Social Media is the Power Tool

Social media is only one of the many tools that companies can use to reach their audiences, but, in my opinion, it is the Power Tool, allowing each company to humanize its brand.

For a pros vs. cons approach to social media read the blog: E-Marketing for Sensible Folk

Companies need to adapt to this new way of communication. You could create brand awareness and establish trust among younger people, who can find you and talk back to you 24/7. After trust is established, there is only one more step and they become your customers.

Your presence allows the people that are really interested in your products to find you. You get basically the same results as if you would have an expensive campaign of direct mailing and mass marketing, only at a much lower cost and with less frustration for the people that are not interested in your products. Plus you are able to get valuable information about the profile of your targeted customer.
The feedback that companies gain through social media comes pretty cheap, considering the more expensive alternatives (focus groups etc).

Many times, customers go directly to the online forums to get answers about products or services, which, for companies, translates into a reduction in expenses from a lower number of employees necessary to provide customer service.

Social media provides the opportunity for the top executives to have a direct relationship with the customers and get quick, updated and unbiased information about how the company is doing in the marketplace, which again reduces the need for expensive market research and internal memos.

There are companies out there that are not selling directly to consumers, they might be for non-profit, work for the government and so forth. Even these companies could take advantage of the social media ,in reaching out for talent. Their presence will provide the opportunity to find quality employees, match company's requirements with their needs and provide a quicker response to job inquiries, all of this while maintaining a modest recruiting budget.