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SEO can be one of the most powerful tools at a communicator’s disposal—if it’s used correctly. Having an optimized website will drive valuable free traffic that can be converted into leads, advocates, fans and customers. But SEO can work against a site too, making poorly optimized destinations all but disappear. One of the bedrocks of a competent SEO strategy is having the right metrics in place. But with the fluid nature of Google’s algorithm changes, metrics have to be consistently monitored. Before the work of monitoring and adjusting an SEO strategy can begin, a baseline needs to be established.

According to Facebook-owned Instagram, the new tools provide an easy—and free—way to get recognized as a business on Instagram and, most importantly, to get insights about customers. Audience insights can be gleaned without leaving the app. Well-performing posts can then be promoted as ads, again, within the app.

In the pursuit of harmony and minimizing conflict, people will often go along with the consensus of the group even if they have an alternative idea, or in more extreme cases, think the group’s idea is a bad one. Thus, even without any explicit repression, the opinions of the minority—or even the less-vocal majority—are not heard or taken into account. This is the problem that the term “groupthink” was coined in 1952 to address—”a perennial failing of mankind,” as coiner William H. Whyte, Jr. put it.

We asked TrendKite, a Texas-based media tracker, to run an analysis of media and social mentions, key messages and headlines to see if Chipotle’s plan to change the conversation worked. The data, generated exclusively for PR News Pro, could also determine how long a crisis can linger in the media. The stock market, however, has a quick way to calculate this: Chipotle shares are down nearly 50% during the past year.

As PR and communications practitioners we often emphasize communications skills, including writing, when hiring junior staffers. Communications competency obviously is critical, but how much thought do we give to other business skills? A new survey for PR News exploring some of these questions suggests skills in addition to communications for young PR pros to hone.

We asked communicators who spoke during PR News’ Big 4 Social Media Summit, Aug. 9-10, San Francisco, to provide insights about how brand communicators can develop a strategy for Facebook content that will enable it to appear in your audience’s news feeds. Ever budget-conscious, we also asked about making videos for Facebook Live without breaking the bank.

This story has two parts and both are germane to communicators. Facebook said it’s working against ad-blocking software, making it more difficult for users to block ads. Basically Facebook says it will be making it more difficult for ad-blocking software to decide what is an ad and what is not. The social media giant also has updated its ad preferences features, allowing people to tell Facebook not to send them ads from particular companies.

I decided to fill out the AMEC Framework using a PR campaign I recently helped a client measure. I used the responses that members of its PR team gave me at our first meeting. After a long day of checking the taxonomy and making sure I put everything in the right boxes. I have the following tips for you.

Since taking office in 2009, President Obama has included ten personal letters from the public in his daily briefs. This week, the White House announced a new direct line to the president: a Facebook messenger account, from which some of these personal letters will be selected. The automated account, answered by a bot, is the first government account to make use of the service, and presents a powerful new tool for communicators to listen to their audiences, collect information, and project a receptive and modern personality for their brands.

In today’s content-driven marketplace, airtime is pretty competitive in just about any venue and even more so on the web. From my experience, the process of developing a position of credibility for a particular market space comes down to three key factors. Once you have your three factors down and you have a clear picture of why you are different, what you specialize in and how you will produce content to support your “smartness,” it’s time to execute.