{"id":156484,"date":"2023-04-03T00:12:40","date_gmt":"2023-04-03T05:12:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/?p=156484"},"modified":"2023-04-03T06:53:55","modified_gmt":"2023-04-03T11:53:55","slug":"viral-seo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/viral-seo\/","title":{"rendered":"Does Going Viral Help With SEO? Not Really"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"intro-txt\">I wanted to find out how going viral impacts SEO for different businesses. I thought that with all the news coverage and links these sites received that their businesses would be booming and they\u2019d be ranking for everything.<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Spoiler alert: I was&nbsp;wrong.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There has to be some merit to it though, right? Even Google\u2019s John Mueller seems to be on board with digital PR.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\nhttps:\/\/twitter.com\/JohnMu\/status\/1352967238442229762\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>To learn more, I looked at dozens of sites. Some are from when I judged search awards. Others are from various Slack groups. I also asked for examples on Twitter. I found that going viral helps with their rankings a bit, but not as much as you may expect.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There are some examples I want to share with you. It\u2019s also worthwhile to mention that going viral still helps with things like branding, awareness, leads, and possibly even new business opportunities. Let\u2019s dive&nbsp;in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"intro-tok\" id=\"intro_tok\" style=\"display:none;\"><div class=\"intro-title\">Contents<\/div><a href=\"#\" class=\"expand-dots\"><span><\/span><span><\/span><span><\/span><\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"post-nav-link clearfix\" id=\"section1\"><a class=\"subhead-anchor\" data-tip=\"tooltip__copielink\" rel=\"#section1\"><svg width=\"19\" height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 14 14\" style><g fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><path d=\"M0 0h14v14H0z\" \/><path d=\"M7.45 9.887l-1.62 1.621c-.92.92-2.418.92-3.338 0a2.364 2.364 0 0 1 0-3.339l1.62-1.62-1.273-1.272-1.62 1.62a4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.885 5.884l1.62-1.62L7.45 9.886zM5.527 5.135L7.17 3.492c.92-.92 2.418-.92 3.339 0 .92.92.92 2.418 0 3.339L8.866 8.473l1.272 1.273 1.644-1.643A4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.897 2.22L4.254 3.863l1.272 1.272zm-.66 3.998a.749.749 0 0 1 0-1.06l2.208-2.206a.749.749 0 1 1 1.06 1.06L5.928 9.133a.75.75 0 0 1-1.061 0z\" style \/><\/g><\/svg><\/a><div class=\"link-text\" data-anchor=\"An unbelievable event\" data-section=\"an-unbelievable-event\">\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">An unbelievable event<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>It\u2019s been over two years since an infamous political press conference happened at the \u201cwrong\u201d Four Seasons. A presidential press conference was held at a Philadelphia landscaping company, Four Seasons Total Landscaping, instead of the Four Seasons hotel.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This was a case of reality being stranger than fiction. I don\u2019t think this event would be believable if it were in a sitcom. If you\u2019re curious about the story itself, you can <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Four_Seasons_Total_Landscaping_press_conference\">read about it<\/a>. In fact, there\u2019s even a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nbc.com\/four-seasons-total-documentary\">documentary<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The results look good at a glance<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>You can see the crazy spike in both traffic and domains linking to the company at the time of the press conference. It got another spike of links and traffic a year later as a documentary was released about the event and a lot of news outlets wrote about the story&nbsp;again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1411\" height=\"972\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image2.png\" alt=\"Overview of fstl1992.com showing traffic and link spikes from the press conference and documentary, via Ahrefs' Site Explorer\" class=\"wp-image-156492\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image2.png 1411w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image2-617x425.png 617w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image2-768x529.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1411px) 100vw, 1411px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The links look good\u2014really good! The coverage of this event was amazing and generated the kind of virality <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/digital-pr\/\">digital PR<\/a> folks dreamed about.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Below, you can see that most major news sites covered this&nbsp;story.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1606\" height=\"1999\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image11.jpg\" alt=\"Backlinks report for fstl1992.com showing links from major news sites\" class=\"wp-image-156494\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image11.jpg 1606w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image11-341x425.jpg 341w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image11-768x956.jpg 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image11-1234x1536.jpg 1234w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1606px) 100vw, 1606px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>I\u2019ve seen companies win search awards with campaigns that don\u2019t have results this&nbsp;good.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Most link builders would drool over these links. There are so many followed, high DR&nbsp;links.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1695\" height=\"1249\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image5.png\" alt=\"Referring domains for fstl1992.com showing coverage on major news sites\" class=\"wp-image-156496\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image5.png 1695w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image5-577x425.png 577w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image5-768x566.png 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image5-1536x1132.png 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1695px) 100vw, 1695px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>If you saw this kind of link profile and the increased traffic for any local service business, you\u2019d think it had won the lottery. With numbers like that, you\u2019d assume it ranked for and could rank for pretty much anything it wanted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But did the links actually help its SEO? There\u2019s more to this&nbsp;story.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Capitalizing on the&nbsp;fame<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Most of the traffic gains are for its branded terms or people looking for its merchandise. That\u2019s right\u2014there\u2019s merchandise!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1682\" height=\"1211\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image3.jpg\" alt=\"Keywords fstl1992.com is ranking for are mostly branded\" class=\"wp-image-156499\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image3.jpg 1682w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image3-590x425.jpg 590w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image3-768x553.jpg 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image3-1536x1106.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1682px) 100vw, 1682px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The most brilliant move from this landscaping company was how it capitalized on its fame. It <a href=\"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20201207213134\/https:\/\/www.inquirer.com\/news\/philadelphia\/trump-four-seasons-total-landscaping-what-happened-20201201.html\">sold $1.3 million in merchandise<\/a> within three weeks of the event! It turned this publicity into a&nbsp;win.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It originally had the merchandise on the website, but then later partnered with another Philly company to sell the merchandise on a different website.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1442\" height=\"1351\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image4.jpg\" alt=\"Overview report for phillydrinkers.com showing traffic and referring domains\" class=\"wp-image-156501\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image4.jpg 1442w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image4-454x425.jpg 454w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image4-768x720.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1442px) 100vw, 1442px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>It made a mistake here. It failed to redirect its merchandise pages over to the other site. The merchandise might have been even more successful if it had reclaimed these links with redirects.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1742\" height=\"898\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image1.png\" alt=\"Best by links report filtered to 404 showing many links that could be reclaimed with redirects\" class=\"wp-image-156503\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image1.png 1742w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image1-680x351.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image1-768x396.png 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image1-1536x792.png 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1742px) 100vw, 1742px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>What about the main business? According to <a href=\"https:\/\/billypenn.com\/2021\/11\/07\/the-inside-story-of-the-documentary-on-four-seasons-total-landscaping\/\">an article<\/a> a year after the event, the newfound fame had only netted them three new clients. I\u2019m surprised it wasn\u2019t more with this kind of branded traffic increase. But I guess the increase was from people interested in the story and not its services.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Impact on its main keywords<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>The links have some impact. The company is ranking better for its commercial keywords, but they don\u2019t help as much as you may expect for a local business that has this strong of a link profile.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It hasn\u2019t hit the first page for many of the terms that will likely bring it business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"900\" height=\"835\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image7.jpg\" alt=\"Organic keywords report for fstl1992.com showing it doesn't rank well for non-branded terms\" class=\"wp-image-156505\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image7.jpg 900w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image7-458x425.jpg 458w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image7-768x713.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 900px) 100vw, 900px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>For some terms, another local business is outranking it while having no links at&nbsp;all.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1219\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image9.png\" alt=\"SERP overview for &quot;landscaping philadelphia&quot; showing a competitor without links ranking above fstl1992.com\" class=\"wp-image-156507\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image9.png 1999w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image9-680x415.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image9-768x468.png 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image9-1536x937.png 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Overall, it looks like all those new links from going viral don\u2019t have much impact on its rankings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"post-nav-link clearfix\" id=\"section1\"><a class=\"subhead-anchor\" data-tip=\"tooltip__copielink\" rel=\"#section1\"><svg width=\"19\" height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 14 14\" style><g fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><path d=\"M0 0h14v14H0z\" \/><path d=\"M7.45 9.887l-1.62 1.621c-.92.92-2.418.92-3.338 0a2.364 2.364 0 0 1 0-3.339l1.62-1.62-1.273-1.272-1.62 1.62a4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.885 5.884l1.62-1.62L7.45 9.886zM5.527 5.135L7.17 3.492c.92-.92 2.418-.92 3.339 0 .92.92.92 2.418 0 3.339L8.866 8.473l1.272 1.273 1.644-1.643A4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.897 2.22L4.254 3.863l1.272 1.272zm-.66 3.998a.749.749 0 0 1 0-1.06l2.208-2.206a.749.749 0 1 1 1.06 1.06L5.928 9.133a.75.75 0 0 1-1.061 0z\" style \/><\/g><\/svg><\/a><div class=\"link-text\" data-anchor=\"Repeated press coverage over time\" data-section=\"repeated-press-covereage-over-time\">\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Repeated press coverage over&nbsp;time<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Next up is Gravity Payments. You may not know this name, but I bet you know the story of the CEO who cut his own salary so he could pay every employee $70K.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The CEO was also involved with some scandals, which led to even more links. However, these links may have some negative signals attached to&nbsp;them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You can see at a glance that it got tons of links over the years. But that hasn\u2019t really helped its traffic.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1426\" height=\"1430\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image13.jpg\" alt=\"Overview of gravitypayments.com showing traffic and referring domains\" class=\"wp-image-156509\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image13.jpg 1426w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image13-424x425.jpg 424w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image13-768x770.jpg 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image13-120x120.jpg 120w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1426px) 100vw, 1426px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The links are from a lot of major sites, and they look great. Again, drool-worthy links for anyone doing link building or digital PR.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1875\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image10.png\" alt=\"Referring domains report for gravitypayments.com showing great media coverage from major news sites\" class=\"wp-image-156511\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image10.png 1999w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image10-453x425.png 453w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image10-768x720.png 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image10-1536x1441.png 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>But the impact on its rankings is minimal. Once again, most of the traffic is branded. It gets very little traffic for its main terms or its informational content. All of those links don\u2019t seem to have helped.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1008\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image8.png\" alt=\"Top pages report showing most of the traffic for gravitypayments.com is branded\" class=\"wp-image-156513\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image8.png 1999w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image8-680x343.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image8-768x387.png 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image8-1536x775.png 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"post-nav-link clearfix\" id=\"section1\"><a class=\"subhead-anchor\" data-tip=\"tooltip__copielink\" rel=\"#section1\"><svg width=\"19\" height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 14 14\" style><g fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><path d=\"M0 0h14v14H0z\" \/><path d=\"M7.45 9.887l-1.62 1.621c-.92.92-2.418.92-3.338 0a2.364 2.364 0 0 1 0-3.339l1.62-1.62-1.273-1.272-1.62 1.62a4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.885 5.884l1.62-1.62L7.45 9.886zM5.527 5.135L7.17 3.492c.92-.92 2.418-.92 3.339 0 .92.92.92 2.418 0 3.339L8.866 8.473l1.272 1.273 1.644-1.643A4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.897 2.22L4.254 3.863l1.272 1.272zm-.66 3.998a.749.749 0 0 1 0-1.06l2.208-2.206a.749.749 0 1 1 1.06 1.06L5.928 9.133a.75.75 0 0 1-1.061 0z\" style \/><\/g><\/svg><\/a><div class=\"link-text\" data-anchor=\"An idea that took off\" data-section=\"an-idea-that-took-off\">\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">An idea that took&nbsp;off<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Layoffs.fyi started during COVID to connect \u201claid off\u201d people with hiring managers. It got another boost during the recent tech layoffs. At a glance, the results look&nbsp;great.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1415\" height=\"1462\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image12.png\" alt=\"Overview of layoffs.fyi showing organic traffic and referring domains\" class=\"wp-image-156514\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image12.png 1415w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image12-411x425.png 411w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image12-768x794.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1415px) 100vw, 1415px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Once again, we can see great links from great domains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1941\" height=\"1203\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image14.png\" alt=\"Referring domains report for layoffs.fyi showing great links from media sites\" class=\"wp-image-156516\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image14.png 1941w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image14-680x421.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image14-768x476.png 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image14-1536x952.png 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1941px) 100vw, 1941px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Diving in further, we can also tell almost all of the traffic is to the homepage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1190\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image15.jpg\" alt=\"Top pages report for layoffs.fyi showing the traffic mostly goes to the homepage\" class=\"wp-image-156519\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image15.jpg 1999w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image15-680x405.jpg 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image15-768x457.jpg 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image15-1536x914.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>A lot of the growth is to branded terms, but one unbranded term sticks out: \u201clayoff.\u201d If you look at the SERP a year ago vs. now, it seems the intent of the query has changed from \u201cwhat is a layoff\u201d to news about layoffs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It\u2019s possible that the popularity of this site changed the intent, or it could just be the changing environment with more layoffs happening that changed the intent. Still, this is the most plausible example I can find of viral links possibly helping\u2014and even then it\u2019s not so cut and&nbsp;dry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1554\" height=\"1999\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image6.jpg\" alt=\"SERP comparison for &quot;layoff&quot; in February 2023 vs. February 2022 showing the intent shift\" class=\"wp-image-156521\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image6.jpg 1554w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image6-330x425.jpg 330w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image6-768x988.jpg 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/image6-1194x1536.jpg 1194w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1554px) 100vw, 1554px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"post-nav-link clearfix\" id=\"section1\"><a class=\"subhead-anchor\" data-tip=\"tooltip__copielink\" rel=\"#section1\"><svg width=\"19\" height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 14 14\" style><g fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><path d=\"M0 0h14v14H0z\" \/><path d=\"M7.45 9.887l-1.62 1.621c-.92.92-2.418.92-3.338 0a2.364 2.364 0 0 1 0-3.339l1.62-1.62-1.273-1.272-1.62 1.62a4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.885 5.884l1.62-1.62L7.45 9.886zM5.527 5.135L7.17 3.492c.92-.92 2.418-.92 3.339 0 .92.92.92 2.418 0 3.339L8.866 8.473l1.272 1.273 1.644-1.643A4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.897 2.22L4.254 3.863l1.272 1.272zm-.66 3.998a.749.749 0 0 1 0-1.06l2.208-2.206a.749.749 0 1 1 1.06 1.06L5.928 9.133a.75.75 0 0 1-1.061 0z\" style \/><\/g><\/svg><\/a><div class=\"link-text\" data-anchor=\"What does it mean for SEO?\" data-section=\"what-does-it-mean-for-seo\">\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What does it mean for&nbsp;SEO?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>I think SEOs may overvalue links from media sites. They really don\u2019t seem to have much impact.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But is digital PR dead? Are <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/haro-link-building\/\">HARO links<\/a> a waste of time? I doubt it. They impact awareness, branding, and&nbsp;leads.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Final thoughts<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>From what I\u2019ve seen, many SEOs want to skip <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/competitor-backlink-analysis\/\">niche<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/local-link-building\/\">local links<\/a>, which can be tedious and boring to obtain. They want to jump right into working on more interesting and creative digital PR campaigns.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I don\u2019t blame them; digital PR campaigns are more fun and interesting. I just question the effectiveness of doing this after looking at dozens of example sites.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you have examples where digital PR links have made an impact on the business, I\u2019ll love it if you share them with me <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/patrickstox\">on Twitter<\/a>. I really want to find an example of these working well for a company.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Spoiler alert: I was&nbsp;wrong.&nbsp; There has to be some merit to it though, right? Even Google\u2019s John Mueller seems to be on board with digital PR. To learn more, I looked at dozens of sites. Some are from when I<span class=\"ellipsis\">\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"read-more\">Read more \u203a<\/div>\n<p><!-- end of .read-more --><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":150,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wp_typography_post_enhancements_disabled":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[414,335],"tags":[],"coauthors":[377],"class_list":["post-156484","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-data-studies","category-general-seo","odd"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Does Going Viral Help With SEO? Not Really<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Many people believe the key to SEO success is to go viral... not quite. 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