How To Hack PR (Reddit PR Cheatcode)

ByJames Oliver

This is the story of how I created Mccheapest(.)com:

  • 100K views in first 48 hours
  • DR33 days after launch
  • Hundreds of high authority mentions

And the best thing:

0 outreach. Not one single email / pitch / anything.

This is exactly how I did it

Let’s take a look at some of the coverage/links:

  • Yahoo (DR92)
  • MSN (DR92)
  • iHeart (DR91)
  • MIT Technology Review (DR90)
  • Times Union (DR83)
  • The Sun (DR80)

And hundreds more…

A journalist from Nexstar Media covered the site and it got syndicated to over 120 US regional news websites including ABC, NBC, CBS, Fox affiliates. You name it. 

Average DR of 70 across the 123 sites. 

Mccheapest-pr-2-1

Not all were plainly syndicated – some had unique regional content.

So, what’s the site about?

Well – put simply – it’s a deliberately quirky one-page interactive map that shows the price of a Big Mac in every US McDonald’s. Inspired by the legendary mcbroken.com (DR51!), I knew there’d be an appetite for it (pardon the pun).

Cheapest big mac in america pr hack (1)

Here’s how I made it:

Data: Mobile app scraper built for less than $100 from a Fiverr developer.

Map: MapLibre GLJS frontend / Tegola Self Hosted Backend. Both open source BUT I don’t recommend starting with either. Use MapBox Studio instead*.

Hosting: Digital Ocean Static Site – $0.

*Mapbox is super easy to get started with, has a free tier, and has great tutorials, but be warned. If you do go viral, it ain’t cheap. But setting up your own map tech stack is PAINFUL.

For this site, I specifically wanted to test Reddit as a way of getting big, instant distribution. Redditors are a tough crowd. And just like Twitter, I was a Reddit lurker with 0 karma and 0 credibility.

Thanks to my friend @growthscouter for the tip, I created an account and began to post cute pics of my puppy for karma. You gotta admit, she’s adorable (and useful now too ).

Olly sachas bali dog

So, loaded up with puppy pic karma, I posted the site on r/internetisbeautiful at roughly the ‘prime’ 8AM EST time. Instant traction, with up to 5,000 real-time users according to GA.

Here’s the reach on Reddit for the first 48 hours (1.7M views!):

PR tactic (1)

A few quick thoughts.

The site got traction because:

Unique data (mobile apps are a goldmine for data)

Single page app. This removes potential negative comments/downvotes from someone seeing your shitty affiliate site on another page and slating you . Just 301 later…

It’s not just one talking point.

Every single McDonald’s creates a talking point for people in the comments/podcasts/blogs/news etc.

It’s like regional digital PR but on steroids. Not only can you spin angles on state prices, but even within a state, the price can vary loads.

And this isn’t just a one-off.

I launched a similar concept a week later that got over 150,000 hits, front page of Reddit and arguably even better links.

That’s one for another thread/my newsletter.

To wrap up:

Several journalists saw the viral Reddit post and got in touch – Reddit DMs and email on the site.

Stories went live within 24h of posting. Once a couple of big sites posted about it, the news compounded with 0 need for outreach.

Interested in digital PR but don’t want to spend $10,000s?

Check out Journofinder.com.

Thanks for the info Sacha – find him on X @sacha_vyzz