How Bart van der Meer Drives 5 Million Organic Page Views a Month with Digital PR


Within the newest episode of the Area of interest Pursuits Podcast, I sat down with Bart van der Meer to debate distinctive strategies of driving natural website positioning site visitors by way of digital PR. Bart shared worthwhile insights into how he has efficiently elevated web site site visitors utilizing data-driven methods, particularly within the context of digital PR campaigns. 

Right here’s a breakdown of our dialog and the way these strategies might be utilized to spice up your website positioning efforts!

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Three Key Sources for Digital PR

Bart’s method to digital PR hinges on three main sources of backlinks, every requiring a definite technique. The primary supply is conventional: journalists and information retailers. This method includes conducting outreach campaigns to safe mentions and hyperlinks from established media sources.

  • Journalistic outreach: A direct, outreach-heavy method to safe hyperlinks from information companies.
  • Instructional web sites: Universities and academic domains are focused with inbound methods, emphasizing content material that appeals to tutorial or research-focused audiences.
  • Authorities websites: Native and nationwide authorities web sites, which require content material that addresses societal points and public pursuits.

Bart’s workforce creates distinctive knowledge units to construct compelling articles that enchantment to journalists, universities, and authorities our bodies alike. This content material is commonly based mostly on authentic surveys or knowledge gathered by the workforce, making certain it stands out in a aggressive panorama.

The Energy of Unique Information

One of many core strategies Bart makes use of to realize visibility is creating authentic knowledge that may’t be discovered elsewhere. This method not solely attracts consideration from high-authority sources but in addition strengthens website positioning rankings by way of distinctive content material.

He defined that, by amassing knowledge immediately from their viewers or by way of exterior surveys, they’ll construct content material that fills gaps in current info.

  • Conducting surveys: Gathering first-party knowledge from customers or business professionals, like installers, can yield worthwhile insights for content material creation.
  • Leveraging exterior knowledge: If authentic knowledge shouldn’t be out there, current datasets might be restructured to make them extra related and helpful in your viewers.

Bart emphasised that this data-driven method helps create high-quality content material that ranks nicely in serps, typically attracting hundreds of backlinks from authoritative sources.

Constructing Content material for Low-Quantity, Excessive-Impression Matters

A novel side of Bart’s technique includes concentrating on low-traffic, high-impact subjects which might be underrepresented within the website positioning panorama. These subjects typically don’t have excessive search volumes however are of nice curiosity to particular teams, akin to authorities companies or non-profits. 

By specializing in these area of interest areas, Bart’s workforce can generate hyperlinks from authoritative websites that others may overlook.

  • Authorities and nonprofit sectors: By publishing content material on subjects that align with public pursuits, akin to sustainability or security, Bart’s campaigns achieve traction on authorities and academic websites.
  • Low-search-volume content material: Content material centered round subjects with decrease search volumes can nonetheless appeal to worthwhile hyperlinks whether it is well timed and related to key audiences.

This technique is especially helpful for companies trying to goal area of interest markets or these with restricted site visitors. It highlights the significance of understanding the context of a subject and the way it aligns with public or institutional priorities.

Outreach Methods for Digital PR Campaigns

With regards to outreach, Bart makes use of a mix of energetic and passive methods to make sure success. For journalists and media retailers, the workforce focuses on data-backed tales that enchantment to information organizations. This includes creating surveys or amassing distinctive knowledge, which might be shared as a part of a broader story.

  • Lively outreach: Bart’s workforce reaches out to journalists immediately, providing them distinctive knowledge units that can be utilized for his or her tales.
  • Passive methods: For instructional and authorities websites, the technique is extra passive, specializing in creating content material that’s discoverable by these establishments with out direct outreach.

Bart’s workforce additionally makes use of instruments like Hotjar to gather knowledge immediately from their web site guests, providing them an incentive to reply questions or take part in surveys. This knowledge is then used to gas their outreach campaigns, making certain that the content material is each related and authentic.

Scaling Digital PR for Smaller Groups

For companies with smaller groups, Bart shared some suggestions for scaling digital PR campaigns successfully. One of many key methods is to begin small and concentrate on extremely focused campaigns. By narrowing down your viewers and area of interest, even a small workforce can run profitable digital PR campaigns with minimal assets.

  • Area of interest down: Begin by specializing in a small group of individuals or companies to assemble knowledge from, making certain the marketing campaign stays manageable.
  • Environment friendly outreach: Utilizing automated instruments and templates might help scale outreach with out overloading a small workforce.

Bart’s instance of a marketing campaign for canine shelters within the Netherlands, which concerned reaching out to 130 shelters and gathering knowledge by way of a brief survey, illustrates how small groups can handle giant outreach efforts. 

In just some days, the marketing campaign garnered worthwhile backlinks, displaying that it’s attainable to generate important outcomes even with restricted assets.

Instruments and Software program for Digital PR

To streamline their digital PR and website positioning efforts, Bart really useful a number of instruments that assist his workforce keep organized and environment friendly. For outreach, Muck Rack is a superb device for locating and contacting journalists. For amassing knowledge, Hotjar helps have interaction web site guests, whereas AI instruments like LLMs can help in producing artistic topic strains for electronic mail outreach.

  • MuckRack: A device for locating journalists and media retailers for outreach campaigns.
  • Hotjar: A person engagement device that helps gather worthwhile knowledge by way of surveys and pop-ups in your web site.
  • AI instruments: AI-powered instruments can help in producing content material concepts and headlines, in addition to enhancing outreach success.

These instruments assist Bart’s workforce scale their efforts whereas sustaining the standard and originality of their campaigns.

Closing Ideas

Bart van der Meer’s method to digital PR and natural website positioning site visitors combines creativity, knowledge, and strategic outreach to construct high-authority hyperlinks and drive huge natural site visitors. By specializing in distinctive knowledge and area of interest subjects and leveraging highly effective instruments, companies of all sizes can apply these methods to enhance their website positioning efficiency. 

Whether or not you’re a small workforce or half of a bigger group, the important thing takeaway is obvious: concentrate on creating authentic content material that solutions necessary questions and builds relationships with authoritative sources.