Google have once again managed to create a, err, buzz about their latest product...

So by now you have set up your Twitter account, you’re tweeting away with friends and following people you’re interested in. But what is all this jargon being thrown at you? Re-tweet this, hashtag that, check out this meme! We have put together a list to help you.

In some ways Twitter is like a popularity contest but unlike Facebook you have to earn your followers. As you may or may not be aware, on Facebook, if you request someone as a friend and they accept, or vice-versa, you will immediately follow each other’s profile. It isn’t quite the same on Twitter!

If I had a pound for every blog post I have read about how to make the most of Twitter, I’d be able to retire. Yet for all the collective wisdom out there prescribing best practice lists, there are very few guides on how to understand Twitter. This got me thinking, are companies failing to make the most of the social network because they simply don’t understand it?

There is a consensus that Google might have been a little hasty in rolling out real-time search and this could lead to its impact declining in 2010.

In part two of, the 12 Rules of SMO, we continue our look at some of the key factors that you should consider when approaching an SMO campaign. Part one focussed on planning your strategy and ensuring your content is clear and offers value to visitors. These last six festive offerings will hopefully also add some value to your SMO campaign.

Okay, so this isn’t a definitive guide or Holy Grail of Social Media Optimisation (SMO) best practice. Instead, think of it as a timely look at some of the key things you should consider for an SMO campaign this Christmas and into the New Year.

Hot on the heels of Google’s announcement to roll-out personalised search to everyone with an Internet connection, they delivered their second wave of innovations – real-time search results. This will usher in the brave new world of SMO and SEO search results.

The must attend conference in the world of search is once again returning to the UK in 2010. Search Marketing Expo (SMX) is a two day conference featuring sessions led by industry experts on SEO, PPC, organic search, mobile search and many more.

Leading search marketing specialist, home james, has been appointed by Leeds University Business School to raise the profile of the school, following on from the re-launch of the new Business School brand.

Good Social Media Optimisation (SMO) should be about personalised content and meaningful interaction.

Tweet this, tweet that, poke me, follow me, be my friend, be my fan, addthis, addthat, digg it, dug it, sphinn it, spun it.  What on earth have we stumbled upon!

Social Media Optimisation (SMO) has become even more important over the last 18 months and the announcement last week that Google will launch its social search means this landscape will change at an even faster pace over the next 12 months.

Social Media Optimisation (SMO) is the new buzz topic in the Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) field and companies considering a campaign utilising this shouldn’t stop at just using Twitter and Facebook.

The advent of social media marketing through Facebook and Twitter has cast a lifeline to many small businesses trying to stay afloat in the turbulent recession waters.

Targeting social media, and in particular twitter, has fast become this season’s must-have accessory.  Evidence of this can be found across the social networks which now play host to a graveyard of corporate Facebook & twitter pages, pages that were once in vogue, left to fallow.  Why is this happening?

Search is not just about keeping up with algorithms, it’s about keeping up with customers. The customer is, after all, the most important part of the process. Provide customers with what they want, and serve it to them in a fresh and engaging way, and you gain loyalty, trust and authority.

There’s a lot of noise in the marketplace about Twitter. Could this be used by businesses to extend their online reach?

For those not in the know, Twitter is a micro-blogging platform. In its simplest form it allows users to tell the world, in no less than 140 characters, what they’re up to (tweets), similar to the status update on Facebook. You can however append things such as images, or links to other sites, to support whatever it is you’re ranting about at that moment in time.

There’s a recession looming, in case you didn’t know, it’s changing how we think and hitwise have been sharing some of their insights with us.

Fast moving search terms for September include Hadron Collider, HBoS, Sarah Palin, Sex on Fire, Elbow, Ryder Cup & Google Chrome, amongst others.

Interestingly, the rate of growth in the Social Networking & Forums category has slowed quite a bit, whilst blogs & personal websites have seen a decrease in popularity year on year – this could be our last post!

Following our recent post ‘Fannie Mae Get Help, But Will the Crunch Affect Online’, it seems marketing folk are making the shift to online in readiness for what may be a more difficult year ahead.