The Buyer Group PR + SEO News

The Buyer Group Votes for Wendi Oppenheim

Fort Lauderdale, FL – December 11, 2008 – Who said today’s youth isn’t ambitious? Social entrepreneur Wendi Oppenheim, 16, is leading a community service revolution in South Florida with The Opp-Guide – and its Web site (http://www.opp-guide.com/) is the only Florida finalist in the Best Buy @15 Challenge, an initiative to encourage teens to get involved in their communities.

Rock the Vote for The Opp-Guide at http://www.genv.net/bestbuy or text BBYV24 to 32075.

Comparable to Zagat or Yelp, The Opp-Guide is a non-profit organization where teens submit reviews of their volunteer experiences with local nonprofits and charities. As a finalist, The Opp-Guide could win $10,000 in grant funds.

“In the current economy, it’s more important than ever to give back to your community,” said Opp-Guide President, Oppenheim. “Young people need to know the true satisfaction of giving their time to people in need. We want to expand beyond South Florida and also build a Spanish version of our site – but we need your vote to win this contest and fund our vision.”

The Best Buy @15 Challenge features socially responsible programs designed by 30 young social entrepreneurs from around the country, and Oppenheim is the only runner-up in Florida. There will be 15 winners in this competition. All winners are determined by the number of votes they receive via the contest Web site or text messages. Voters can register to win a free iPod shuffle and $500 to donate to their school or favorite nonprofit when they simply cast a vote.

The Opp-Guide has proven an innovative way to get teens involved in community service by helping them pinpoint opportunities that tap into their passion and skills. Opp-Guide users have submitted reviews on organizations ranging from Operation Smile to local dog parks. The user-generated content aspect of the site lets teens get real about community service experiences.

About The Opp-Guide
The Opp-Guide to Community Service in Broward County was designed to help teens find community service ideas based on their interests. Providing reviews of various community service organizations in greater Fort Lauderdale, FL, The Opp-Guide is written specifically by teens for teens.  The reviews are honest, candid and help fill the missing link between actually enjoying volunteering and only being there for the credit.

For more information visit: http://www.opp-guide.com/

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.

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Deerfield Beach, FL – October 31, 2008 – Hanging out online is not just for kids anymore. Customers are writing about products on blogs, reviewing businesses on Yelp, joining fan clubs on Facebook, and cutting up corporate commercials on YouTube in record numbers! It’s a social phenomenon – the groundswell – that is creating a permanent shift in the way the world works, plays, lives, and thinks.

As search engine savvy, online PR gurus, The Buyer Group knows the tactics that work best in this industry.

Published in 2008 by the leading company in online research, “Groundswell” is the number one recommended book by SEO/SEM professionals. Authors Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff, lead analysts at Forrester Research, define the social media groundswell as “a social trend in which people use technologies to get the things they need from each other rather than traditional institutions like corporations.”

With clients ranging from non-profit advisors to bioidentical hormone therapy physicians, The Buyer Group has mastered the channels of the groundswell. Whether you’re an online marketing newbie or a new era genius, “Groundswell” offers something for all.

“We recommend that each one of our prospects and clients take the time to read “Groundswell,” said Lisa Buyer, The Buyer Group President. “This is the most informative book available on the ins-and-outs of the social media revolution. A revolution that we are implementing now with our clients to augment their existing marketing strategies”

This “new era” of the groundswell is created by three trends: people’s desire to connect, new interactive technologies and online economics.

The numbers speak in volumes when it comes to social media growth:
• 25 percent of Americans report reading a blog regularly
• 44 percent participate in a social media network such as Facebook, MySpace or Twitter
• 132 million unique users can be found on Facebook, more than double since 2007
• 30 percent watch user generated video on sites such as YouTube
• 25 percent of online users read ratings and reviews
• 11 percent write ratings and reviews

“Groundswell” gives marketers a way to look at their audiences’ social media participation through social technographic tools, allowing them to see the profile of a target market including demographics and psychographics with a stong focus on technology behaviors. The social technographic profile divides individuals into these categories:
• Creators – These people publish blogs and Web sites, upload video, write, and post articles
• Critics – Post ratings/reviews, comment on other blogs, and contribute to online forums and articles
• Collectors – Use RSS, vote for Web sites, and mark or tag pages and photos
• Joiners – Maintain profiles on social networking sites, visit social networking sites
• Spectators – Read blogs, online forums, customer ratings, and watch videos. or listen to podcasts
• Inactives – none of these activities

Where do you fit in? Where do your customers fit in? Groundswell helps you profile your own customer with a free tool at http://www.forrester.com/Groundswell/profile_tool.html

“Groundswell has become the bible in our office lately, we use it as a reference point for ways to tap into the groundswell using public relations and social media strategies – strategies that must be added to your current marketing mix,” said Buyer.

The groundswell interacts in peculiar ways. No matter which angle the system maneuvers, three common denominators drive its force: people, technology, and economics. The first common factor is people. Throughout history, people have always depended on each other, rebelling against institutional power. Technology is the second force driving the groundswell, allowing people to communicate on new levels through the spread of social technologies. Finally, the third factor is as simple as online economics: on the Internet, traffic equals money.

Take the example of the movie, “Snakes on a Plane.” Word got out that the movie was in production and before long, “Snakes on a Plane” was owned by the Internet. Fans created t-shirts and started an unofficial blog called, “Snakes on a Blog.” The online visibility and community created around this blog attracted thousands of fans, who insisted on adding a line – a very popular line – to the movie. The producers, knowing they had to please their die-hard fans in order to succeed, changed the movie, added the line, and lost the film’s PG-13 rating in the process.

“If you can’t beat ‘em … join ‘em,” said Sarah Van Elzen, Interactive Producer at The Buyer Group. “The online world has shifted to a place where corporate brands are redefined by the public, distribution channels are modified, and relationships are built upon and retained. The best way to get ahead in this sector is to just join, learn, and reap the social media benefits.”

For more information about The Buyer Group and it’s interactive public relations programs contact Lisa Buyer at lbuyer@thebuyergroup.com. See what social media can do for your company.

AAAMS Courses Teach Physicians Botox, Dermal Fillers and Internet Marketing

Deerfield Beach, FL – October 22, 2008 – What do Botox, Dermal Fillers, Red Carpet peels, Facial and neck rejuvenation, mesotherapy, and public relations have in common? Physicians learning these techniques and procedures are also getting a crash course in how to best promote these services to patients and prospects through online public relations and search engine strategies.

This week Dr. Sam Assassa, President of the American Association of Aesthetic Medicine and Surgery (AAAMS) invited Lisa Buyer, president of The Buyer Group to add a new dimension to his physician training sessions through online PR strategy education. These new sessions will offer added value to AAAMS members, giving them tools to increase profits in a challenging economic climate.

“Aesthetic surgery public relations is a strategy today’s physicians must embrace in order to remain competitive,” said Buyer who is an invited speaker at Internet conferences such as Search Engine Strategies and PubCon. “Physicians and staff must participate in the online communities that patients turn to for information on physicians.”

Basic training on the benefits of social media strategies such as Facebook, Twitter, optimized press releases, search engine savvy Web sites, and innovative internet marketing strategies are included in Dr. Assassa’s AAAMS courses.

“The physicians, RNs and medical professionals who attend my courses are learning cutting edge medical aesthetics techniques in Botox Cosmetics, fillers, proper analysis of aging face an dneck, and the latest techniques in facial , neck and hands rejuvenation,” said Dr. Assassa. “I realized they needed some insight about how to take these new services back to the practice and see a return on investment. Infusing a public relations and internet marketing strategy is the best way to do that.”

About AAAMS
The American Association of Aesthetic Medicine and Surgery (AAAMS) is committed to teaching the artistic act of aesthetics in a practical, clear-cut approach with safety in mind and to ensure uniform excellence in the care of patients. Both the rapid demand and acceptance of the public for aesthetic medical services, such as dermatology and cosmetic surgery, substantiate the importance and the need to standardize these practices. The AAAMS serves to set standards for aesthetic surgery practices, establishing reconstructive and aesthetic surgery treatments as a separate specialty in the world of medicine.

About The Buyer Group
With more than 16 years of interactive public relations and branding expertise, The Buyer Group provides clients with online public relations and branding services using the most effective Internet strategies and search engine optimization.

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

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When an optimized press release generates online news and captures traditional media coverage, it’s a good thing. The Buyer Group netted the most coveted goal in online PR this month: delivering positive media coverage for clients.

Luxury clients Me Day Spa, Colorado Mountain Estates, and Dr. Paul Wigoda got more than an ego boost this week while featured in major media outlets around the country. Leads, Web site visitors, and third party exposure are just a few of the bonuses when working with The Buyer Group.

To accomplish varied client online PR goals, The Buyer Group utilizes a mix of traditional PR outreach, online PR, social media, and blogging. This combination forms a synergistic mix that appeals to online and traditional media alike, while encouraging direct consumer brand interaction.

In the news this week:

• Me Day Spa and Dr. Paul Wigoda – Profiled online and in print by the Miami Herald and South Florida lifestyle TV program “Deco Drive”
• Colorado Mountain Estates – Profiled online and in print by The New York Times

Client roster update:
The Buyer Group welcomes Southern Specialties, leaders in premium produce and Shop to Earn/Shop to Earth, the fastest growing online shopping portal in the world.

Reality Blog Follows Women Through Menopause and Targets Journalists

Deerfield Beach, FL – October 16, 2008 – Sex, gossip, fights, and…menopause? The kind of drama normally reserved for “The Real World” and “Survivor” is coming to desktops and laptops everywhere courtesy of The Buyer Group’s latest social media project, MenopauseManiac.com.

Sponsored by BodyLogicMD, The Buyer Group’s first foray in the reality blogging world follows in the footsteps of teenage anti-heros LonelyGirl15 and Lil’Loca, However, differentiating itself, the content posted on Menopause Maniac is true, real life hot flashes, a waning sex drive, and a hankering for Snickers.

According to Forrester Research, the industry’s leader in analytics. 25 percent of Americans who are online read blogs and 14 percent of them actively participate in blogs. The marriage between the world of menopause and the blogosphere is a match made in PR heaven for blog sponsor, BodyLogicMD. In addition to the blog, Menopause Maniac is also active on Twitter.

“Menopause Maniac offers something no other menopause forum can – and it comes in the form of Judy B; our first menopause maniac,” said Lisa Buyer, President and CEO of The Buyer Group. “Judy’s willingness to be open about her challenges with menopause invites other women to participate actively in the online conversation happening on the blog and gives them the opportunity to be exposed to BodyLogicMD’s message of relief from menopause symptoms.”

By partnering with The Buyer Group and Judy B, BodyLogicMD has increased their likelihood of being profiled in both online and traditional media outlets.

Now that’s smart PR.

About Menopause Maniac
Sponsored by the bioidentical hormone experts of BodyLogicMD and brought to you by The Buyer Group, Menopause Maniac is a blog that is dedicated to helping women understand the realities of menopause and finding their way to treating their symptoms and living the best life possible using bioidentical hormones. The blog is a slice of life documenting real women who are suffering from the severe symptoms associated with menopause and hormonal imbalances.

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Florida PR Agency Gets Rocky Mountain High with Online Public Relations
Colorado Real Estate Developer Optimizes Sales and Marketing Strategy

Deerfield Beach, FL – August 22, 2008 – Online public relations agency, The Buyer Group, announces today the launch of an interactive public relations and branding campaign for Colorado real estate development, Mountain Estates. This Colorado real estate community will receive search engine strategies and online PR as part of The Buyer Group’s interactive public relations and branding services.

“Considering the challenging real estate market, it is critical for builders and developers to implement marketing and public relations strategies that will result in the best ROI, attract quality prospects and convert prospects into buyers,” said Lisa Buyer, President and CEO of The Buyer Group. “The Mountain Estates online campaign combines the best online public relations, branding, and SEM strategies to deliver the most targeted exposure for the best value.”

Interactive public relations and search engine strategies continue to attract quality leads and generate online visibility for real estate companies, despite the challenging economic times.

“The Mountain Estates public relations and marketing strategy includes local online media outlets and real estate-related search engine strategies including optimized press releases, a newsroom blog, pay-per-click advertising campaign, and a variety of other interactive digital strategies involving video, email, and select print media,” said Buyer. “Everything is tracked through Google Analytics so we can measure the return on investment and cost per lead.”

A study from Forrester Research Inc. found that 90 percent of consumers trust recommendations from other consumers. Therefore, the more recommendations that result from online conversations, the more traffic and brand exposure Mountain Estates and other clients can expect from their interactive PR and branding campaigns.

For more information about online public relations company The Buyer Group and its interactive public relations and branding services visit http://www.thebuyergroup.com or call Lisa Buyer at 954.354.1411. Lisa Buyer will also be speaking at SES San Jose, August 18-22, 2008 on the subject of news search SEO.

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Online PR Agency Gets Optimized

Deerfield Beach, FL – Aug 18, 2008 – The Buyer Group welcomes its newest addition, Interactive Editor Nicole Balistreri to its online public relations and branding team.

As a recent graduate of The University of Minnesota School of Journalism and Mass Communication, Balistreri combines her educational background with her experience as a professional blogger to help bring The Buyer Group’s clients the best online PR writing possible.

“We are thrilled to add Nicole to The Buyer Group’s interactive staff,” said Lisa Buyer, The Buyer Group CEO. “She brings a creative flair to her writing that is very trend-focused and refreshing.”

Prior to joining the Buyer Group Team, Balistreri worked for MusicMatters, a music-marketing agency in Minneapolis. Other prior experiences include: working with Utne Magazine in the Advertising and PR departments, and with Music By The Lake in Williamsburg, WI as a Production Assistant.

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

Lisa Buyer Speaks at Search Engine Strategies Conference
Online PR Agency CEO Shares How PR Taps into Power of Search
Deerfield Beach, FL – Aug 11, 2008 – Defining the public relations opportunity with news search starts with the question, “Who is my audience?” Journalist? Analysts? End User? Prospect?

Florida online public relations agency CEO, Lisa Buyer, will speak at the Search Engine Strategies conference in San Jose, California as part of the News Search SEO panel. This panel focuses on how search engines offer a great way to receive targeted traffic related to breaking topics or to help with a public relations campaign launch.

“Today’s online press release content needs to take the journalist, news blogger, and end user into equation,” said Buyer. “While optimized press releases may be an effective way to improve online visibility for lead generation, we can’t lose sight of the journalist or news bloggers searching for relevant story sources.”

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 search industry experts, Lee Odden of TopRankMarketing, Gregg Jarboe, president of SEO/PR, and moderator Dana Todd, CMO of Newsforce,” 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.

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Deerfield Beach, FL – July 21, 2008 – The Buyer Group asks: What does online PR mean to a business? Answer? More than just an optimized press release. Can Google index your site? Is your online news optimized for today’s journalists and bloggers?  Does your Web site have good and useful content that is relevant to a user’s search?

In a continuing effort to better serve new and existing clients, The Buyer Group introduces SEO/PR reviews to help clients benchmark their search engine visibility and online public relations rankings.

“The relationship between public relations and search engine strategies is a close one,” said Lisa Buyer, president of The Buyer Group, a leading interactive PR and branding agency offering SEO/PR services. “Every page added to your Web site is a PR opportunity for the search engines. Companies looking to refine or define their position on the Internet should first do an analysis of the quality of online visibility and online public relations exposure.”

The Buyer Group’s SEO/PR reviews consist of six major components and clients are given a score out of 100 possible points. Sections such as “Meta Tag Review” and “Architectural Review” help clients see where they can improve on Web site elements such as site indexing and page labels, which will increase the odds of search engine retrieval. Page content is also reviewed, with an emphasis on key word placement.

“The integration of Search Engine Optimization and online PR efforts is an exciting and important evolution in our industry,” said Joe Laratro, SEO expert and President of the South Florida Interactive Marketing Association (SFIMA). “When agencies can combine services with the proper expertise the resulting product has to be successful.”

The SEO/PR report considers linking strategies and online PR elements such as newsroom organization, blogs, and social networks that impact online branding and reputation management. The report offers a quality score and recommendations on how to improve the score within a 60 to 90 day period.

“The Buyer Group’s SEO/PR Review Process was incredibly enlightening to us as a sales and marketing team. They showed us many fast, cost efficient opportunities to increase our website traffic. Their suggestions made sense, were able to be quickly implemented and created remarkable efficiencies in our digital marketing program. We’re so grateful to The Buyer Group for being a strategic partner on our development projects,” said Gretchen Howell, Vice President of Marketing and Analysis of GamePlan Resort Solutions.

The Buyer Group is a member of Search Engine Marketing Professional Organization (SEMPO), SFIMA, Agency Management Roundtable (AMR), 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 me on Twitter at www.twitter.com/lisabuyer
Find me on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=64535777
Connect me on LinkedIn at http://www.linkedin.com/in/lisabuyer