Google News can be a great source of readers interested in what you’re publishing and can serve as a steady source of advertising income also, a great game changer for driving traffic to your blog and establishing your blog as a credible information source.
But the big question is, while news is generally for news websites, Is Your Company Blog Google News-Ready?
What is Google News and Its Benefits
Google News is a news aggregator that offers local and international stories from various sources, including blogs and news sites. It provides a diverse set of features that allow the audience to learn about and engage with your content.
Here are the benefits of having a google news approved website:
- Brand value: Google News approved websites help in popularizing your brand news channel to the audience.
- Instant Traffic: News published on Google News approved websites gets indexed fast and you will start getting traffic instantly.
- Increased visibility: Google News can provide a significant boost in brand exposure and traffic, sending over 24 billion clicks per month to publishers.
- Thought leadership: publishing industry news can help establish a company as a thought leader.
- New source of revenue: companies may find new sources of revenue by getting into Google News.
However, there are some cons to using Google News as a PR strategy, such as the little SEO value it provides and the short period of time that press releases may be shown on the site. To appeal to the Google News algorithms, websites need to regularly produce high-quality, original and timely content.
Is Your Company Blog Eligible for Google News?
According to John Mueller, this was during a recent Google office hours session, he clarified that there doesn’t seem to be anything in Google News policies that is specific to company blogs. He couldn’t speak directly for Google News, since he works on search.
If you’re curious if this is an option or not, I’d recommend asking in the News Publisher help community. And, if you’re curious whether your pages are already being shown in Google News, I’d check out the performance reports on Search Console
John Mueller added.
John Mueller is right there is nothing specific on company blogs. To be eligible for Google News, your company blog must publish high-quality news content focusing on timely and relevant topics providing accurate and quality well-researched information and presenting it in a professional manner.
Google News primarily accepts news websites rather than company blogs or commercial websites with news section. However, publishers can still submit their websites for inclusion in Google News through the publisher center.
Here are requirements and recommendations for your company blog to be considered for Google News:
- Content: Focus on niche content, as websites serving specific niche have a greater chance of getting approved. Ensure that your content is unique, meaningful and of high quality/
- Spelling and grammar: pay attention to proper spelling and grammar as they are important aspects of your content.
- Deceptive content: Avoid being deceptive in both content and contact information.
- Hate or violence promotion: Do not promote hate or violence, as this is forbidden by Google News.
- Focus on core content: Concentrate on providing valuable information rather than emphasizing on ads and PR.
- Website usability: Ensure that your website is easy to use and accessible.
- Daily content updates: Update your content daily to demonstrate trustworthiness and commitment to your audience.
- Article dates and bylines: Provide accurate and up-to-date information on your articles, including dates and bylines.
While you don’t nee to sign up through Publisher Center to be considered in Google News rankings, doing so can provide certain benefits, such as content and branding control, monetization opportunities and placement eligibility.
Does Google Publish Company blogs in Google News?
Yes! They indeed do publish news from company blogs. We searched through Google News to be sure that they indeed publish news from company blogs. Below is a screenshot from a company whose blog content is on Google News.