Essentially, social media is word-of-mouth marketing, or relationship marketing. Word spreads much faster in an online environment than in offline (face-to-face) environments.  When people build their personal brand, they are able to connect with others, and build rapport with them, which results in a relationship that leads to business.

So why should companies use social media, as well as the people in their organization?  Here are some astonishing statistics that demonstrate our reasoning:

A growing populous are using social media, and are now telling companies that they should use social media as well.  Consumers want to be able to interact with companies on a more genuine level than ever before.  Listen to what they are saying, and don’t let yourself (or your company) become a Mr. Nobody.  Now is the time to share your voice, and join the conversation.

The 2008 Cone Business in Social Media Study states:

• Almost 60% of Americans interact with companies on a social media web site
• 93% of Americans surveyed believe that a company should have a presence in social media
• 85% of Americans surveyed believe that a company should not only be present, but also interact with its consumers via social media
• 56% of American consumers feel both a stronger connection with, and better served by companies when they can interact with them in a social media environment

Because it is relatively new, social media is on the whole used incorrectly, so here are some tips:

1) The purpose of social media sites is to connect with other people and build relationships.  With the internet, you now have the ability to connect with people on a broader, worldwide level.

2) Building relationships is essential to building business, because it’s based on trust. When consumers trust a company, the company can drive business to the next level.

3) Social media is a marketing channel, not a sales channel. You cannot sell in a marketing channel.  If you try to sell on social media sites, people will be tune you out.

The biggest advance since the Industrial Revolution is upon us, and it’s giving the consumer a global voice. Social media has given the people a platform on which to be heard, and they now have the opportunity to speak, and be heard around the world. Experts of Social Media has defined social media as ‘online platforms for interaction, networking and relationship building.  It enables people to create and communicate like never before.’

Utilizing social media sites such as Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn, and FlickR, people can brand themselves according to who they are, their personality, their hobbies, their likes and dislikes, what they do for a living. They can communicate with friends and family, meet new people around the world, post home videos, and family pictures.

People were once defined by the position they held in a company, rather than as a unique individual, and individuals became Mr. Nobody’s — faces and names without depth or personality.  Social media brands a person for who they are, for their own merit, and allows them to be real, as a person, not just a position in a company.

Having recently become more mainstream, social media has enabled instant, worldwide connections, and that has placed the power back into the hands of the people.  We, as the people, have a stronger presence than ever before.  Collectively, the people now have a louder voice than all the news stations combined, louder than celebrities, louder than politicians.

The power in our voices is changing the way companies do business.  People will no longer allow companies to produce low quality products, provide poor customer service, or take advantage of the consumer, for people now have a global platform with which to voice their dissatisfaction.  The voice quickly becomes viral, and people, instantly, all over the world will hear about the consumer’s dissatisfaction, potentially driving a loss of business.

Companies need to be more conscious of their consumers. They need to be genuine, to display integrity. Because the same thing happens when consumers have a positive experience: they voice their satisfaction.

In 2006, the total marketing spend on social media was $350 million, the forecast spend, according to Aaron Barnes, for 2011 is more than $2.5 billion.

The 2008 Cone Business in Social Media Study says almost 60% of Americans interact with companies on a social media web site, 25% interact more than once per week. 93% of Americans believe a company should have a presence in social media, while an overwhelming 85% believe a company should not only be present but also interact with its consumers via social media. 56% of American consumers feel both a stronger connection with and better served by companies when they can interact with them in a social media environment.

Check out this video by Socialnomics which answers the question is social media a fad or is social media the biggest shift since the Industrial Revolution!