We are often telling clients about the importance of search engine optimisation (SEO) as they establish themselves as experts or leading companies in their fields. And as a PR agency, we see the benefits from effective SEO ourselves in our own high Google rank.

As Google dominates in the UK with its market share, having a website optimised for Google searches is essential in gaining valuable web traffic. But how often does an organisation suffer from unwanted attention due to its high standing search result?

The Toronto Ghosts & Hauntings Research Society (TGHRS) is the first I’ve heard of.

Yesterday, in my hometown of Toronto, a woman tragically fell to her death as she was ghost hunting in a Toronto landmark. As the news hit, many curious people went online to find more information. When you type in “Toronto ghost hunting” into Google, the TGHRS are the first couple results that pop up.

The TGHRS website surged in traffic from all the searches and they were inundated with interview requests from the media, despite having no connection to the case or without previously mentioning any ghost sightings in that specific building. They were so overwhelmed with attention that they had to post a press release on their landing page!

Although this is a tragic story, it is a good example of the power of being in the top high ranking results on the Google search engine.

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