The Canadian consulting firm that has grown to become North America's largest independent social media marketing group is about to get a little bigger.
Today, Toronto-based Social Media Group (SMG) is expected to announce it has signed a letter of intent to acquire Livingston Communications of Washington for an undisclosed amount of cash and stock.
The deal gives the two-year-old company further reach into the lucrative U.S. consulting market, as well as an American headquarters in Washington to go with its offices in both Toronto and Calgary.
SMG specializes in teaching companies to use Web 2.0 tools such as Facebook and YouTube to develop online relationships with customers rather than just throwing ads on Web pages.
"Together, our combined assets position our company as the largest independent and most-experienced social media firm globally," SMG founder and chief executive officer Maggie Fox said.
The acquisition comes one year after SMG first established itself as a major player in the burgeoning social media consulting industry when it was awarded an international contract by Ford Motor Co. to manage the car maker's online image.
The consulting firm will also acquire the Blog Potomac conference as well as the Buzz Bin blog of Livingston Communications CEO Geoff Livingston, which is often ranked as one of the top public relations blogs in the world by many Internet lists.
"It's clear that companies are desperate for qualified social media marketing and communications services creating an immediate opportunity to serve large enterprises," Mr. Livingston said.
