Who's Buzzberry? What happened to Comma?</h1> <article> <h1>Who's Buzzberry? What happened to Comma?</h1> <p>veerle — Wed, 05 May 2010 14:25:29 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> Welcome to the BuzzBerry website! We are officially online! *trumpet sounds*</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> BuzzBerry is all about interactive communication. We have but one goal: establishing and nurturing successful (online) relationships with your customers.</p> <p> </p> <p> We will regularly be buzzing about our activities. So do follow us on Facebook and Twitter. And of course don't hesitate to give your opinion on our new website.</p> <p> </p> <p> But what happened to Comma Communication, some of you might wonder? Well, we changed our name, broadened our services, but remained the same bunch of enthusiastic people. As eager as ever to take on your challenges.</p> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>BuzzBerry streamlines communication of ‘100+ seminars’</h1> <p>veerle — Tue, 04 May 2010 11:46:46 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> The initiative ‘100+ seminars’ was taken by several IT-companies to share their knowledge on the newest technologies.</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> Several IT-companies took the initiative ‘100+ seminars’ to share their knowledge on the newest technologies. This communication campaign combines classic email and direct marketing efforts with social media channels.</p> <p> </p> <p> The (Drupal) website <a href="http://www.buzzberry.be/events">www.buzzberry.be/events</a> is targeted to centralize all seminars and registration flows. Logistics of these seminars are being handled in a smooth and clear way, thus assuring every customer a qualitative experience.</p> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>What are SiteLinks and how to get the right ones</h1> <p>Thu, 19 Aug 2010 08:06:07 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> <strong>What are SiteLinks and how to get the right ones ?</strong></p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> If Google is showing SiteLinks under your website listing in the SERPs, you can expect your website to get more clicks and more visitors. Most searchers will click on the top 3 search results. So the more links you can get into the top 3 search results for your site, the more chance your website has to getting more clicks, and more visits.</p> <p> </p> <p> Funnily enough, Google doesn’t always show SiteLinks, and sometimes not the right ones. In this blog article I will be showing you how to check your SiteLinks and how you can make sure that Google will be showing the right SiteLinks to your website.</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>What are SiteLinks ?</strong></p> <p> </p> <p> SiteLinks are links to the internal pages of your website. Not all websites in the SERPs contain SiteLinks. Google automatically generates these links, allowing you also to remove unwanted SiteLinks. To this end, you can use the services of <a href="https://www.google.com/webmasters/tools/" target="_blank">Google Webmaster Tools</a>.</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>How to check your SiteLinks ?</strong></p> <p> </p> <p> It seems that Google is only showing SiteLinks when it thinks these are useful for the searcher. In other words, when Google is sure that your website is relevant to the search query.</p> <p> </p> <p> Want to find out which SiteLinks Google is showing for your website ? Just Google your domain name without the .be or .com, or Google the keyword that makes your website appear in top position in the SERPs.</p> <p> </p> <p> For instance, if your domain name is “buzzberry.be”, then you should Google “buzzberry”.</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>Which SiteLinks is Google showing for your website ?</strong></p> <p> </p> <p> If you have performed a Google search as explained above, than Google will or will not show SiteLinks for your website listing according to the following 3 scenarios :</p> <p> </p> <ol> <li> Google shows up to 8 text links identical to the links in your website navigation. If you can see these links, it means that Google has been able to easily find the navigation of your website and has divided your website into various categories. <em>This is good news. </em></li> <li> SiteLinks pointing to random pages on your website. If your getting this kind of links, it means the structure and navigation of your website is unclear to Google. In this case, Google is showing the pages with the most backlinks for your SiteLinks. <em>This is half good and half bad news. </em></li> <li> Google isn’t showing any SiteLinks at all. If Google isn’t showing any SiteLinks to your website, then it is most likely that your website isn’t search engine friendly and that your pages couldn’t be categorized efficiently according to Google’s algorithm. <em>This is bad news. </em></li> </ol> <p> </p> <p> <strong>How to improve your SiteLinks ?</strong></p> <p> </p> <p> Google generates SiteLinks automatically for your website based on your website’s navigation and het backlinks pointing to your website.</p> <p> </p> <p> If Google is showing the wrong SiteLinks to your site, or none at all, then I would strongly recommend you make following amendments to your navigation :</p> <p> </p> <ul> <li> Avoid using Javascript or Flash navigation menus. Instead use simple <a href> anchor links for your site navigation.</li> <li> If you use images for your menu, Sprites for instance, you should make sure that the images contain an alternative text in the alt tags. This will allow Google to understand and categorize the links in your navigation.</li> </ul> <p> </p> <p> The clearer your website structure and navigation, the easier it will be to obtain the right SiteLinks to your website.</p> <p> </p> <p> That’s why you shouldn’t overdo the navigation links. Make it easy for your visitors, and the search engines, to find the most important pages on your website. If your pages are well linked, Google has more chance of picking up on them and including them in your SiteLinks.</p> <p> </p> <p> SiteLinks can enhance your website listing in the SERPs. However, they have absolutely no influence on your website’s ranking in the SERPs. You want to get higher up in the SERP’s ranking ? Just 3 simple rules to bear in mind :</p> <p> </p> <ol> <li> Write great web content and pay attention to your keywords.</li> <li> Make good use of all HTML tags and validate your code.</li> <li> Let others know about your website. Collect those backlinks !</li> </ol> <p> </p> <p> Need help setting up your SEO plan ? <a href="http://www.buzzberry.be/contact-us">Just let us know, we’ll share our expertise</a>.</p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> -- Fiona De Brabanter</p> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Video Consumption across Multiple Platforms is a Global Phenomenon</h1> <p>Tess — Mon, 04 Oct 2010 08:55:08 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> <em>It seems the full potential of video is being realized! Read more t<em>o get a better sense for <strong>how the world is consuming video today.</strong></em></em></p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> <span face=""><strong>Video Consumption across Multiple Platforms is a Global Phenomenon</strong></span></p> <p> </p> <p> Thanks to the Internet, mobile technology and an unending well of content, it seems the full potential of video is finally being realized.</p> <p> </p> <p> <span face="">The history of video consumption has been additive. Consumers globally have proven their insatiable appetite for video-delivery of information and entertainment, and new means and screens have proliferated. Viewership continues to grow, and will likely do so as new technologies enhance the experience and convenience.</span></p> <p> To get a better sense for <strong>how the world is consuming video today</strong>, Nielsen recently completed a survey of more than 27,000 online consumers in 55 countries, asking simple questions about how they watch video. The result is a baseline understanding of the state of cross-platform video consumption amongst global online consumers.</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>How does Belgium score?!</strong></p> <p> </p> <ol> <li> <strong>Television </strong>remains the most widely used video screen around the world. Globally, 90% of online consumers use their in-home television at least once per month. Penetration of TV was lowest in Europe. Belgium was even 26 points less likely to report watching television in the past 30 days than the total population.<br /> </li> <li> <strong>High Definition Television</strong>is keeping consumers tuned in. Globally, 30% of respondents own a HDTV. Belgium is 27% more likely than the global online population to own an HDTV set . High-definition TV adoption should continue at a steady pace. Globally, 11% of consumers told us they had definite interest in acquiring one in the next year. <p> </p></li> <li> <strong>Online video </strong>has already reached an astonishing point of ubiquity among online consumers. Globally, 70% of online consumers watched video over the Internet in march. Belgium under-indexes for online video penetration by 53 points.<br /> <strong>Online video has extended video consumption to the workplace</strong>. Globally, 57% of respondents report having watched online video on their computer at work. As employers observe this trend, many in Europe and North America have put filters and policies in place to restrict video consumption by workers on the clock. The efforts seem to be paying off: consumers in Europe were 33% less likely to consume video in the workplace. In Belgium online consumers are 61 points below the average for workplace video penetration.<br /> <u><br /> </u></li> <li> <strong>Mobile video </strong>is already an important viewing screen for millions of consumers around the world. Globally, 11% of online consumers watched some video or mobile TV on their phone in March 2010. Slower mobile video adoption in North America and Europe may be attributed to the technological advancement and ubiquity of other screens in these markets as it is to the proliferation of mobile technology in more advanced mobile media markets. Belgium was 82 points less likely to consume mobile video.<br /> <u><br /> </u></li> <li> <strong>New screens and connections<br /> Tablets: </strong>With the successful introduction of the iPad, it is clear that this new technology has arrived. Just 11% of global online consumers said they either presently own or have definite interest in owning a tablet PC such as an iPad in the coming year. Belgium scores 55 points below the average.<br /> <strong>3DTV</strong> trumps the experience of smaller, more portable screens and provides an unrivaled video viewing experience. Globally, 12% of online consumers told us they own or have definite interest in purchasing a 3DTV. Belgium scores 50 points below the average.<br /> <strong>TV’s with Internet Connections</strong>: About 22% of global online consumers owns or has a definite interest in purchasing a TV with Internet connection in the next year. Interest lags just slightly in Europe. Belgium scores only 5 points below the average.<br /> </li> </ol> <p> </p> <p> Source: <a href="http://en-us.nielsen.com/content/nielsen/en_us/report_forms/Global-Video-Consumption.html?banner=3">The Nielsen Company</a> <u><br /> </u></p> <p> <u><br /> </u>Want to know more about this subject? <a href="http://www.buzzberry.be/contact-us">Contact us</a>!</p> <p> </p> <p> Tess Troch</p> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>4 good reasons to focus on social media</h1> <p>Wed, 08 Sep 2010 12:21:33 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> Consumers are becoming smarter and more educated. They are researching products and services online before making any buying decisions. People are also sharing their experiences online.</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> <strong>...why you need social media</strong></p> <p> </p> <ol> <li> <strong>Listen to your customers.</strong> <p style="margin-left: 36pt;"> Social media offers you a chance to listen to your customers. By tapping into the everyday chatter that goes on on various online channels, you can pick up on <strong>specific feedback</strong>. Over time, this will allow you to build up a non-stop focus group. You’ll hear about the problems your customers are having with your products. The nitty gritty things they only talk about to their friends and family. Learning about these problems early on, gives you an edge of advantage : you’ll have an opportunity to step in, to <strong>remedy the problems</strong> your consumers have been experiencing and to <strong>thank your loyal customers</strong> for their feedback. In short, social media is continuously changing the way you as a company <strong>interact with your customers</strong>.</p> <p style="margin-left: 36pt;"> </p> </li> <li> <strong>Build your brand.</strong> <p style="margin-left: 36pt;"> Social media gives you a unique chance to build your brand. Various channels offer you more chance to <strong>expose your ads, your products and services</strong>. Planning your communication strategy effectively will allow you to identify and efficiently <strong>target your audience</strong>. And remember the exponential power of social media. If someone likes your ad on Facebook, or reTweets your post, or embeds your video on their blog, you are again being exposed to all the connections in that person’s network. The potential reach of your campaigns is huge. Not only do you have an increased chance to exposure, but social media also offers you a chance to <strong>educate your audience</strong>. Finding the right marketing mix and using those communication channels to their maximum potential, that’s where social media can help you build your brand.</p> <p style="margin-left: 36pt;"> </p> </li> <li> <strong>Gather feedback.</strong> <p style="margin-left: 36pt;"> Social media is a chance to gather feedback. The social media channel allows you as a company to <strong>present ideas</strong> early on and to <strong>solicit feedback</strong> from your connections. Google has really embraced this idea and uses various channels to launch new features broadly. Communicating with your target audience through social media contributes to <strong>building credibility</strong> in your specific domain and loyalty amongst your visitors. Not to mention that listening to and acting upon specific feedback from your core audience can indeed help you save your company’s money.</p> <p style="margin-left: 36pt;"> </p> </li> <li> <strong>Look more personal.</strong> <p style="margin-left: 36pt;"> Using social media makes your company and your website look more personal. Social media is about <strong>creating connections</strong> and <strong>creating trust</strong>. People want to buy from somebody they like, trust and know. Communicating directly with your customers displays <strong>authenticity</strong>. It tells people who you are as a business and why they should choose you.</p> <p style="margin-left: 36pt;"> </p> </li> <p> Ever built a house without a plan? So why should you start a communication project without a solid strategy, a clear concept or specific and attainable goals? Instead, <a href="http://www.buzzberry.be/contact-us">contact Buzzberry</a>.</p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> -- Fiona De Brabanter</p> </ol> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Social Media is more than Fans on Facebook</h1> <p>Wed, 22 Sep 2010 15:27:23 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> It doesn’t matter which tool or how well you can run it. What does matter is to understand how to create an online communication strategy and actively engage with your customers.</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> Recently, somebody asked us what <strong>Social Media</strong> is all about. Jumping into Social Media can be exhausing and overwhelming. With an <strong>abundance of social networks and tools</strong>, Social Media jumps off in a multitude of directions. And as with every marketing initiative, without a well thought out plan, your time and resources can quickly drain.</p> <p> </p> <p> It doesn’t really matter which tool you choose or how well you can run it. What does matter is to <strong>understand the concepts of Social Media</strong> and how to create an <strong>online communication strategy</strong> and <strong>actively engage</strong> with your customers.</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>Brief overview of Social Media strategies, networks and tools</strong></p> <p> </p> <ul> <li> <strong>Blogs</strong> enable you to <strong>interact</strong> with your customers and receive <strong>feedback</strong> on a more in-depth level. Not to mention the <strong>links</strong> you will be gathering to your website (adding to your PageRank juice, which will boost your SEO rankings).</li> <li> <strong>Communities</strong> : this is where your customers are, <strong>online and interacting</strong> with friends, family and colleagues (Facebook, Linkedin, MySpace). Get in there, be part of the action, create some noise.</li> <li> <strong>Twitter</strong> : your chance to <strong>share</strong> little snippets, links and ideas with the rest of the world.</li> <li> <strong>Video</strong> : demonstrate your value on YouTube. <strong>Embed your videos</strong> on your website and blog too. This video channel gives your company a massive reach, demonstrating and entertaining your customers. Get your video right and you’re ready to go viral !</li> <li> <strong>Social news</strong> : <strong>find or be found</strong> on Digg</li> <li> <strong>Social reviews</strong> : build customer <strong>confidence</strong> (can anyone beat Amazon ?)</li> <li> <strong>Photo sites</strong> like Flikr (and yes, Facebook too) : share your photos, your <strong>visual content</strong>. Show off your work, your creativity, your location, your products...</li> </ul> <p> </p> <p> In a nutshell, your Social Media campaigns should be part of an <strong>integrated strategy</strong>. Make use of the various social networks and tools to <strong>broadcast yourself</strong> and to receive feedback. This unique channel allows you to b around your products and services, to draw those customers back into the centralized content you have created on your blog. Consider it a <strong>soft-selling</strong> technique with the ultimate goal of seducing your connections to convert on your website.</p> <p> </p> <p> So many tools to choose from : Twitter, Facebook, YouTube,... Once you understand the concept of social media, the rest is just a tool. You have to know how to create a strategy and actively engage with your consumers. It doesn’t matter if you know how to run Facebook, Twitter or YouTube if you don’t know what to do with it. Instead, <a href="http://www.buzzberry.be/contact-us">contact Buzzberry</a>.</p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> -- Fiona De Brabanter</p> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Meet BuzzBerry's new face : Tess Troch</h1> <p>Thu, 02 Sep 2010 11:18:44 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> You've been curious about the legs. Now we're delighted to reveal our new face !</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p>BuzzBerry has warmly welcomed <strong>Tess Troch</strong>, the latest addition to our staff. Tess received a Masters degree in <strong>Strategic Communication</strong> at the University of Antwerp. Most recently Tessa held the position of Marketing Assistant at easyFairs.</p> <p> </p> <p> Tessa officially joined our <strong>Marketing & Communications</strong> branch this August. We hope you all extend her a gracious welcome. We at BuzzBerry are pleased to have her permanently as a member of <strong>our team</strong>.</p> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>The secret behind optimizing your website for your visitors</h1> <p>Wed, 27 Oct 2010 15:33:41 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> “What gets measured, gets done.” Web analytics data will tell you “what” is happening on your website. Want to know the “why”, then please read on.</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> Now I’m a great evangelist of Google Analytics. “<strong>What gets measured, gets done.</strong>” However, there is only so much that metrics and KPIs can tell you about the <strong>quality of your visitor’s experience</strong> on your website. Is 16 pageviews per visit a measure of high interest in your content ? Or does it mean that your website is hard to navigate ? Web analytics data will only give you the “<strong>what</strong>” is happening on your website. If you want to know the “<strong>why</strong>”, then please read on.</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>Conversion optimization starts here</strong></p> <p> </p> <p> Google offers a free service for A/B and multivariate testing, Google Website Optimiser. Testing on a continuous basis is an absolute must if you wish to <strong>increase your online conversions</strong>. What’s working and what’s not. But how do you decide what to test ? Marketing expertise and a sound history of testing experience will already give you a solid advantage. But all good conversion optimization tests start with listening to the voice of the customer.</p> <p> 3 essential questions</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>Only 3 questions</strong>, that’s all it takes to get a clear idea on where you stand in the eyes of your customers and potential leads :</p> <p> </p> <p> 1. What is the <strong>purpose</strong> of your visit to our website today ?</p> <p> 2. Were you able to complete your <strong>task</strong> today ?</p> <p> 3. If you were not able to complete your task today, <strong>why</strong> not ?</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>Your actionable insights :</strong></p> <p> - Primary purpose</p> <p> - Task completion rate</p> <p> - Segments of discontent</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>Easy-to-use 4Q Survey Tool</strong></p> <p> </p> <p> This is how it works :</p> <p> </p> <p> “4Q employs a two-stage invitation process. When visitors arrive at your site, they will be presented an invitation to participate in a survey after their session. If they accept, a second, minimized window, which contains the survey itself, will be launched and will wait in the background for the visitor to complete his or her session. 4Q surveys are designed to be collaborative brand building exercises, not annoying browsing interruptions.”</p> <p> 4Q Survey results</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>This is what you are most likely to discover :</strong></p> <p> </p> <p> - How many surveys were completed</p> <p> - <strong>Task completion rate</strong> : were your visitors able to do what they came to do on the site ?</p> <p> - Look out for <strong>trends</strong> and <strong>innovative ideas</strong>. Ignore the junk replies.</p> <p> - What your visitors <strong>liked</strong> about your website</p> <p> - What your visitors <strong>don’t like</strong> about your website</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>Round it all up</strong></p> <p> </p> <p> You can find the free 4Q tool at this url : <a href="http://4q.iperceptions.com/">http://4q.iperceptions.com</a></p> <p> </p> <p> The survey results will give you <strong>insights</strong> into <strong>why</strong> things are happening on your website. The “why” can only be found in the <strong>feedback</strong> of the customer. So now you are armed with valuable information to improve your website and your online conversions. Measure, report, analyse, test and then measure your results.</p> <p> </p> <p> Do you need help understanding your web analytics data ? Why not <a href="http://www.buzzberry.be/contact-us">contact Buzzberry</a> ?</p> <p> </p> <p> -- Fiona De Brabanter</p> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>SEO Best Practices : Little known ways to distinguish the facts from the fiction</h1> <p>Wed, 10 Nov 2010 10:04:20 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> You can find tons of information regarding SEO on the internet. But lurking at the back of your head are the ever taunting questions : does it work ?</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> You can find tons of information regarding SEO on the internet. But lurking at the back of your head are the ever taunting questions : does it work ? And most importantly : will SEO work for your website ? After all, the main goal of performing SEO on your site and content is to <strong>drive more qualified search traffic</strong> to your website.</p> <p> </p> <p> As we have pointed out in a previous article, <a href="http://www.buzzberry.be/news/what-are-sitelinks-and-how-get-right-ones">SEO is in fact quite simple</a> :</p> <p> </p> <ol> <li> Write <strong>great web content</strong> and pay attention to your <strong>keywords</strong>.</li> <li> Make good use of all HTML <strong>tags</strong> and validate your <strong>code</strong>.</li> <li> Let others know about your website. Collect those <strong>backlinks</strong> !</li> </ol> <p> </p> <p> But how do you get there ? Building a strong foundation for your approach to SEO is the best direction to focus on :</p> <p> </p> <ol> <li> <strong>Plan of approach & Analysis SEO</strong> : researching keywords prior to writing that compelling, appealing and enticing web content.</li> <li> <strong>Onsite SEO factors</strong> : building a search engine friendly site and keep SEO in mind when publishing your great web copy.</li> <li> <strong>Offsite SEO factors</strong> : Build links to your website and use your web analytics tools to measure your SEO efforts and the continuous success you are booking with your ongoing improvement efforts.</li> </ol> <p> </p> <p> Curious to know more ? Check back on our news site next week as we further develop the ins and outs of optimal SEO for your website. Can’t wait to read the hot stuff ? Just drop us a lign, we’ll be delighted to <a href="http://www.buzzberry.be/contact-us">help you plan your approach towards building a search engine friendly site</a>.</p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> -- Fiona De Brabanter</p> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Discover BuzzBerry’s new Talent : Laurence Rutsaert</h1> <p>Tue, 16 Nov 2010 09:30:28 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> Having the right people on board makes all the difference : Laurence can turn your event into the best experience ever !</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> BuzzBerry is delighted to welcome <strong>Laurence Rutsaert</strong>, the latest <strong>talented addition</strong> to our team. Laurence received a Bachelor degree in <strong>Marketing</strong> at the Karel de Grote Hogeschool in Antwerp. </p> <p> </p> <p> Laurence officially joined our <strong>Marketing & Communications</strong> branch this October. She organizes our seminars to perfection, from mailings to inscriptions, as well as seeing to catering and attending the event itself. With Laurence on board, we’re sure that <strong>each event is managed to detail</strong>.</p> <p> </p> <p> Did you know that Laurence :</p> <p style="margin-left: 36pt;"> - Is very <strong>sociable</strong></p> <p style="margin-left: 36pt;"> <strong>- </strong>Likes working in our <strong>team</strong></p> <p style="margin-left: 36pt;"> - Loves <strong>dancing</strong></p> <p style="margin-left: 36pt;"> - <strong>Enjoys life</strong> to the fullest</p> <p style="margin-left: 36pt;"> - Is a very <strong>fun person</strong> to be around</p> <p> </p> <p> We hope you all extend her on a gracious welcome. We at BuzzBerry are so pleased to have her help us <strong>improve our services</strong>.</p> <p> </p> <p> Do you need dedicated Event Management ? <a href="http://www.buzzberry.be/contact-us">Let's talk</a>.</p> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Here’s how to Approach SEO</h1> <p>Wed, 17 Nov 2010 14:25:45 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> We like to obsess about SEO. Why ? Because SEO means free clicks to your site.</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> We like to obsess about SEO. Why ? Because SEO means <strong>free clicks</strong> to your site. If you get SEO right, search engines could be driving <strong>high quality traffic</strong> to your website, <strong>increasing your visibility</strong> in the market. Therefore, SEO is part of your overall marketing plan. However, let’s be clear about this from the start : SEO should not be your only marketing strategy. Some very successful sites are driving <strong>high conversion rates</strong> from their online business, with little or no visits from organic search.</p> <p> </p> <p> Being successful at <strong>online marketing</strong> might in fact improve your overall SEO visibility. While many e-marketeer will point out to us, there is no real reason to obsess over every little detail that comes into play when making your site search engine friendly. Why ? Because Google’s search algorithm is a <strong>black box</strong>. We know, or we like to think we have an idea of the main influencing factors which will near to next guarantee your site high rankings in the search results. But there are many more factors which are beyond control which will determine the popularity of any one site in the search results.</p> <p> </p> <p> Search engine optimization is also a <strong>continuous and ongoing process</strong>. You’re forever tweaking content, headers and titles. Filtering out results. Measuring and benchmarking your progress. And then going back to your site for yet another round of optimization. The search engines are forever reinventing themselves, changing the rules of the game. A good online marketer will know how and when to seize the opportunity to excel over competitors and to easily adapt to an ever changing environment.</p> <p> </p> <p> Fortunately, the mere essence of SEO doesn’t change. In fact it’s quite <a href="http://www.buzzberry.be/news/what-are-sitelinks-and-how-get-right-ones">simple and easy</a> to grasp. It is however also very time consuming. Now we have a clear foundation on what to expect from your SEO efforts, let’s move on to the hot stuff !</p> <p> </p> <p> Your <a href="http://www.buzzberry.be/news/seo-best-practices-little-known-ways-distinguish-facts-fiction">SEO plan of approach</a> should look something like this :</p> <ol> <li> <strong>Keyword research</strong></li> <li> <strong>Search engine friendly site development</strong></li> <li> <strong>On-page SEO</strong></li> <li> <strong>Link Building</strong></li> <li> <strong>Analytics</strong></li> </ol> <p> </p> <p> It is important you realize from the onset of your plan that in order to get SEO to work for you, you have to get all these elements to work together. There is not much point in choosing to focus on just one element of the list above. The results would be suboptimal than if you had chosen to take each step one at a time.</p> <p> </p> <p> Curious to know more ? Check back on our news site next week as we further develop the ins and outs of <strong>Keyword Research</strong>. Can’t wait to read our latest news ? Just drop us a lign, we’ll be delighted to <a href="http://www.buzzberry.be/contact-us">help you plan your approach towards search engine optimization</a>.</p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> -- Fiona De Brabanter</p> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Keyword Research : a method that helps your SEO efforts</h1> <p>Thu, 25 Nov 2010 13:36:15 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> I want to be first in Google ! Your website can only rank in the Search Results for certain keywords. So it should be : I want to be first in Google for selling my products or services.</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> <strong>I want to be 1<sup>st</sup> in Google ! </strong>We hear that often from our clients. And our answer is always invariably : be 1<sup>st</sup> for what ? Huh ? Your website can only rank in the Search Results for certain <strong>keywords and keyword phrases</strong>. So the statement should really be “I want to be 1<sup>st</sup> in Google for selling my products or services”. Now we’re getting somewhere.</p> <p> </p> <p> Now, when we talk about keywords or keyword phrases, you need to keep in mind that not all are equal. Some keywords have higher <strong>volume</strong>. This means they are being typed into the search engines more often. Other keywords are likely to <strong>convert </strong>better than others. So really, when you’re considering <a href="http://www.buzzberry.be/news/here%E2%80%99s-how-approach-seo"><strong>SEO</strong> for your website</a>, you need to keep focus. You don’t want or need to optimize your pages for every possible keyword.</p> <p> </p> <p> For instance, you provide <em>recruitment services for financial profiles in Antwerp</em>. Wouldn’t it be a great idea to rank well for the keyword “<em>recruitment</em>” ? No, not really. Somebody might be looking for a <em>new job</em>, but not specifically in the <em>financial sector</em>. Or a <em>financial analyst</em> might be interested in your <em>vacancy</em>, but since he’s living in Luxemburg, he isn’t likely to take up a position in <em>Antwerp</em>. So why would you waste your precious time, money and energy <strong>driving</strong> these people <strong>to your site</strong> ? They’ll probably <strong>bounce</strong> anyway. Instead, you’d be better off <strong>targeting keyword phrases</strong> including <em>Antwerp</em>, and even better <em>financial terms</em>.</p> <p> </p> <p> Or another example, as an <em>online marketing agency</em>, you might think it’s really important to rank well on “<em>online marketing</em>”, but do you really want that ? Are people who search “<em>online marketing</em>” really looking for an <em>agency</em> to help them with their <em>online communication and marketing efforts</em>, or are they searching for information about <em>online marketing</em>, like a definition or something like that ?</p> <p> </p> <p> When it comes to <strong>user intent in search queries</strong>, there are <strong>3 reasons why someone might use a search engine</strong> :</p> <p> - <strong>Informational queries</strong> : searching for information, from general to specific</p> <p> - <strong>Navigational queries</strong> : searching for a specific website or page</p> <p> - <strong>Transactional queries</strong> : searching with an intent to buy</p> <p> </p> <p> Now, your blog posts filled with valuable information probably won’t convert a visitor using a transactional query. And people searching for information won’t be pleased when landing inside your shopping cart, they’ll probably <a href="http://www.buzzberry.be/news/secret-behind-optimizing-your-website-your-visitors">bounce</a>. It all depends on where the visitor find himself in the buying decision cycle.</p> <p> </p> <p> But don’t forget : any of these 3 types of queries can ultimately lead to a sale. Somebody who was pleased with the abundance and accuracy of the <a href="http://www.buzzberry.be/news/4-good-reasons-focus-social-media">information provided on your blog</a>, might return to your website at a later date and buy something, become a real customer. What is important to understand when <strong>analyzing your keywords</strong>, is that these will tell you something about your <strong>visitors’ intentions</strong>. Based on this insite knowledge, you can provide different pages on your website ranking for different queries.</p> <p> </p> <p> Burning to know more ? Check back on our news site next week as we further <strong>develop a list of keywords to target</strong>. Can’t wait to read our latest news ? Just drop us a line, we’ll be delighted to <a href="../../contact-us">help you with</a><a href="http://www.buzzberry.be/contact-us"> your keyword research</a>.</p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> -- Fiona De Brabanter</p> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>How to Develop a Keyword List for your SEO efforts</h1> <p>Thu, 02 Dec 2010 16:34:48 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> The first essential step in creating a keyword list to target is to just sit down, with pen and paper, and brainstorm.</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> The first essential step is to just sit down, with pen and paper, and brainstorm. Write down all <strong>keywords and keyword phrases</strong> that you find <strong>relevant</strong> to your website, your products and services. Then think about the keywords and keyword phrases that your visitors will be likely to searching for. Write down whatever comes intuitively. It shouldn’t be any trouble to obtain a list of about 50 to 100 relevant keyword phrases.</p> <p> </p> <p> Now, look at your list again. Do you see any <strong>patterns</strong> emerging ? What you should be looking for at this point, is <strong>keyword themes</strong>. For instance, you offer online marketing, but do you also offer social media marketing ? You might also offer online communication strategy and event management. You might specialize in web analytics or conversion optimization. Perhaps you also offer customized online surveying. Each of these items will become a keyword theme upon which you can build more detailed keyword phrases.</p> <p> </p> <p> Now you’ve set the foundations of your keyword list. It’s time to expand upon your keyword brainstorming with some awesome <strong>keyword tools</strong>. Here are a few highly popular online tools (and absolutely free) :</p> <ul> <li> <a href="https://adwords.google.com/select/KeywordToolExternal">Google AdWords Keyword Tool</a></li> <li> <a href="http://tools.seobook.com/keyword-tools/seobook/">SEO Book Keyword Tool</a></li> <li> <a href="http://freekeywords.wordtracker.com/">WordTracker</a></li> <li> <a href="http://www.keyworddiscovery.com/search.html">Keyword Discovery</a></li> </ul> <p> </p> <p> <strong>Google’s Wonder Wheel</strong> is also a great tool to find related search queries you might not have considered. This option can be found in the left side column next to the SERP’s. Still want to dig further into your keyword list ? Check out this article for more <a href="http://huomah.com/Search-Engines/Search-Engine-Optimization/Five-Advanced-Keyword-Research-Tools.html">advanced keyword research tools</a>.</p> <p> </p> <p> These tools will also provide you some insight into the <strong>volume and competition</strong> on every given keyword. This will refer to how many people are actively searching on any given keyword or keyword phrase. And in case of paid search advertising, how many companies are actually bidding on certain keywords. But remember, the broader your keyword, the more volume you will see for it. The more specific your keyword phrase, the more likely your website will provide a fitting answer to your visitor and potential customer.</p> <p> </p> <p> Do bear in mind though that these numbers are more to be taken as <strong>trends and estimates</strong> than real hard fact figures. And trends can change. It’s not because people are searching more on “online marketing” than on “e-marketing” today, that this will hold true for the future. I have observed over the year, that search trends tend to change every 3 to 6 months.</p> <p> </p> <p> Rember when building your keyword list :</p> <ul> <li> <strong>Use the language of your customers</strong>. Don’t use industry jargon that only you and your company use. But think how your customers view your products and services and which terms they are most likely to use when searching. Do people really search for “social marketing” or are they looking for “facebook fan page” instead ?</li> <li> <strong>Use related keyword phrases</strong>. Don’t stick to just one set of words. Always expand your keyword list with synonyms and related keywords and phrases. You call it “e-marketing”, but your customers might be searching for “emarketing”.</li> <li> <strong>Expand on your keywords</strong>. Adding qualifying keywords to your phrases will make the match even more precise. For instance, our event management agency in Antwerp might add Antwerp to most keyword phrases, or also services. We are more likely to be found on “event management Antwerp” and “event management services” or “event management agency”.</li> <li> <strong>Don’t add qualifying keywords you’re not ready to offer</strong>. Of course, many people search on the word “free”, but if you’re not offering any free services, these visitors are most likely to bounce. Only use the words for which you are willing to walk the talk.</li> <li> <strong>Check out your organic and paid keywords in your web analytics tool</strong>. These keywords will provide you with valuable insights what your visitors are searching for and which keywords you are already ranking well on.</li> </ul> <p> </p> <p> Can’t wait to read our next post ? Check back on our news site next week as we <strong>share our resources for keyword research</strong>. Can’t wait to read our latest news ? Just drop us a line, we’ll be delighted to <a href="../../contact-us">help you with</a><a href="../../contact-us">your keyword research</a>.</p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> -- Fiona De Brabanter</p> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Las Vegas in Antwerp</h1> <p>Wed, 08 Dec 2010 13:57:53 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> As part of the Comma Group’s annual teambuilding event, BuzzBerry was tasked to deliver a popular, fun-filled evening party for its enthusiastic workforce.</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> Client : the <a href="http://www.buzzberry.be/news/whos-buzzberry-what-happened-comma-0">Comma Group</a></p> <p> Type : <strong>Teambuilding event</strong></p> <p> </p> <p> As part of the Comma Group’s annual <strong>teambuilding event</strong>, BuzzBerry was tasked to deliver a popular, fun-filled <strong>evening party</strong> for its enthusiastic workforce. A corporate ‘thank you’ for commitment and continued hard work in the highly competitive ICT sector.</p> <p> </p> <p> The aim was to find a <strong>stunning location</strong> for an evening of enjoyment, laughter and thrills that would have broad appeal to all ICT guys ‘n gals – carried out in a <strong>high-ambiance environment</strong>. </p> <p> </p> <p> <a href="http://www.buzzberry.be/news/meet-buzzberrys-new-face-tess-troch">Our team</a> got straight to work researching the availability of <strong>top-quality entertainment</strong> to fulfil their vision of a ‘traditional event’. This included a high-impact <strong>casino programme</strong> surrounded by a range of activities that would ensure there was ‘something for everyone’. This included a fully-fledged Black Jack, a Roulette for the more adventurous visitor, and Texas Hold ‘em Poker where all employees could get hands on and make their way to ‘monopoly-money’ richness.</p> <p> </p> <p> With the programme of entertainment in hand, <a href="http://www.buzzberry.be/news/discover-buzzberry%E2%80%99s-new-beauty-laurence-rutsaert">our team</a> turned their attention to planning the <strong>layout of the venue</strong>. The aim was to create high impact as soon as visitors arrived. This was achieved by decorating the entrance with warm glowing candles, which could be seen from the car park. The visitor experience was further enhanced by an aesthetically appealing view on the Schelde river.</p> <p> </p> <p> As <strong>events marketing specialists</strong>, BuzzBerry designed and produced publicity material to promote the event to staff including a save-the-date emailing, weekly teasers and invitations, progressively revealing the surprise programme of the event. This resulted in attendance figures on the day of 90 enthusiastic participants.</p> <p> </p> <p> All delivered to an agreed <strong>budget</strong> which was managed by the team throughout the project.</p> <p> </p> <p> BuzzBerry's reputation for getting things right and delivering, beyond expectation, is a result of <a href="http://www.buzzberry.be/news/buzzberry-streamlines-communication-%E2%80%98100-seminars%E2%80%99">experience</a>, expertise and a dedicated team. Oh, and one more thing: we always remember that it's your event.</p> <p> </p> <p> Want to see more pictures of this event ? <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kontich-Belgium/BuzzBerryBuzz/146023368777983">Like us on Facebook</a>, and check out our <a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=153967091316944&set=a.153967044650282.28230.146023368777983#!/album.php?aid=28230&id=146023368777983">Las Vegas foto album</a>.</p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> -- Fiona De Brabanter</p> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Where to look for your Keyword Resources</h1> <p>Mon, 20 Dec 2010 20:09:27 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> Your keyword list will help you plan out your SEO strategy. You should also use your SEO assets for paid search, content marketing and link building endeavours.</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> Previous articles on <a href="http://www.buzzberry.be/news/how-develop-keyword-list-your-seo-efforts">keyword research for your SEO efforts</a> barely scratch the surface when it comes to developing a list of targeted keywords.</p> <p> </p> <p> In a nutshell, your <strong>keyword list</strong> will not only help you plan out your <strong>SEO strategy</strong>. You really should be using your SEO assets also for <strong>paid search </strong>campaigns, <strong>content marketing</strong> initiatives and <strong>link building</strong> endeavours.</p> <p> </p> <p> What is the first step in keyword research ? It’s not about aimlessly jotting down whatever comes to mind. It means <strong>discovering the core themes of your website</strong>. Ask yourself what your site is doing. How can you qualify your online activities in one sentence ? And further, how can you describe the different services and products you are offering, each in one phrase ?</p> <p> </p> <p> Next, after having built up a list of keywords per keyword theme, you should use the freely available keyword tools to <strong>select high ROI search phrases</strong>. This means :</p> <ul> <li> <strong>Avoiding single-word keyword</strong>. Yes, they’ll bring in lots of traffic, but since they’re too broad to reply to a specific demand, visitors are most likely to hit the back button. In web analytical terms : they’ll bounce.</li> <li> <strong>Targeting multi-word phrases</strong>. The more accurate your keyword phrases match the searchers intent, the more likely your visitors will trust you and convert. Conversions resulting in a better return on investment of time and money for your SEO efforts.</li> <li> <strong>Targeting phrases with measurable search volume</strong>. If your keyword tools tell you there is no or little search volume for your keyword phrases, then I suggest you believe them. Follow suit. Even if your keyword phrase is highly targeted, if nobody is searching for this phrase, it’s absolutely useless.</li> <li> <strong>Targeting multiple phrase variations</strong>. While I don’t recommend incorporating misspellings in your web copy (it looks messy, inconsistent and unprofessional), I do suggest you play with the order of the wording in your keyword phrases.</li> <li> <strong>Localizing keyword phrases when necessary</strong>. Do your services or products imply a certain geographical location ? Then by all means, include this in your keyword phrases. Remember, the more specifically your keywords answer to search queries, the more authority you will gain amongst your audience.</li> </ul> <p> </p> <p> There are many free resources available on the internet. If you wish to enrich your knowledge of researching and selecting keywords, then I strongly advise you to endulge in following links :</p> <ul> <li> <a href="http://www.polepositionmarketing.com/library/ebooks/keyword-research.pdf">Keyword Research and Selection (PDF)</a> – Understanding the process of keyword research and keyword selection</li> <li> <a href="http://www.wordtracker.com/academy/keyword-research-guide">Keyword Research Guide (PDF)</a> – Fictional case study offering thoughts on keywords by real experts</li> </ul> <p> </p> <p> Be sure to check back on our news section next week as I wrap up keyword research and venture down the avenue on how to build a search engine friendly site. Any questions in the meantime, I look forward to <a href="http://www.buzzberry.be/contact-us">hearing from you</a>.</p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> -- Fiona De Brabanter</p> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>How to increase your amount of leads</h1> <p>Tess — Tue, 21 Dec 2010 15:21:40 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> As a little Christmas present BuzzBerry gives you some hints!!</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> </p> <p> <span face="">Everybody wants to <strong>increase</strong> their <strong>amount of leads</strong> gained by their <strong>online efforts</strong> but nobody has the time or the knowledge to find out exactly ‘how’.</span></p> <p> </p> <p> <span face="">As a little Christmas present BuzzBerry gives you some hints on how to <strong>increase your B2B leads with Video by 200%</strong>! </span></p> <p> </p> <p> <span face="">Start by monitoring the <strong>online performance of other websites</strong>, benchmark your online performance against competing websites or your industry and always plan your next marketing campaign or adjust your strategy with <strong>digital insights</strong>.</span></p> <p> </p> <ul> <li> <strong><span face="">You’ve looked at the others – let’s start working on your own business video and place it online.</span></strong></li> </ul> <p> </p> <p> <strong><span face="">Where?</span></strong></p> <p> </p> <p> <span face="">Your video on <strong>YouTube</strong> could have 500 views over lifetime of which 50% occurs in the first 14 days.<br /> Having your video watched <strong>will</strong> influence decision makers, drive awareness, generate leads and increase the loyalty.</span></p> <p> </p> <p> <span face="">Or put it <strong>in an e-mail</strong> and increase the click-through rates by 50%.</span></p> <p> </p> <p> <span face="">After e-mailing the video, put it <strong>on your website</strong>.<br /> <strong>Why?</strong> Because video SEO is 53 times more likely to produce a first-page search result than traditional techniques.</span></p> <p> </p> <ul> <li> <span face="">Now you know a bit more on where and why you are using video to <strong>maximize your ROI – let’s talk about the types of video</strong>. </span></li> </ul> <p> </p> <p> <span face="">Interview a thought leader, visually compare a set of solutions, provide a tip or debate on a current event <strong>on your blog</strong> – put customer testimonials and buyer specific overview videos on your website to nurture <strong>more leads</strong> – send around examples to your employees on how to get a first meeting or how to do a sales follow up - …</span></p> <p> </p> <ul> <li> <span face="">After all this - <strong>still need to hear more about the importance of video measurement and ROI?!</strong></span></li> </ul> <p> </p> <p> It’s important to keep an eye on <strong>the ‘opt-in rate’, the ‘bounce rate’, the ‘completion rate’ and the ‘conversion rate’</strong>. <u><a href="http://www.buzzberry.be/contact-us">Contact us for some more tips and tricks</a></u> <span face="">and these metrics will – in the same order – increase 40%, decrease 10%, increase 80% and finally also increase 40%.</span></p> <p> </p> <ul> <li> <span face="">Off course we know it is not simple to <strong>create a video</strong> on your own – maybe the following will help you.</span></li> </ul> <p> </p> <p> First learn to do something simple, maintain a regular practice and afterwards, coach the others. Just don’t start with using complex video production techniques or complex messaging. If you don’t get the result you need or want – <u><a href="http://www.buzzberry.be/contact-us">we’re here to help</a></u><span face="">! </span></p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>Online marketing and SEO is our cup of tea - need some guidance in expanding your video usage today?! – <u><a href="http://www.buzzberry.be/contact-us">contact us</a></u><span face="">!</span></strong></p> <p> </p> <p> Tess Troch</p> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Search Engine Friendly website : Duplicated Contents</h1> <p>Thu, 13 Jan 2011 14:52:18 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> Make your website Search Engine Friendly : avoid duplicate content. Google doesn't like Copy Cats.</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> <strong>Search engines avoid showing the same content multiple times in the search results</strong>. If you think about it, it doesn’t provide the best customer experience to wade through the exact same page multiple times for the exact same search query. And search engines strive to provide just that : the best matching result page for each search query. However, if your website is built with a CMS, it’s most likely that the same content can be accessed through different URLs. For instance : categories, tags and onsite search results can all lead to the same content, but by use of different URL versions.</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>Solutions to avoid duplicate content </strong></p> <p> </p> <p> If you allow search engines to decide which URL to index it may not be the one you prefer. Therefore, you should :</p> <ul> <li> Block URLs from being indexed by means of the <strong>robots.txt file</strong>.</li> <li> Block URLs from being indexed by using the <strong>meta robots tag</strong>. In this case, you should use <strong>noindex, follow</strong> so that links on the page can still be crawled by search engines</li> <li> Use <strong>301 redirects</strong> (permanent redirection) to point all duplicate URLs to the main URL of your choice.</li> <li> Use the <a href="http://googlewebmastercentral.blogspot.com/2009/02/specify-your-canonical.html">canonical attribute</a> on your meta link tags to hint at the search engines which version of the URL you would like indexed.</li> </ul> <p> </p> <p> <strong>Uniqueness</strong></p> <p> </p> <p> Knowing this, you should make sure that every page on your site shows <strong>unique content</strong>. And of course, you should definitely stray from plagiarism. It is not favoured at all by Google. E-commerce sites often have a problem with duplicate content, since product information is rather scarce. For instance, some products might come in different sizes, but still, each size has been attributed its own page. Content is most likely to be the same on all pages, apart from the product size. Not surprisingly, search engines will not rank all those product pages. In many cases, they’ll choose just one. Therefore, SEO recommends you build one single page for your product and provide a choice to your customers for the size. If you do insist on providing a different page for each product size, then content should be rewritten to ensure a certain percentage of uniqueness between product pages.</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>She’s wearing the same dress !</strong></p> <p> </p> <p> Bottom line is : don’t upstage your website by dressing your pages too alike. And certainly don’t copy parts of other websites. Check back next week as we delve deeper into the depths of Canonical URLs & Duplicated Contents for Search Engine Friendly Web Development. Any questions in the meantime ? <a href="http://www.buzzberry.be/contact-us">Just shoot</a>.</p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> -- Fiona De Brabanter</p> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Conversations Matter!</h1> <p>Nele — Fri, 24 Jun 2011 13:56:49 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> What's all the <em>buzz</em> 'bout social media?</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> <span _fck_bookmark="1" style="display: none;"> </span>Social media are booming & blooming, but... are you? </p> <p> Whether we like it or not, it’s impossible to imagine life today without social media. The last two years, there has been an evolution, a revolution never seen before. Therefore, social media are an almost necessary evil in your campaign.</p> <p> </p> <p> Whatever you do, don’t panic. Learn to overcome your ‘evil’!</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>YES, I am!</strong></p> <p> When you decide as a company to become active in social media, you have to have a plan of action. You must always start with a strategy –this is TRUE for classic campaigns, but even more so for social media campaigns. What’s worse than just plunge in & drown –and finding after 3 months that your campaign didn’t bring about the hoped-for results?</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>But WAIT a minute! </strong></p> <p> Start with a strategy–determine the goals you want to attain: more traffic, brand awareness, PR, short-term campaigns, …? Whichever way you want it, it is possible. As long as you determine a plan of attack based on your presupposed goals. </p> <p> </p> <p> Draw a social media policy–set up some ground rules, some guidelines on how to behave, speak & react online. Big chances are the people in your company are online too, so use them as ambassadors! They know the company & the brand like no other. Who else is there to spread your brand via social media?</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>BIG mistake!</strong></p> <p> One of the most common mistakes about social media is that campaigns are for free. Setting up a Facebook page doesn’t cost anything, now does it? True. But you need to invest time, means & thus money in the people, the strategy and the try-outs.</p> <p> </p> <p> How do you get a hold of this? That’s up to you.</p> <p> Having people in your company that can carry out your social media strategy is a pro. They know the story, they know the product –they are your best brand ambassadors.</p> <p> You can, however, call in the help of social media experts for working out a campaign or a social media policy –social media do have their own ABC.</p> <p> Bottom line is & stays: <em>you need to be willing to invest</em>.</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>But what’s in it for me? </strong></p> <p> The big question remains of course What does it bring in?</p> <p> It does bring in, but not just like that. You need to follow & monitor what’s happening. People tend to ask for advice within their own network. If you can detect that intention and intervene neatly & properly, a sale can result. This is what’s called catching a lead in mid-air.</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>2B or not 2B</strong></p> <p> <span _fck_bookmark="1" style="display: none;"> </span>Can social media be used in B2B? There aren’t many cases that speak of B2B in social media. But every B has a C –so every C can be brought back to B. It might not be <em>a piece of cake</em>, but you might as well get a piece of <em>the</em> cake. You can’t get cast-iron certainties, just go for it & set the ball rolling! </p> <p> </p> <p> Do you want to be "socially active", but you don't know where to start? <a href="mailto:info@buzzberry.be">Contact us</a> today and we'll gladly help you out!</p> <p> </p> <p> -- by Nele Waelbers - <a href="http://www.twitter.com/lafillenelle">@lafillenelle</a></p> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Meet BuzzBerry’s new copywriter: Nele Waelbers</h1> <p>Nele — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 11:12:08 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> <span _fck_bookmark="1" style="display: none;"> </span>Yet another female addition to our BuzzBerry team. And damn proud of it! </p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> Nele has been writing since she was old enough to hold a pencil and a thought. As a child, she wrote self-made stories and scribbled her thoughts in a diary. After high school, she studied political sciences and journalism and sharpened her pen with clear essays, critical articles and slightly eccentric reportages. In the past, she has been a chief editor, communication manager and copywriter/translator for various big companies.</p> <p> </p> <p> Besides writing, she has a passion for books, fashion & photography.</p> <p> </p> <p> Nele officially joined our <strong>Marketing & Communications</strong> branch this January.</p> <p> </p> <p> <span _fck_bookmark="1" style="display: none;"> </span>We hope you give our new BuzzBerry lady a lovely welcome. We are so pleased to have her on our team! Indulge her with writing jobs and she will surely live happily ever after… </p> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>10 witty twitter copywriting tips</h1> <p>Nele — Mon, 24 Jan 2011 12:02:17 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> <span _fck_bookmark="1" style="display: none;"> </span>140 characters, that’s all you get...</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> <span _fck_bookmark="1" style="display: none;"> </span>140 characters, that’s all you get to tell other <em>tweeps</em> ”what’s happening now?”. And don’t be mistaken, the battle for attention is hard, very hard. So, your <em>tweets</em> need to be interesting, original, outstanding. But how? We will reveal some (t)witty tips.</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>Seduce me…</strong></p> <p> A hot title can make the difference between being read or ignored. Titles are read 5 times more than text. So seduce your <em>tweeps</em> with irresistible titles.</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>Shout!</strong></p> <p> Too much exclamation marks make you come across as a loudmouth!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The number of people interested sinks with the number of exclamation marks. And if you can’t help but using one, then please just use one!</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>Capitals</strong></p> <p> CAPITALS CAN BE HELPFUL, BUT TOO MUCH IS JUST TOO MUCH. “An entire <em>tweet </em>in CAPITALS is difficult to read” is much better, don’t you think?</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>To tweet or to <em>re</em>tweet?</strong></p> <p> Do you want to get some <em>retweets</em>? Then keep your tweets short.Don’t use all 140 characters for your tweet, leave space for at least a “RT @yourname”, so they can retweet you. Keeping your posts even shorter allows for multiple retweets. But only making your tweets short will not help, if they are not interesting to your followers.</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>Be irresistible…</strong></p> <p> So you have the power to catch the eye. Once you’ve got it, keep it! <em>Tweeps</em> aren’t interested in ”what’s happening now?”. They are however in ”what’s in it for me?”. Tweet about stuff that is advantageous or interesting to your followers. Moreover, posting useful links, news, funny or bizarre things is more likely to get retweeted.</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>Hashtags </strong></p> <p> Use #hashtags in your <em>tweets</em>. <em>Tweeps </em>scan <em>tweets </em>for useful information. They often receive hundreds of <em>tweets </em>a day. Hashtagging facilitates scanning and helps the user decide quickly whether <em>tweets</em>are interesting or not. What’s more, it will make your tweets seen even by those who are not following you, but are searching the hashtags.</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>Call to action</strong></p> <p> Provoke a reaction with a clear <em>call to action</em>.</p> <p> Example: RT please, Read the article here.</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>Clari</strong><strong>ty lasts longer</strong></p> <p> Posting confusing tweets or just tweeting for the sole purpose of tweeting is a no-go. Make it clear what your <em>tweet</em>’s all about. Confused <em>tweeps</em> become rebellious an apathic. Trust me, you don’t want that.</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>Clarity lasts longest</strong></p> <p> When you’re reacting on a <em>tweet</em>, be sure to make it clear to what you’re reacting. Your reaction might not be seen immediately. If necessary, repeat the whole <em>tweet</em>.</p> <p> Am I doing it right?</p> <p> No, <a href="http://twitter.com/buzzberrybuzz">@buzzberrybuzz</a> – Interesting. Thanks!</p> <p> <span _fck_bookmark="1" style="display: none;"> </span>No, <a href="http://twitter.com/buzzberrybuzz">@buzzberrybuzz</a> – 10 witty Twitter copywriting tips: Interesting. Thanks!</p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> -- by Nele Waelbers - <a href="http://twitter.com/lafillenelle">@lafillenelle</a></p> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>I’ve told you once… and now I've told you twice!</h1> <p>Tess — Tue, 01 Feb 2011 10:03:39 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> Ranking high in Google shouldn’t be your main goal, getting conversions should be!</p> <p> <br /> This resume gives you some useful tips.</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> In this resume I will give you some tips on how to <strong>turn your visitor into a lead or customer</strong>!</p> <p> <br /> • First of all, make sure your <strong>design</strong> is refreshing, new and of top-notch quality.</p> <p> </p> <p> • Secondly, make your site <strong>user-friendly </strong>– know your audience and please them.</p> <p> <br /> • Thirdly, think about the <strong>CMS-module </strong>you want, make sure updates can be made easily.</p> <p> <br /> • Fourthly, rank high in Google (we can make sure this happens :-) – think about<strong> SEO.</strong><br /> Inside tip: use <strong>Google analytics </strong>as a tool – do something with the results you get out of it.<br /> Constant optimization is the message here.</p> <p> </p> <p> <em>Now the visitors are on your site and they like it there – so make sure they don’t leave before they convert</em>!</p> <p> <br /> <u><strong>How do you create this ‘stickiness’?</strong></u></p> <p> <u><strong><br /> </strong></u>• All your <strong>campaigns</strong> and internal & external communication must shout <strong>‘Action!’</strong>.</p> <p> <br /> • Follow all the <strong>marketing rules </strong>you know (reciprocity, free stuff, scarcity, like buttons, testimonials, social media, …)</p> <p> <br /> • Make sure your <strong>conversion process </strong>is user-friendly – for example: do not develop too many steps to finish a purchase.</p> <p> <br /> • Keep analyzing everything you do!</p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> It’s a lot to handle, so <a href="http://www.buzzberry.be/contact-us">contact us </a>if you need some help, guidance or assistance!</p> <p> </p> <p> Tess Troch</p> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>We will not stop telling you until you totally get it: SEO is important!</h1> <p>Tess — Wed, 26 Jan 2011 12:57:57 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> Marnik D’Hoore told me yesterday and now I’m telling you.</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> First of all, there is one small clarification that needs to be made: your main goal shouldn’t be ‘ranking high in Google’, your aim should be <strong>‘converting’</strong>: selling your product, getting visitors to fill in a form, make visitors ask for a tender, …</p> <p> <br /> Google maps, the structure of your links, your URL’s, … You need a good web developer, one that doesn’t freak out on words like ‘meta codes’ and one that understands the importance of SEO.</p> <p> <br /> After you have found the right developer, you need someone who writes copy the way Google wants it, someone who knows the little tricks. A <strong>good copywriter </strong>will know which keywords are important and will integrate them everywhere on your site. If you really want the right keyword, you need to think like your customers! But be innovative; don’t use one-word phrases, because they will only give you 20% relevant visitors. So use more descriptive phrases to improve the quality of your visitors.</p> <p> <br /> Once these two things are taken care of, all it comes down to is <strong>optimizing</strong>!</p> <p> Building as many links as possible, maintaining your site's quality, writing articles, posting videos and blogs, using social media, ...</p> <p> <br /> One last thing: Google Analytics is a measurement tool – use it!<br /> If your number of visitors is increasing, analyze which keywords led them to your website.<br /> Just make sure your efforts have the right effect.</p> <p> <br /> You totally get the importance of SEO, but you can’t seem to find the time or the energy to get started?<br /> <a href="http://www.buzzberry.be/contact-us">Contact us</a>, we have all the right tools and equipment!</p> <p> <em>(Sorry colleagues, I mean: ‘We have a team of professionals!’ :-))</em></p> <p> </p> <p> <br /> Tess Troch<br /> </p> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Facebook — Groups or Pages?</h1> <p>Nele — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 09:05:25 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> <span _fck_bookmark="1" style="display: none;"> </span>Should I launch a Group or create a Page? That's the never-ending question... </p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> Over the past couple of years, Facebook has witnessed an enormous rise in the number of active users – from 100 million in 2008, to 200 million in 2009, 400 million in 2010 and over 500 million at the beginning of 2011. This rise has become an important opportunity for brands to interact directly with existing customers and attract new ones.</p> <p> Facebook groups & pages are not that clearly distinctive as they used to be. This forced marketers to ask themselves: <strong>”Which one should I use?”</strong> So if you are looking for ways to build out your company’s presence on Facebook, here are some guidelines to help you clean up the clutter!</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>What are </strong><strong>Facebook Groups</strong><strong>?</strong></p> <p> </p> <p> According to Facebook, groups are ”for members of groups to connect, share and even collaborate on a given topic or idea”. While most companies keep making a distinction between groups and page on Facebook, these products tend to eventually merge over time.</p> <p> Groups can be a very effective marketing tool. More importantly, groups serve as a great tool to <strong>create brand awareness</strong> or <strong>awareness around a variety of ideas</strong>. Lots of Facebook pages are being used for the same purpose, but this is actually what groups were meant for. The key feature that distincts groups from pages is the ability to make them “invite only” or limited to specific networks.</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>What are </strong><strong>Facebook Pages</strong><strong>?</strong></p> <p> </p> <p> Facebook pages ”allow organizations, businesses, celebrities and bands to broadcast information in an official, public manner to people who choose to connect with them”. Similar to profiles, pages can be enhanced with applications that help the entity communicate & engage with their audiences and also capture new audiences virally through friend recommendations, New Feeds & Facebook events.</p> <p> Contrary to Facebook Groups that are organized around topics and/or ideas, Facebook pages are <strong>organizing around entities</strong>. They are <strong>a tool to engage fans or customers</strong>. So, if your want to set up an ”official Facebook presence” for your company, choose for a Facebook Page.</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>Groups vs Pages </strong><strong>– a comparison</strong></p> <p> </p> <p> The various different features of both groups and Pages will be highlighted in these guidelines, in order to let you determine whether or not groups or Pages will more effective serving your needs.</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>1. </strong><strong>Mass messaging</strong> –One of the best features of groups is the ability to send messages directly to the member’s inbox. Messages are restricted though, once a group reaches 5000 members. Thus, if you want to set up a group for marketing purposes only this feature will be useless to you. </p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>2. </strong><strong>Indexation by search engines</strong> –Both groups and pages are indexed by search engines. It must be said that Pages provide better SEO opportunities when used in combination with the <em>Static FBML</em> application. However, this does not mean that Facebook groups don’t work with Google. You can control the content of your group’s info area, which already lets you pop up in Google and other search engines.</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>3. </strong><strong>Stream publishing</strong> –One of the most important features of both groups and Pages is the ability to publish stories to members’ and fans’ News Feeds. These stories can obtain a significant reach. Just as Facebook users’ status updates are displayed in their friends’ feed, groups and pages can do the exact same thing.</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>4. </strong><strong>Targeted stream posts</strong> –On top of stream publishing, Facebook pages also have the ability to target their stream posts on location or language. This enables you to better reach your target audience.</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>5. </strong><strong>Targeted updates</strong> –Page updates are and remain a very valuable communication channel. Now they appear in your fans’ inboxes under a separate tab “Updates”. Since updates are moved to this area, the open rate (& response rate) has increased dramatically.</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>6. </strong><strong>Application support</strong> –One of the biggest differences between groups and pages is the ability to include applications and customize Pages. You can even use interactive applications to for example <em>reward</em> new members.</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>7. </strong><strong>Membership restrictions</strong> –One of the advantages of groups is that you can restrict who accesses them. There are three types of groups: open, closed & secret. <em>Open groups</em> are just like Pages; anyone can join them. <em>Closed groups</em> appear in search results, however you must request membership that must be approved. <em>Secret groups</em> are not visible in Facebook and are accessible by invite only. In contrast, Pages are always public and there’s no possibility to make them private.</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>8. </strong><strong>Event inbox messages </strong>–One of the disadvantages of events created on Pages is that you can’t send invites to your fans’ inbox. Instead, your fans receive Page updates, which means a great percentage of your fans will not see the notification. You can however use Facebook ads in order to promote your event. Groups on the other hand can send invites to their members. Although there is a restriction for sending messages once the group is bigger than 5000 members. As with Pages, you can also create more awareness by using Facebook ads.</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>9. </strong><strong>Engagement metrics</strong> –One of the best features of Pages is called <em>Page Insights</em>, which provides you with detailed info regarding demographics and the engagement of your members. This allows you to better <em>know</em>your members. If this is something you want, this is the main reason to choose Pages over groups.</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>10. </strong><strong>Promotional widgets</strong> –This is the tool you need if you want to make your website’s visitors fans of your company on Facebook. The Fanbox widget can be placed onto your website to lead your visitors to your personal Facebook Page. Groups, however, don’t have a similar tool.</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>11. </strong><strong>Usernames</strong> –Facebook Pages give you the opportunity to create a unique URL that redirects users directly to your personal Page. This way, you can better engage with your fans and promote your Facebook Page.</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>Conclusion</strong></p> <p> </p> <p style="margin: 0px; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> <b><span _fck_bookmark="1" style="display: none;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">If you are trying to decide whether to use a Facebook group or Page, these guidelines should help you along the way.</span></b></p> <p style="margin: 0px; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> </p> <p style="margin: 0px; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> Not sure how to start your company's Social Media Strategy? Just <a href="http://www.buzzberry.be/contact-us">contact us</a> & we'll help you out!</p> <p> </p> <p> <span _fck_bookmark="1" style="display: none;"> </span></p> <p> </p> <p> <span _fck_bookmark="1" style="display: none;"> </span></p> <p> -- by Nele Waelbers - <a href="http://www.twitter.com/lafillenelle">@lafillenelle</a></p> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Social media and branding – it’s a match!</h1> <p>Tess — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 14:26:57 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> The current communication model doesn’t suffice anymore in this fragmented landscape where social media plays such a substantial role.</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> <em>First some information on the research design by ‘Greenberry’</em></p> <p> <br /> Taking in account the 100 biggest advertisers in the ‘Nielsen top 100’, a research was initiated about the number of time people <strong>write or talk</strong> about these advertisers in <strong>social media</strong> (Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Hyves, blogs, pictures, …). These results were compared to ‘top 25 advertisers and their <strong>advertising budgets</strong>’ (also from Nielsen's list).<br /> </p> <p> <em>What happened?<br /> </em></p> <p> As every marketer knows, social media is a troublesome phenomenon. The influence of social media on the communication with your target audiences and your <strong>brand strategy</strong> is often forgotten. Research shows that not only ad spending (<strong>paid media</strong>), but also word-of-mouth (<strong>earned media</strong>) plays an important role. Brands should think about how they can facilitate or stimulate such earned media in their communication strategy.<br /> </p> <p> <em>The figures<br /> </em></p> <p> </p> <p> On average people talked 27.000 times about the top 100 brands between February and November 2010 (or 100 times/day). <strong>The 25 most popular brands were talked about 280 times per day</strong>. Closed profiles were not taken into account, so the real number is probably even higher. Most dominant here is the telecom industry, followed by public transport, supermarkets, retail, financial services and automotive.<br /> <strong>High scoring brands are those who dare to use an innovative communication strategy.<br /> </strong></p> <p> </p> <p> <em>Social media IS important, why?<br /> </em></p> <p> </p> <p> People <strong>trust</strong> their <strong>friends, family</strong> and others more than they trust the brands – it’s that simple!</p> <p> Also the <strong>media landscape</strong> is more <strong>fragmented</strong> than it used to be. This makes it more difficult to reach the target audience by paid media.<br /> </p> <p> <em>How to use the fact that people talk about you in social media?<br /> How to influence this?</em></p> <p> <em><br /> </em></p> <p> The most used communication model for the moment is based on<strong> sending and repeating messages</strong>.<br /> In the new model <strong>earned </strong>and <strong>owned media</strong> play a bigger role than paid media. The central mechanism here is ‘<strong>relevance</strong>’: people use or talk about things that are convenient, surprising, fun or valuable. Earned media in this model means activating, facilitating and joining <strong>word-of-mouth conversations </strong>to the target audience. Owned media on the other hand refers to starting <strong>a lasting 'relationship' through social media</strong>.</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>The current communication model (sending and repeating brand communication) doesn’t suffice anymore in this fragmented landscape where social media plays such a substantial role. Use owned and earned media in your communication strategy!<br /> </strong></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> <a href="http://www.buzzberry.be/contact-us">Contact us </a>for a bespoke communication strategy - we’ll make it work!<br /> </p> <p> Tess Troch</p> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Comma Group's Olympic Night</h1> <p>Laurence — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 16:38:23 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> Client: <a href="http://www.buzzberry.be/news/whos-buzzberry-what-happened-comma-0">Comma Group<br /> </a>Type: <strong>Teambuilding Event<br /> </strong></p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> <span face="">The </span>annual <strong>Comma Group </strong>event again was a fun evening. Since there were <strong>70 colleagues </strong>present, everyone had the time to catch up and get to know the new colleagues.</p> <p> <br /> The evening started with a <strong>welcome drink</strong>, followed by a <strong>walking diner</strong>. After diner we started the <strong>Olympic Night games</strong>. This was a combination of doing & thinking. Each team had to answer questions and fulfill some tasks.</p> <p> The 'fun' competitiveness between the different teams created a truly <strong>exciting atmosphere!</strong></p> <p> <br /> Want to see more pictures of this event ? <a class="ext" href="https://www.facebook.com/BuzzBerryBuzz" jquery1324553893507="32" target="_blank"><u><font color="#0066cc">Like us on Facebook</font></u></a>, and check out our <a href="http://on.fb.me/uD7D2I">foto album </a>.</p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> <br /> </p> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>To Tweet or not to Tweet?</h1> <p>Thu, 19 May 2011 13:16:33 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> Marketers must be on Twitter! This is no longer a debate, but a fact. </p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> Twitter users post 140 million tweets a day and almost 20% of these tweets are about products and/or brands. So if marketers want to know how consumers experience their brand, social network sites such as Twitter are the place to be. Marketers can listen and start a conversation with their users.</p> <p> </p> <p> But not every tweeting marketer has found his own voice on Twitter. A lot of them just listen without ever posting one single tweet. This is because finding that fine line between professional, fun and too personal isn’t always easy. ‘What do I post on Twitter?’ ‘Do my followers really want to know this?’ ‘How will my followers react to this post?’ These are just a handful of questions professional marketers ask themselves when posting a micro blog on Twitter. Being interesting and relevant for both your brand and your followers isn’t easy. So a lot of them simply don’t tweet. They have a twitter account and some followers, but they aren’t active enough to be relevant for their followers.</p> <p> </p> <p> When we take a look at the top 25 global brands in the Interbrand list we see that 17 of them have a CMO (Chief Marketing Officer) and only half of them have a Twitter account. No matter what your Twitter style is, it’s important that the style of your tweets fits you and your brand. And don’t forget that having a Twitter account without tweeting also says something about you and your brand. Followers or consumers might think you’re not interested in them and their opinion. So as a CMO, make sure you’re on Twitter and that you have something to tell to your followers. Find your own tweeting style and start the conversation with your consumers!</p> <p> </p> <p> <em>Source: ‘Tijdschrift voor marketing’ – Mei 2011 #5 Jaargang 45 – p46-47</em></p> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>The rise of the F-commerce</h1> <p>Thu, 19 May 2011 13:18:24 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> If Facebook were a country, it would be one of the biggest on the planet (without China and India). </p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> </p> <p> Worldwide, Facebook has over 660 million users and they log in almost every day. This means companies have a place on the worldwide web where 10% of the world population comes together. These 660 million people consume products and communicate about brands. This gives your company a unique view on what consumers think and say about your brand.</p> <p> </p> <p> And that is exactly why all the big brands are active on Facebook. As a brand you have to be where your consumers are. This has led to the concept of <strong>F-shops</strong>. From simple Storefronts that link you to the usual web shop, to complete built-in F-shops that take you through the entire buy without ever leaving Facebook. Almost every type of product can be sold/bought in an F-shop. Even luxurious brands such as Bulgari took the leap.</p> <p> </p> <p> The biggest advantage of the F-shop is the fan base. Products or brands with a large fan base sell more in an F-shop. If your consumer is a fan of your product, he’s not only more likely to buy your product, but he also spends more money on your products. An F-shop is also a great way to spoil your loyal fan base by giving them exclusive offers and discounts. The point is to create a loyal fan base, start your F-shop and pamper your buyers. If your fans are happy, they are more likely to tell their friends about your product. And the average Facebook-user has 130 friends, so that is a big word of mouth.</p> <p> </p> <p> Do you want to boost your sales? Don’t hesitate and start working on a good Facebook fan base! One in four Facebook users has bought something through a Facebook brand page. Is it the next big thing of just a short hype? Whatever it is, making your consumer a fan of your brand will make them buy, regardless which channel they use.</p> <p> </p> <p> <em>Source: ‘Tijdschrift voor marketing’ – Mei 2011 #5 Jaargang 45 – p11</em></p> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Google+ buzz...</h1> <p>Nele — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 15:18:21 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> ...or how Google+ can affect your SEO.</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> There’s a lot of buzz about Google’s release of the new social network platform, <a href="http://plus.google.com">Google+</a> (or Google Plus). For the moment you can only get access to the site by invitation from someone else that is already connected. Nonetheless, millions of people have already been connected. This fast growth can be attributed at least partially to the sense of exclusivity that comes from the invitation-only deal. Yet, anyone in online marketing or website promotion follows its latest development with pricked-up ears.</p> <div> <p> </p> <p> Maybe you want to join in the fun and grow your circles of friends, family & acqaintances, but if you rely upon SEO to gain traffic to your websites you might want to learn about Google+ even more. Right now there doesn’t seem to be a direct impact and you are likely going about your business as usual, but you should keep your eyes open to developments with Google+.</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>Be social; collect data</strong></p> <p> There are several speculations regarding its impact on Search Engine Optimization and SERPs. The effect of social signals on SERPs has always been a subject of study among SEO experts. It was observed by many SEO professionals that shares and likes on Facebook meant high popularity of a link and this had direct impact on how Google ranked a page.</p> <p> </p> <p> Google isn’t going social just because it’s popular – they don’t want to kill Facebook or Twitter. They are primarily after data collection. Users of social networking sites willingly hand over tons of information about their life, location, friends & family and, most importantly, what they love & hate. This is valuable information that Google can use in the search engine. However, earlier, Google had to extract data from social sites like Facebook, Twitter and so on in order to determine social signals associated to a site or a page.</p> <p> </p> <p> Now, Google+ makes it even simpler, as it serves as a database for Google to easily extract social information, signals and more. The aim of the Google search engine is to take the info that their customers (or researchers) want to find and deliver a list of relevant, high quality websites, blogs, videos and images. The more accurate they are in doing this and the better content suggestions they offer, the more researchers will come to them rather than to other search engines.</p> <p> </p> <p> And what can help them deliver the most relevant and useful sites better than cold hard figures telling them which websites, blogs, images and videos real people find most useful? The data can be collected through the circles functionality on Google+ and then directly applied to the ranking of websites in the Google search engine. This has a direct impact on everyone who is using SEO to generate website traffic. The sites that get the most “+1″ clicks could rise to the top of the search engines even though they might not be the ones using the best SEO strategies. This creates a whole new game that you have to play if you want to be – and stay – highly ranked.</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>But how? Let’s find out!</strong></p> <p> <em>Real Time Search</em></p> <p> It has been speculated that Google Real time search had been turned off one month before the release specifically to incorporate results from Google+. Previously, results from Twitter were shown on real time search. It is being predicted that soon Google will re-launch its real time search, now in a more relevant manner, with real time results from Google+. If you have relevant content, updated regularly on Google+, you can feature on the real time search often, and thus promote news and information on your website.</p> <p> </p> <p> <em>Sparks Streaming</em></p> <p> Google+ has a content aggregator feature called <em>Sparks </em>which allows users to choose their favourite activity or interest such as media, sports, entertainment, ... Users can get content streamed right onto their profiles according to their indicated interests. This could be a great way to promote your website or blog, if you produce good content of course.</p> <p> </p> <p> <em>Public Posts</em></p> <p> If you select the visibility of your posts as ‘public’, they are indexed by Google and can reach the top of search results if it gets enough shares and +1s. However, it is still not very clear how Google is deciding ranks from the feed of Google+. But, watch out! Since Google+ will have an effect on SEO, you will be tempted to share every single thing you ever wrote. Fight the urge and just try to create good compelling content that others will be motivated to share on your behalf. Keep a good ratio of solid content to promotional content. So, share about 5 to 10 articles written by someone other than yourself before you share your own.</p> <p> </p> <p> <em>Business Pages</em></p> <p> Google is soon to bring out products and features to support brands and businesses on Google+. Given the exponential growth and popularity of Google+, presence of your brand on this social networking site is an absolute necessity.</p> <p> </p> <p> <strong>But be careful!</strong></p> <p> Most people are now aware of Google+, but not everyone has figured out how it could affect them. Some believe it’s just another social networking tool and don’t yet see how it could impact the world of search engine optimization and online marketing in general. Those that take SEO seriously are watching to see how fast Google+ progresses and what they decide to do with the data they have already collected.</p> <p> </p> <p> But, what does this mean to you? Are you scrambling to get your foot in the door with Google+? Are you trying to figure out this new system so you are among the first to get your page rank up? Do you have some ideas of how Google+ could be used for marketing and SEO?   If not, don’t worry. Just don’t forget to keep your eye on this latest Google development.</p> <p> </p> <p> -- by Nele Waelbers - <a href="http://twitter.com/lafillenelle">@lafillenelle</a></p> </div> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Smart use of headings = good practice - part 1</h1> <p>Esther — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 13:50:46 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> Part 1: The importance of headings and nice code</p> <p> </p> <p> Headings structure a newspaper article, a book or a webpage.</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <div id="art_headings"> <p> Part 1: The importance of headings and nice code</p> <p> </p> <p> <a href="/node/103">Part 2: good practice vs bad practice</a></p> <p> </p> <p> Headings are titles. They structure a newspaper article, a book or a webpage. Because of their different layout from the rest of the text (bolder, bigger, other font and/or colour), they clarify the subject of the page as well as how it was built. Another important feature of the right use of headings on a webpage is that they point out the right direction to search spiders. You could say they function as a GPS for indexing web crawling machines. Thus, making content available for persons using a search engine such as Google or Bing.</p> <h3> What are headings in a website context?</h3> <p> Web pages are being built with code. The basic building blocks are HTML tags. HTML elements tell search engine bots whether a certain text is a title, a quote, a paragraph or something else. HTML4 has been the standard since 1999. In web design terms that equals centuries. Currently, HTML5 is rising as a technology and its use is being more implemented today than yesterday. It will soon become the new standard and will have implications for web developers. Also, when it comes to practical use of headings the recommendations are different.</p> <p> </p> <p> e.g.:</p> <div id="art_code"> <p> <h1>Use headers smartly = good practice</h1><br /> <h2>Why</h2><br /> <p>Headings are titles. They give structure to a newspaper article, a book or a webpage. Because of their different layout from the rest of the text (bolder, bigger, other font and/or colour), they clarify the subject of the page as well as how it was built.</p></p> </div> <p> As you can see, <h1> is used for the most important title, for the heading that provides the information on the subject of the page. Next to <h1> headings, there are subheadings such as <h2> – <h6>.</p> <h3> Why are headings important?</h3> <h4> Visitors</h4> <p> When a surfer visits your page, he scans the page before he starts to read. In a short period of time he makes up his mind about staying on the page or trying to find a better answer elsewhere. And short does mean short: an average of 3 seconds is what you get to convince him to stay. Clear titles can make a serious difference here in guiding your visitor through your page.</p> <h4> Crawlers</h4> <p> In the previous chapter, I pointed out that headers serve as signposts for visitors. This is even more true for web crawlers. A title with an <h1> tag will be given a higher value than a paragraph or an <h2> title. Search engines don’t care about what your page looks like. They care about the content and index that content by reading the tags in the code (among other factors).</p> <div class="quote"> “Ok, I will make every title an <h1> heading. Then, all my content is important.”</div> <p> Now that’s a bad idea. Recommendations are specific: an <h1> title should tell what the page is about. Use a short, clear and accurate title for your page. Limit the subject of your page to one item. A search engine likes one <h1> per page. Neither more nor less.</p> <p> But….</p> <p> </p> <p> Oops, exit HTML4, welcome HTML5.</p> <p> The recommendations for a page written in HTML5 somehow differ from those for a HTML4 page. More about this in the next paragraph.</p> <h3> What headings can I use for my web page?</h3> <h4> HTML4:</h4> <p> <h1> – <h6>, one being the most important</p> <p> </p> <ul> <li> <h1>: page title – short description of what the page is about;</li> <li> <h2>: first sub heading;</li> <li> <h3>: second sub heading;</li> <li> Etc.… till <h6>.</li> </ul> <h4> HTML5</h4> <p> HTML5 divides pages into different sections. Each one of those sections can have its own <h1>. The structure of the sections will determine the importance of the title rather than the used tag. Well, both are important.<br /> As a general rule I would advise: one <h1> per section.</p> <h3> Headings, structure and visually impaired people</h3> <p> For visually impaired people a good structure of a web text is even more important. They rely on techniques such as speech reproduction. Only a different layout is useless for them.</p> <p> </p> </div> <p> <a href="/node/103">Part 2 will look deeper into good practice versus bad practice.</a></p> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Smart use of headings = good practice - part 2</h1> <p>Esther — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 19:03:21 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> 10 do's and don'ts</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <div id="art_headings"> <p> Welcome to the second and last part of our series about headings.</p> <p> </p> <p> <a href="/node/102">In Part 1 I talked about the importance of headings from a SEO point of view.</a></p> <p> </p> <p> Part 2 will focus on the real work: Good practice vs Bad practice</p> <h3> What makes a good heading?</h3> <h4> Short</h4> <p> Try and limit the length of the title to 80 characters.</p> <h4> Descriptive</h4> <p> An <h1> title should give a short description of the subject of the page. Visitors as well as search spiders have to know right away what that particular page is about.</p> <h4> Accurate</h4> <p> Make sure the title is correct. Avoid puns, funny one-liners that led people up the garden path. Your visitor wants the info he’s looking for and he wants it NOW! That is a feature of the internet, not a bug.</p> <h4> Keywords</h4> <p> Now let’s try and get surfers to look for a company providing your service on your webpages. Headings can make an important difference.<br /> Try to imagine which keywords people looking for your company's service or product would use. If you're looking for inspiration, there's a cute online tool that doesn't only show you how many times a certain keyword was googled, but also suggests similar search terms and their search volume: the <a href="http://adwords.google.com/select/KeywordToolExternal" target="_blank">AdWords Keyword Tool</a>. Use those terms in your titles — search engines value keywords in titles higher than those in paragraphs.<br /> Don’t exaggerate, the first and most important purpose is to clarify the content for your visitors. Limit what your page’s about to one subject. But keep in mind that there’s a thin line between intelligent use of keywords and keyword stuffing.</p> <h4> Hometown</h4> <p> For locally based initiatives we strongly advise to use the place name in the <h1> title.</p> <p> e.g. Sandwich Delivery Amsterdam</p> <p> </p> <p> There is a good chance that people use the place name in their search engine queries. Make sure your page ranks high for that search.</p> <h4> Unique</h4> <p> Use a different <h1> title on every page. A <h1> relates to the content of that particular page, not to what the website as a whole is about. Every page should have its own <h1>.</p> <h4> Teasing</h4> <p> Next to being clear, a title should tease the audience enough to encourage him to read on.</p> <h4> FAQ headings</h4> <p> A nice trick to absorb a lot of search terms is a good FAQ section on your website. On one page you can provide an overview of all the FAQs. Every FAQ get’s its own page with the question as <h1>. Questions are being googled a lot.</p> <h3> What to avoid when using headings on a web page?</h3> <h4> Company name</h4> <p> It might be a good idea to use your company name as an <h1> on the homepage of your website, but on the homepage only. Your website is likely to be found by people searching for it on your company name. No real need to emphasize it any further SEO-wise. If the URL (<a href="http://www.yourcompany.com" title="www.yourcompany.com">www.yourcompany.com</a>) of your website is your company name, you’ve got that covered.</p> <h4> Duplicate content</h4> <p> Webcrawlers don’t like duplicate content. They strive to present the best results possible, for which they count on correct information. Using duplicate content is seen as SEO abuse.</p> <h4> Tricks & bad practice</h4> <p> Cloaking: techniques that show different content to search spiders than to visitors of a website.</p> <p> Abuse of certain SEO techniques is being penalized by loss of ranking or even makes your website disappear entirely from search results.</p> <p> A simple cloaking example: a couple of years ago certain SEO experts considered it a good idea to stuff sites with keywords in the same colour as the background of the page. Unreadable for the human eye, detected by search robots. Don’t try this at home, because that’s one of the techniques that’s being penalized.</p> <h3> The semantic web – web 3.0</h3> <div class="quote"> “Semantics is the study of meaning. It focuses on the relation between signifiers, such as words, phrases, signs and symbols, and what they stand for, their denotata.”<br /> …Wikipedia…</div> <p> In the early days of HTML, there were tags for the layout of elements. E.g. the deprecated <b> to make text bold, <i> for italic text and <font> for font specifications such as font size, font colour, … In the meantime this is being considered real bad practice. Content and layout should be strictly separated. In HTML5, these kinds of tags are even illegal. And yes, that does mean the internet police will arrest you for breaking digital laws. Search engine algorithms rely on semantic code.</p> <p> HTML-tags only provide information about the type of content they contain, in HTML5 that's even more true.</p> <p> The right use of semantic possibilities ensures a high quality web where it’s possible to make your content available for mashup applications and other websites. E.g. an application that lists opening hours of shops in your community.</p> <p> Semantic code makes it easier for machines to understand your content.</p> <h3> Style</h3> <p> Titles don’t serve to provide text with a different layout, they merely indicate the structure of the page. To take care of layout, use CSS. By giving the titles a different lay out with CSS, you’re making it easy for visitors to scan the text on its value for them on that given time. You get 3 seconds, remember?</p> </div> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Countdown to our second annual team event</h1> <p>Sofie — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 13:32:00 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> BuzzBerry is buzzy preparing the annual Comma Group's team event for this Friday. We are very excited!</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> BuzzBerry is buzzy preparing the annual Comma Group's team event for this Friday. We are very excited!<br /> Not only will this event be an excellent opportunity to catch up with each other, it is also Comma Group's way of thanking its employees for all the hard work.<br /> <br /> This year, we chose a special location: the beautiful Moonbeat theater in Mechelen. The evening will take off with bubbles, followed by an exquisite diner.<br /> No Black Jack or Roulette activities this time, we planned an interactive Olympic Night.<br /> <br /> Of course we won't be exercising all night, but what the plans are exactly is yet to remain a secret. Revealing pictures will be put online afterwards!<br /> <br /> Since BuzzBerry specializes in Event Marketing, we are organizing this evening from dusk till dawn: sending invitations, updating the subscriptions, planning all activities, and so on.<br /> <br /> With over 70 subscriptions, this evening is bound to be a success! Be there!</p> <p> </p> <p> <br /> <em>Laurence Rutsaert<br /> </em></p> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Meet our colleague Ellen Boeckx</h1> <p>Laurence — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 15:06:54 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> Once again a female joins our team...</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> Ellen graduated in June 2011 as a Bachelor<strong> Interactive Multimedia Design </strong>at Lessius Mechelen.</p> <p> </p> <p> With her <strong>skills</strong>, <strong>rich imagination </strong>and <strong>enthusiastic spirit</strong>, we believe that she will add <strong>great value </strong>to our company.</p> <p> </p> <p> BuzzBerry is convinced of Ellen’s capacities as a <strong>marketing analyst</strong>. And what's more, she's a true <strong>Apple</strong> & <strong>social media addict.</strong> As a passionate marketing analyst, she always has the need to find better ways to promote products and asks herself how she can <strong>optimize</strong> search results.</p> <p> </p> <p> We are convinced that Ellen will refine our work and will inject BuzzBerry with new & fresh <strong>ideas</strong>!</p> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Happy Holidays</h1> <p>Laurence — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 12:01:04 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> The BuzzBerry team wishes you a wonderful 2012</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> May the holidays refresh your spirit and bring you new inspiration and happiness!</p> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Facebook Timeline for pages</h1> <p>Nele — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 20:24:24 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> Yesterday, Facebook Timeline for pages was launched at the FMC, the Facebook Marketing Conference. What are the most important changes?</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> </p> <div> Yesterday, <a href="http://www.facebook.com/about/pages">Facebook Timeline for pages</a> was launched at the FMC, the <a href="http://www.facebook.com/business/fmc">Facebook Marketing Conference</a>. From today you can already switch to this new functionality. On March 30, all Facebook pages will automatically be transferred. What are the most important changes?</div> <div> </div> <div id="cke_pastebin"> <strong>1. Cover photo vs. profile picture</strong></div> <div id="cke_pastebin"> </div> <div id="cke_pastebin"> The first thing people will see when they visit your Facebook page, is the cover photo. Just like a profile timeline, it gives you the opportunity to set a unique and original picture or visual (851x315 pixels). However, there are some <a href="http://www.facebook.com/page_guidelines.php">restrictions</a> to a company’s cover photo: no promotions, no contact info, no arrows to certain Facebook features and no call to actions. On the bottom of the cover photo, you’ll find the profile picture: this has changed to a miniature picture. A long banner is no longer possible.</div> <div id="cke_pastebin"> </div> <div id="cke_pastebin"> <strong>2. Content & reviews</strong></div> <div id="cke_pastebin"> <strong><br /> </strong></div> <div id="cke_pastebin"> With Facebook timelines, the emphasis is on the content, which you can put in the picture even more. You can highlight updates, so that they take up the full width of your timeline. Or you can pin an update so that it stays on top of your timeline. We love this feature and it has a huge marketing potential. This works based on the concept of featured posts. You can pin (only one) wall post and it displays on top of the profile till you in pin it. This feature allows you to run a banner ad sort of wall posts.</div> <div id="cke_pastebin"> </div> <div id="cke_pastebin"> And even more important: you can set a control on posts of fans (just like the ‘tagging control’ with profiles). When you check reviews, a post will only appear after it’s been approved by an administrator. You can set this under ‘manage’ > ‘edit page’ > ‘manage permissions’. This allows you to control the content that is being posted.</div> <div id="cke_pastebin"> </div> <div id="cke_pastebin"> <strong>3. Welcome tab & applications</strong></div> <div id="cke_pastebin"> </div> <div id="cke_pastebin"> A welcome tab of landing page is unnecessary. The emphasis is entirely on the timeline. You can no longer set the tab on which your visitors land on by default. Formerly made tabs and apps can now be found below your cover photo.</div> <div id="cke_pastebin"> </div> <div id="cke_pastebin"> And also apps are changing quite a bit. The 520 pixel width restriction has been left out: applications are now page wide. You can see the current apps have lots of white space. This means you’ll have plenty of space to design future apps.</div> <div id="cke_pastebin"> </div> <div id="cke_pastebin"> <strong>4. Admin Panel</strong></div> <div> </div> <div id="cke_pastebin"> The Admin Panel can be reached via the button on the top-right of your page. The panel itself is looking very different: notifications, new likes and the latest statistics will still be available here. To edit the settings of your page, go to ‘manage’ > ‘edit page’.</div> <div id="cke_pastebin"> </div> <div id="cke_pastebin"> <strong>5. Messages</strong></div> <div id="cke_pastebin"> </div> <div id="cke_pastebin"> ‘Messages’ can also be found in the admin panel. From now on everyone can send private messages to a page. What’s more, administrators can answer the message in the name of the company of brand. However, it’s not possible to initiate a message from your page to a fan. Facebook gives you all the necessary tools for support and customer care via you page.</div> <div id="cke_pastebin"> </div> <div id="cke_pastebin"> <strong>Conclusion</strong></div> <div id="cke_pastebin"> </div> <div id="cke_pastebin"> Facebook stimulates companies and brands no only to tell their whole story via the social network, but also to service fans and build true customer relationships. Timeline is just a next step in this evolution.</div> <div> </div> <div> Don't know how to start your company's Social Media Strategy? Just <a href="http://www.buzzberry.be/contact-us">contact us</a> & we'll help you out!</div> <div> </div> <div> -- Nele Waelbers — <a href="http://www.twitter.com/lafillenelle">@lafillenelle</a></div> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>The importance of a user-friendly website</h1> <p>Ellen — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 13:33:40 +0000</p> <div class="field field-type-filefield field-field-news-image"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-intro"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <p> Usability's Golden Rule: "Don't make your visitors think!"</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-news-text"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item odd"> <div id="art_headings"> <p> This article gives you an oveview of the do's and don'ts of web writing and usability.</p> <h3> The World Wide Web</h3> <p> You should take into account that users read differently on screen than in print. This means you should use a different approach and structure.</p> <p> </p> <p> When a user is surfing on the web in search of information, he wants to scan a the pages as quickly as possible. If he can’t find what he’s looking for, he will leave immediately and might even never come back! </p> <h4> Users will scan your content</h4> <p> Try to make your content scannable by:</p> <ul> <li> Summarizing your texts;</li> <li> highlighting the most important words;</li> <li> using animation, banners or bold text (but don't overdo it);</li> <li> getting the users attention with striking elements;</li> <li> writing short and simple sentences.</li> </ul> <p> </p> <p> It's better to write more pages with less information than one page with too much information, because it reads slower on a screen than in a book.</p> <p> Almost 80% of the users will scan the text and in most cases only 28% of the words will be read.</p> <p> In other words, the more text you use on one page, the less it will be read.</p> <h4> Technical limitations of a screen</h4> <ul> <li> Images are compressed to 72 dpi;</li> <li> dimensions of old screens and mobile hardware;</li> <li> contrast of white and black are always greyish;</li> <li> sharpness due to pixels and light.</li> </ul> <h4> Use of multimedia</h4> <p> The use of video and audio can be very annoying for your visitors. Especially when you ‘forget’ to implement an “<em>Off</em>” button. This option should be available and visible at all times, because a frustrated user will be gone in less then a second.</p> <p> </p> <p> If you want to use an animation or video, use it to attract your user’s attention. In any case, avoid repeating parts of information.</p> <h3> Smart use of HTML</h3> <p> It can be fancy to use different and more special fonts in an image, but we strongly advise you to place your text in HTML. This is important for SEO, because texts in images can't be read by search engines.</p> <h4> Special text</h4> <p> Placing important words in bold, gives the user an idea of what to scan first. It draws the user's attention and emphasize a keyword.</p> <p> Italic must be avoided at all times, because of poor legibility.</p> <p> </p> <p> Whenever possible, use the most important keywords in your headings. Read more about this topic here: <a href="http://smart-use-headings-good-practice-part-1">"Smart use of headers"</a>.</p> <h4> Lists</h4> <p> You should always be consistent in the use of lists. Start your list with a capital letter, placing a ";" at the end of each line, and end the list with a dot. And more importantly, do this for every list.</p> <h4> Hyperlinks</h4> <p> A hyperlink is used to let the visitor undertake actions.</p> <p> </p> <p> You should pay attention to the following tips:</p> <ul> <li> Underline and highlight your link with the use of colors;</li> <li> only define useful links;</li> <li> external and e-maillinks should be clickable;</li> <li> avoid ‘404 – Page not found’ links;</li> <li> do not simply use ‘Click here’ as a link to text.</li> </ul> <h4> Typography</h4> <p> There is a big difference in the use of fonts for web or print.</p> <p> — A <strong>serif font</strong> will read much better on print media, because of the horizontal lines.</p> <p> — A <strong>sans serif </strong>font on the other hand will be more readable on the screen, because there are no extra anchors used that can make a smaller text blurry.</p> <h4> Color and contrast</h4> <p> The readability of your content will increase linear with the contrast of the colors. The best contrast is black on white or dark grey on white. But do try to avoid a grey background.</p> <h4> Capital letters</h4> <p> Capitals are used at the beginning of a sentence, but not for whole sentences or paragraphs.This gives the user the idea that you are screaming. Moreover, capitals make it difficult to scan the content since every letter has the same height.</p> <h4> Columns</h4> <p> The narrower a column, the lower the readability but the more scannable your content will be. A narrow column forces you to move your eyes constantly to a new line, which makes it more likely to skip a line.</p> <h3> Conventions</h3> <h4> Navigation</h4> <p> The main menu should have the same layout and placement on every page. These links should also be distinctive from the normal content.</p> <p> Try to make every link look more or less the same, to avoid confusion.</p> <h4> Recognizability</h4> <p> Some elements such as your logo, scroll bar or search field are recognizable for the user because they are conventional.</p> <p> </p> <p> Try to stick to these conventions:</p> <ul> <li> A click on your logo leads to the homepage;</li> <li> the logo is placed on the top-left of every web page.</li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </div> </article> </main></body></html>