The Buyer Group PR + SEO News

The battle for online market share is continuing to intensify as Microsoft opens a can of competition at the established search engine powerhouse, Google.

Microsoft’s latest attempt to thrust its newly released Bing.com into the fray has them teaming with Yahoo.  Under the partnership, Yahoo is abandoning its own search technology in favor of the newly developed Bing algorithms.

According to Mashable.com, a partnership with Yahoo provides Microsoft the scale and advertising opportunities needed to turn Bing into an actual competitor of Google, at least in the short-term.  From Yahoo’s perspective, this deal seems to suggest the site will never again be a major player in the search market.

At The Buyer Group, we believe that as long as Google continues to provide quality search and services, loyalty to the site will prevail, leaving Bing with little more than a temporary blip on the market share radar.

With rumors spreading that Google will soon offer real-time search capabilities, allowing for the indexing of Tweets and other up-to-the-minute data, it is becoming essential that users optimize their Twitter profiles and content to rank highly in search results.

The following list is a breakdown of the Top 10 Twitter SEO Tips from Mashable.com.  As an online public relations agency, The Buyer Group uses each of these strategies to manage and optimize clients’ social media channels, providing quality exposure and promotion for their businesses.

According to Mashable, “By following these 10 Twitter tips, you, your company or your brand can build up more prominent links in high places on the engines.”

1 -Choose a good handle - Usernames need to be memorable, relevant and add value to your brand.  Your username will also become part of your customized Twitter URL, making it important to be consistent among social media channels.

2- Select an account name wisely - Your account name appears next to your username.  The Buyer Group uses this field as an additional opportunity to incorporate relevant key words into a profile.

3- Make your bio count - Twitter allows users 140 characters to describe themselves.  Use them. Your bio needs to include relevant key words and phrases that boost the value of your brand and rank highly in search.

4- Spread the word – Placing your Twitter URL on other social media sites as well as on many of the pages of your own Web site will help drive up its link value in search engines.

5- Remember your URL – Including a link to your brand’s site or even another social media profile is one of the easiest things you can do to promote your business.

6 -Select the initial characters of each tweet carefully - The first characters of each tweet determine the message’s title tag as a search result and may end up having the most impact on its future SEO value.

7 – Write keyword-rich tweets if possible - There needs to be a balance between keywords and content.  Starting tweets with relevant keywords is a great way to theme your messages and capitalize on timely “buzz words.”

8- Mind your re-tweetability – Keeping your messages around 120 characters will allow for maximum re-tweetability.

9 – Provide some link love- Twitter has become a very useful tool for promotion of messages and driving traffic to specific content.  Using a URL shortener such as Bit.ly will not only make it easy to fit links into your 140 characters, but also allow tracking click-throughs.

10 – As always, give ‘em what they want -Your followers on Twitter want timely and informative content.  Making sure your tweets and links provide something of interest to your followers is the number one goal on Twitter.

Read on for more information and make sure to check out the original post by Mashable.

One of the latest challenges in the SEO and online PR world is the issue of duplicate content.  One of the latest challenges in the SEO and online PR world is the issue of duplicate content.

While it may be mildly annoying for you to read the same sentence twice, duplicate content is a major problem for search engines trying to return unique and distinct results.

At The Buyer Group, we are constantly learning about the ever-changing realm of SEO (search engine optimization) and apply these tactics into our online PR practices.  Oftentimes, companies try to take the easy way out to deliver their message, in hopes to rank higher or produce more in search results.  This includes taking one page of content from a Web site and placing it on another site such as a blog or social media channel.

Unfortunately, this approach will not produce better search results at all.  Unless the content is heavily edited from one page to a next, using this practice will lead to issues within search results.  Search engines like Google figured this detour out quite some time ago and has adapted to filter search results that only display one set of duplicate content among its highest results.  So for example, if a company takes a Web page from their Web site and posts it on their blog, the search engine will only show one of these pages in the search results.

When it comes to online public relations, it is important for content to be thought out and uniquely designed across a company’s online real estate.  Strategic social media participation in addition to an optimized Web site can greatly increase the exposure of any company.

For information on how The Buyer Group can optimize your Web site for greater search results and brand your company’s presence on social media contact Lisa Buyer today at 954.354.1411 x 14 or lbuyer@thebuyergroup.com.

In the ever-changing, fast-paced world of social media, there is always something new to learn. Continually striving to be ahead of the PR curve, The Buyer Group took part last week in an emerging technology webinar presented by SEMPO (Search Engine Marketing Professional Organization).

The webinar highlighted the intersection between social media and online search results. SEMPO stressed that the future of all media is social and that search engines are increasingly displaying social media as top results.

SEMPO also explained that social media usage is more frequent and strategic than ever, pointing out that over 90 percent of SEM (search engine marketing) agencies are using Facebook as a public relations tool – good thing, considering 31 percent of CEOs have are active on Facebook.

The instant response platforms of social media sites have allowed for more brand communication than ever, placing new pressure on companies to monitor and engage in dialogue with consumers.  For information on how your business can use social media to its advantage contact Lisa Buyer at lbuyer@thebuyergoup.com.

Demonstrating the explosive growth of social media sites, USA Today may have become the world’s first major news outlet to write a story entirely from interviews on Twitter, the Web’s newest hotspot.

According to a social media webinar presented by SEMPO (Search Engine Marketing Professional Organization), more than 14% of CEOs are now actively tweeting.  USA Today Money Section’s Del Jones completed his story exclusively with CEO sources reachable through Twitter.

This statistic highlights SEMPO’s assertion that the future, if not the present, of all media is social.  Even more important to the world of online public relations is the intersection between social media sites and online search results. SEMPO stressed the point that search engines are increasingly displaying social media as top results.

The instant response platforms of social media sites have allowed for more to be said about brands than ever, placing new pressure on companies to monitor and engage in dialogue with consumers.  For information on how your business can use social media to its advantage contact The Buyer Group at lbuyer@thebuyergoup.com.

The Buyer Group Welcomes Brian Goodling to Social Media Team

More top talent joins The Buyer Group. Brian Goodling is the Interactive Media Coordinator with The Buyer Group connecting client’s social networks in the search marketing and online public relations space. He graduated from Syracuse University with a degree in finance and entrepreneurship in 2006 and spent the last three years working in-house for a leading residential builder and developer.

Brian recently attended Search Engine Strategies in New York where he attended workshops on social media, natural search strategies and all things Twitter, YouTube, Facebook and Google. His favorite parts about SES were Marty Weintraub’s “An Update on Social Media Optimization!” and Guy Kawasaki’s keynote Reality Check and Twitter, social media tool of the 21st century!

Online PR Presentation on Blogs, Social Media & Google News Search Results

Deerfield Beach, FL – March 24, 2009 – How fast does news travel on Google News? “In a New York minute,” says Lisa Buyer, president and CEO of leading interactive PR agency The Buyer Group and guest speaker at Search Engine Strategies (SES) New York March 24-26, 2009.

As part of the News Search SEO Panel, Buyer will discuss how launching a targeted online public relations campaign can attract quality traffic through optimized press releases.

The News Search SEO panel shares how to create online PR that speaks to multiple audiences such as journalists, analysts, and end users as well as how this relates to the success of news searches and search engine results.

“This is my second year speaking on the News Search SEO panel,” said Buyer. “It’s remarkable how online news trends can shift even within a year; 2009 is definitely the year for Twitter.”

Industry trendsetters’ Greg Jarboe President of SEO-PR, Dana Todd CMO of Newsforce, John Shehata Senior SEO Manager of Advance Internet Inc., and moderator Mark Jackson President/CEO of Vizion Interactive will join Lisa Buyer on the News Search SEO panel.

The Buyer Group is a member of Search Engine Marketing Professional Organization, South Florida Interactive Marketing Association, Agency Management Roundtable, and is recognized as a Google Advertising Professional Company.

For more information about The Buyer Group and its interactive public relations and branding services call Lisa Buyer at 954.354.1411.

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Looking for Lisa Buyer this week?  Check Twitter.com/lisabuyer for constant updates.

Speaking in 140 characters or less, Twitter users have up-to-the-minute information about the who’s, what’s, where’s, and why’s of business, plus a little extra. My current status would look a little like this:

In twitter language that translates to: I’m attending Pubcon, a search marketing conference that covers all aspects of online business.  I am speaking on the panel  “Moving Old Brands into the New Social Media,” but better yet — I’ll be attending the coolest sessions that will take The Buyer Group PR campaigns to a new level.

And how valuable is PR right now?

It’s about as valuable as you make it — and in this economy, you must make every dollar count.

Check out what I have highlighted from a PR perspective:

• Writing Headlines that Rock
• Web Site Design and SEO Deployment – Get your PR agency involved!
• The Twitter and Microbogging Revolution -
• How PR Agencies Intersect with PR
• Brand and Reputation Management
• Intersection of Search and Social Media
• Optimizing a Local Search Campaign using PR
• Personalized and Universal Search
• Leveraging Consumer Generated Content
• Tracking Results

Let us know if you are interested in getting together to see how you can apply some of these strategies and help get the best PR/Branding ROI in this challenging economy. And keep in mind, traditional PR is still The Buyer Group’s foundation, all of this new media only gives us new tools to make PR more powerful — and all strategies are not created equal.

Search Marketing Conferences
PubCon – The search-marketing event of the year that fuels a surge of new energy and ideas for The Buyer Group each year. Looking forward to the PubCon in Austin, Texas.
Search Engine Strategies (SES) – A yearlong schedule of search marketing and commerce events for our online fix. Next stop SES New York March 23-26, 2009.

2008 was great in the world of conferences, where Lisa Buyer held a spot in the speaker’s lounge. Lisa shared the latest trends in online PR on session panels at both PubCon and SES along side the top the movers and shakers in search.

People in Search
Joe Laratro – one of the first 100 Google AdWords certified professional, SFIMA President and Pub-Con Advisor Board Member, this year Joe Laratro worked with The Buyer Group in merging online public relations with the SEO world.
Dana Todd – From SEMPO Chair to SES favorite speaker to Newsforce dynamo, Dana Todd is the personality and brains behind search marketing and was responsible for Lisa’s SES speaking debut.

When it comes to personalities in search marketing, Joe and Dana take the cake. Each were influential in helping shape The Buyer Group’s online public relations and branding position in the marketplace.

Blogs
Top Rank Blog– The intersection of digital PR, social and search engine marketing, Lee Odden’s blog is our 2008 all time fave to follow. We like Lee’s mix and his ability to be at every search conference on the planet.
SEOMOZ – Slightly more techie, but still on our Google home page is Rand Fishkin’s SEOMoz blog. We like his style and his social media conference presentations inspire us.
Scene in the Tropics by Lesley Abravanel – Looking for where to see and be scene on South Beach? Ask Lesley. She is the best celebrity and trend blogger for those who want to know.

Online PR Wire Services
MarketWire – Recently winning over The Buyer Group for its high ranking news search placement and SEO option
PRWeb – Always a favorite of The Buyer Group for its user-friendly interface and video option
Newsforce – The best and easiest PR optimizer on the planet along with the perfect way to get clients instant national headline news.

Research Web Sites
Google – Need we say more? We love Google Alerts to track brands, keywords and our online PR campaigns.
Wikipedia – The year of the wiki, 2008, when The Buyer Group posted its first wiki page

Inventions
Retail DNA Tests– 2008 invention of the year, as scene in Time Magazine

New Business
Shop to Earn/Shop to Earth – The Buyer Group’s newest online venture and client. This hybrid MLM and affiliate marketing business model is destined to be the largest shopping portal on the planet and will bring the average shopper a way to earn money back while also being eco-friendly.
Oppenheim Pilelsky Law – Family of entrepreneurs at it’s finest. Read on about The OppGuide and please take the time to vote.

Books
“Groundswell” by Charlene Li – New and improved Buyer Group Bible of 2008 underlines why social media is a natural with online public relations strategies.
“Breakthrough: Eight Steps to Wellness” – Suzanne Somers’ latest book that listed Buyer Group client as a source

Brands
Apple – Apple computers, iPods, iPhones and more.
W Hotels – “What is your wish?” the W Concierge asks

The Buyer Group is an online PR firm that prefers designer computers and boutique hotels, with an edge. Apple branded products help us work smart and be creative – so we have time to play at the W Hotels.

Best Use of Social Media
Change.gov – Obama’s presidential campaign couldn’t have been more successful as he rode the social media wave to victory.

Social Media Sites
Twitter – 2008’s Micro-blogging, social media site of champions. Familiar with the book, “Twitter Revolution” by Warren Whitlock? If not, pick it up for everything you need to know about communicating on twitter.
Facebook – Sent a martini to your friends Facebook yet? This social site is our 2008-networking favorite; it doubles as a corporate communication site as well.  Many of our clients have networking groups and fan pages on Facebook.
LinkedIn – Where professionals convene, drop recommendations, and share business contacts with each other.

Tweeters of the Year
Shannon Anderson – founder and president of babiesonline.com @queenofgeek
Tony Hsieh – CEO of online shoe giant Zappos.com @zappos

Escapes
Me Day Spa – The best mani/pedi on South Beach. Our monthly favorite escape.
Yoga South – Lunchtime workout? A must-have for The Buyer Group. Ohm.

Investment Banking
Infusion Capital’s Kelly McCarthy – Celebration, FL at its finest.

Online Tool
Google Analytics – The question of the century made to PR firms: How do you measure the success of your PR campaigns?  Easy Answer: The advent of Google Analytics let’s us measure the success of optimized press releases stats, social media facts and more.

Topics Include the Power of Search and Using Online PR to Grow Web Traffic

Deerfield Beach, FL – November 10, 2008 – Using online PR to increase Web traffic for businesses is as easy as three letters: S-E-O. Search engine optimization not only increases the likelihood of web site visits and page rank but also generates quality leads and conversions.

Florida online public relations agency CEO, Lisa Buyer, is speaking at PubCon, the annual conference for web writers and developers in Las Vegas, Nevada. As part of a panel on growing web traffic through online PR, Lisa’s presentation will focus on how effective PR campaigns offer a great way to achieve targeted Web site traffic through search engine optimization and other tools.

“In today’s economy, utilizing all tools possible to reach key audiences is extremely important,” said Buyer. “Online PR campaigns are an effective way for businesses to improve online visibility for lead generation. With that, PR professionals can’t lose sight of the journalist or news bloggers searching for relevant story sources, another great way to generate quality business leads.”

Buyer will be sharing the results of a media focus group asking top tier media including news bloggers about their perspective of online press releases and how they use online search.

“I will be in good company sharing the panel with online PR industry experts Joe Beaulaurier of PRWeb and CamcorderInfo.com Founder, Robin Liss,” said Buyer.

The Buyer Group is a member of Search Engine Marketing Professional Organization, South Florida Interactive Marketing Association, Agency Management Roundtable, and is recognized as a Google Advertising Professional Company.

For more information about The Buyer Group and its interactive public relations and branding services visit http://www.thebuyergroup.com or call Lisa Buyer at 954.354.1411.

Connect with The Buyer Group
Follow The Buyer Group on Twitter at www.twitter.com/thebuyergroup
Connect with Lisa on LinkedIn at http://www.linkedin.com/in/lisabuyer