The influence of social networking websites and the like on our society is indisputable.  We are without a doubt living in the age of facebook, orkut, twitter, blogger and many more. All these innovative means of social communication spark off new trends, for the world is for once talking more than ever before, what with all the walls, shouts, scrap books and tweets. We are talking about school, work place, family get-togethers, our latest shopping trips, picnics and literally everything under the sun. And all of this, at such a huge scale.

It is the wide spread reach of social media that has led to it being identified and acknowledged as an efficient marketing tool and thus has emerged the field of Social Media Marketing.

Social Media Marketing is here to stay. The benefits of this new tool of marketing are many. To name a few, it is a passive form of advertisement relying mostly on word of mouth publicity. Companies and marketers are no longer accused of shameless propagation because the strong foundations of social media marketing are constituted by third party advertisers- the customers. It is the sheer magic of an unbiased positive opinion that catapults a company to the pinnacle of success sitting on pillars of trustworthiness, honesty and quality services or products.

Marketing gurus have realized and appreciated that third party advertising is the best ever because it leaves no questions unanswered, nor a fragment of doubt lingering in the community’s minds. It is exactly what the people of the modern world trust and hold sacred.

Thanks to Social media, the masses now know exactly what they are about to invest in and if there are any better choices available, they are well aware of the same too. The ghost of “bad choices past” is long slain and buried.

This technique puts companies and organizations at a special advantage. Marketers can now target specific audience more accurately than ever before. Social Media Marketing encourages healthy communication between producers and consumers, helping the business analysts understand market trends and requirements better. Also, if a certain service or product is not satisfactory, the interaction fostered by social media puts the companies in a unique place to nip the problem in its bud. Competitors are now constantly on their toes because word travels fast with a Facebook wall and a tweet or two.

While Social Media Marketing has immense potential in ways as stated above and more, like all things man made and otherwise, it has its own disadvantages. History abounds in examples of successful slandering campaigns against companies and organizations by dissatisfied scheming individuals or even competitors, reducing the former to rubble.

Companies and Organizations around the world are vying for the perfect media projection to enhance their credibility and reputation. This has opened up a host of opportunities even in the job market. Social media experts, business analysts, market trends researchers, public relations experts and statisticians, to name a few, are the human gold much in demand.

Social Media Marketing, although tremendously exciting, innovative and potentially very creative, is a tool to be used carefully. It provides for an extremely efficient advertising given its wide reach and dependability along with its ability to target the correct audience easily. On one hand, it benefits customers and marketers alike, and on the other, it can also harm both if not used with discretion.

Verdict just in that Social media marketing can be made to work the way you want it to but only if you’ve mastered its nuances.