience working with local businesses since 2012, we’ve found that Asheville companies have a distinct advantage when it comes to digital PR—our community’s strong support for local businesses and our region’s unique character provide natural hooks for compelling stories.
But what exactly is digital PR, and how does it differ from traditional public relations? More importantly, how can Asheville businesses use it to climb Google’s rankings? Let’s dive in.
Understanding Digital PR and Its Connection to SEO
Digital PR combines traditional public relations practices with digital marketing strategies to increase online presence, build brand awareness, and improve search engine rankings. Unlike conventional PR, which focuses primarily on print media and broadcasting, digital PR targets online publications, blogs, podcasts, and social media platforms.
The SEO benefits of digital PR come primarily from earning high-quality backlinks—when reputable websites link to your content, Google interprets these as votes of confidence in your expertise and authority. For local Asheville businesses, these backlinks can significantly impact your position in local search results.
Beyond backlinks, digital PR helps build brand recognition and credibility. When potential customers see your business mentioned in trusted publications, it creates a positive association and increases trust. This is particularly important in our close-knit Asheville community, where word of mouth and reputation carry substantial weight.
What makes digital PR unique is its measurability—unlike traditional PR, where results can be difficult to quantify, digital PR campaigns can be tracked through metrics like referral traffic, domain authority improvements, ranking changes, and conversion rates.
Digital PR Strategies That Work for Asheville Businesses
1. Local Newsjacking
Newsjacking involves piggybacking on trending news stories by offering expert commentary or a unique perspective. For Asheville businesses, this might mean commenting on local developments like tourism trends, downtown development projects, or sustainability initiatives.
For example, when Asheville announced new sustainability goals, one of our eco-friendly retail clients quickly provided expert commentary to local news outlets on how small businesses could contribute to these efforts. This earned them valuable coverage and backlinks from both local news sites and sustainability blogs.
The key to successful newsjacking is speed and relevance. Set up Google Alerts for topics related to your industry and our local area, and have response templates ready so you can quickly craft thoughtful comments when relevant stories break.
2. Local Resource Creation
Creating valuable resources specific to the Asheville area can attract both links and local customers. Consider developing neighborhood guides, local event calendars, or industry reports focused on Western North Carolina.
One of our service-based clients created a comprehensive guide to Asheville’s historic neighborhoods, including architecture styles, notable landmarks, and maintenance considerations specific to historic homes. This resource was picked up by local real estate blogs, tourism sites, and even the Preservation Society, generating quality backlinks from relevant domains.
The most effective resources address specific pain points or information gaps relevant to our local community. They should be thorough, well-designed, and regularly updated to maintain their value.
3. Local Data Studies and Surveys
Original research about the Asheville market or industry trends specific to our region can generate significant interest from both local and national publications. Conducting surveys or analyzing publicly available data to identify interesting patterns or insights provides journalists with exclusive content they’re eager to share.
A local wellness business we work with surveyed Asheville residents about their health priorities and spending habits, comparing the results to national averages. The findings highlighted Asheville’s unique wellness culture and generated coverage in local business publications as well as national health and wellness outlets.
When creating data-driven content, focus on finding surprising or counterintuitive insights, and present your findings with clear visuals that make complex data easily digestible. Make sure to include a link to the full methodology on your website to encourage proper attribution and backlinks.
Building Relationships with Local Media and Influencers
The foundation of effective digital PR is building genuine relationships with journalists, bloggers, and influencers who can amplify your message. In Asheville’s tight-knit community, these relationships can be particularly valuable.
Start by identifying key media contacts covering topics related to your industry. This might include reporters from the Asheville Citizen-Times, Mountain Xpress, Asheville Made, or industry-specific publications with a local presence. Follow them on social media, engage with their content, and understand the types of stories they typically cover before making your pitch.
Local influencers can also play a crucial role in a digital PR strategy. Asheville has a vibrant community of content creators across various niches—from food bloggers and outdoor adventurers to craft beer enthusiasts and wellness experts. Collaborating with these influencers on content or events can help you reach new audiences and earn valuable mentions.
When reaching out to media contacts, personalization is key. Generic press releases rarely get attention in today’s crowded media landscape. Instead, craft tailored pitches that explain why your story matters to their specific audience. For local media, emphasize the Asheville connection and community impact.
Creating Linkable Content Assets
At the heart of any successful digital PR campaign is content worth linking to. These “linkable assets” provide value to both users and publishers, making them more likely to be referenced and shared.
Effective linkable assets for Asheville businesses might include:
Interactive Maps and Tools
Interactive content tends to earn links naturally due to its utility and novelty. A brewery client of ours created an interactive map of Asheville’s craft beverage scene, allowing users to filter by type, neighborhood, and amenities. The tool was embedded on multiple tourism sites and local blogs, generating quality backlinks and referral traffic.
Industry Reports with Local Focus
Comprehensive reports on your industry with specific insights about the Asheville market position your business as a thought leader while providing valuable reference material for journalists and bloggers. Annual trend reports, market analyses, or state-of-the-industry overviews make excellent linkable assets.
Visual Content
High-quality infographics, videos, or photo essays that showcase Asheville’s unique character can attract links from both local and national publications. Visual content is easily shareable and can help simplify complex information, making it particularly valuable for digital PR purposes.
When creating these assets, focus on solving real problems or addressing information gaps that exist in your industry or community. The most successful linkable content offers a fresh perspective or presents information in a more accessible way than what’s currently available.
Leveraging Local Events and Community Involvement
Asheville’s vibrant event scene provides numerous opportunities for digital PR. Sponsoring, hosting, or speaking at local events can generate media coverage and backlinks while strengthening your community connections.
Consider creating event-specific content that journalists and attendees will want to reference. This might include comprehensive event guides, summaries of key takeaways, or exclusive interviews with speakers. Host this content on your website and promote it to relevant media contacts before, during, and after the event.
Community involvement initiatives can also generate positive press coverage. Whether it’s participating in river cleanups, supporting local nonprofits, or launching sustainability programs, authentic community engagement often attracts media attention. Document these efforts with high-quality photos and compelling stories that publications will want to share.
One of our retail clients partnered with several local environmental organizations to launch a “Blue Ridge Conservation Week” initiative, bringing together businesses throughout Asheville for various conservation projects. The campaign generated coverage in environmental publications, local news outlets, and tourism blogs, resulting in dozens of quality backlinks and significantly increased brand awareness.
Measuring the SEO Impact of Digital PR
To ensure your digital PR efforts are effectively contributing to your SEO goals, it’s important to track the right metrics. Here’s what Asheville businesses should monitor: This includes metrics such as referral traffic, backlinks, and social media engagement. Additionally, businesses should consider investing in video SEO for YouTube and Google, as optimizing video content can significantly enhance visibility and drive more qualified leads. Regularly analyzing these metrics will help fine-tune your strategies and improve overall performance.
Backlink Profiles
Track new backlinks generated from your campaigns using tools like Ahrefs, SEMrush, or Moz. Look beyond just the quantity of links—quality matters more. Consider metrics like domain authority, relevance to your industry, and whether the links are dofollow or nofollow.
Brand Mentions
Monitor mentions of your brand across the web, even when they don’t include a link. While unlinked mentions don’t directly impact SEO, they contribute to brand awareness and can sometimes be converted to actual links through outreach.
Organic Traffic and Rankings
Track changes in your organic traffic and keyword rankings, particularly for competitive local terms. Effective digital PR should lead to improvements in your visibility for relevant search queries.
Referral Traffic
Monitor traffic coming directly from publications that have featured your business. This not only helps measure the impact of your PR efforts but can also lead to conversions if the referral audience is well-targeted.
Set up a reporting dashboard that combines these metrics to give you a comprehensive view of your digital PR performance. This will help you refine your strategy over time, focusing on the types of content and outreach methods that drive the best results for your business.
Common Digital PR Pitfalls and How to Avoid Them
While digital PR offers tremendous SEO benefits, there are several common mistakes that can limit its effectiveness:
Focusing Too Much on National Publications
While securing coverage in major national outlets may seem prestigious, for Asheville businesses, highly relevant local coverage often delivers better SEO results. Links from sites like AshevilleStrong.com or MountainX.com can be more valuable than generic mentions in national publications with no local relevance.
Neglecting Relationship Building
Sending mass emails to journalists rarely yields results. Instead, invest time in building genuine relationships with key media contacts in the Asheville area and your industry. Engage with their content, offer helpful insights without expecting immediate coverage, and understand their specific beats before pitching.
Creating Self-Promotional Content
Content that’s overtly promotional rarely attracts links. Focus instead on creating genuinely valuable resources that address your audience’s needs and questions. The best linkable assets solve problems or provide unique insights without reading like advertisements.
Inconsistent Efforts
Digital PR isn’t a one-time tactic but should be an ongoing component of your SEO strategy. Consistent efforts yield the best results, as they help build momentum and strengthen media relationships over time.
Digital PR and Local SEO: A Powerful Combination
For Asheville businesses, digital PR is particularly effective when integrated with local SEO strategies. Here’s how to combine these approaches for maximum impact: By leveraging local SEO tactics alongside a robust digital PR strategy, businesses can enhance their online visibility and credibility within the community. Additionally, implementing schema markup benefits for businesses by providing search engines with structured data, which can improve local search rankings and attract more targeted traffic. This combination not only helps in reaching a wider audience but also fosters trust among potential customers.
Target Location-Specific Keywords in Your Content
When creating linkable assets, incorporate relevant local keywords that your business wants to rank for. This helps search engines understand the geographic relevance of your content and can improve your visibility in local search results.
Leverage Local Business Citations
Earned media mentions can be valuable opportunities to ensure your business name, address, and phone number (NAP) are consistently cited across the web—a key factor in local search rankings.
Connect PR Efforts to Google Business Profile
When your business receives positive coverage, encourage satisfied customers to leave reviews on your Google Business Profile. The combination of authoritative backlinks and positive reviews sends powerful signals to Google about your business’s relevance and reputation.
Highlight Local Expertise
Use digital PR opportunities to demonstrate your expertise specific to the Asheville market. This helps establish your business as a local authority, which can positively impact your rankings for local search terms.
By strategically aligning your digital PR efforts with local SEO goals, you create a compound effect that can significantly accelerate your visibility in local search results.
Taking Your First Steps with Digital PR in Asheville
Ready to incorporate digital PR into your SEO strategy? Here’s how to get started:
Audit Your Current Assets
Identify content on your website that could be repurposed or promoted as linkable assets. Look for comprehensive guides, original research, or unique insights about your industry or the Asheville market.
Research Local Media Landscape
Create a list of relevant local publications, blogs, and influencers who cover topics related to your industry. Study their content to understand what stories resonate with their audience.
Identify Your Unique Story Angles
What makes your business newsworthy? This might include your unique approach, community initiatives, expert insights about local trends, or innovative products/services. Develop these angles into pitchable stories.
Start Small and Build Momentum
Begin with smaller, more accessible publications where you have a higher chance of securing coverage. Success with these outlets can build credibility that makes larger publications more receptive to your pitches.
Digital PR isn’t just about quick wins—it’s about building lasting relationships and a consistent presence that gradually strengthens your online authority. With patience and strategic execution, it can become one of your most valuable SEO assets.
Bringing It All Together
In Asheville’s competitive business environment, combining technical SEO with strategic digital PR creates a powerful formula for online visibility. While traditional SEO tactics focus on optimizing your website, digital PR extends your reach beyond your own digital properties, building authority through earned media and quality backlinks.
The unique character of our mountain community offers distinct advantages for digital PR. Asheville’s strong support for local businesses, vibrant cultural scene, and natural beauty provide rich material for stories that resonate with both local and national audiences.
As search engines continue to refine their algorithms to favor authoritative, trustworthy websites, the role of digital PR in SEO will only grow in importance. Businesses that build a strong foundation now will find themselves at a significant advantage as this evolution continues.
Whether you’re just beginning your SEO journey or looking to enhance your existing strategy, incorporating digital PR can help elevate your Asheville business to new heights of online visibility and authority. Start small, stay consistent, and watch as these efforts compound to deliver lasting SEO results.
