And while companies still rely heavily on organic search and email as their main forms of advertising and communication, they’re missing out on an opportunity to embrace one of the oldest and most powerful forms of advertising there is – word of mouth.

When you break it down, that’s all Facebook and Twitter are; places where people get together to talk, among other things, about products and services they dislike and recommend those products and services they do.

For those sharp, forward thinking companies who have embraced social media as a means of building long term relationships; by improving customer awareness, customer service and on time delivery, to name a few, are in the process of building fantastic “social media credibility” or “street cred.” for themselves and will be duly rewarded, in time, for their efforts.

But if you still don’t see the point of Facebook or Twitter right now consider this; it makes good business sense to build expertise and presence while social media is still young and both consumers and businesses are still in the process of building their networks.

Remember how you used to feel about email and SEO? A pain to get used to but a fantastic tool once you understand it’s power and potential. This is not dissimilar to that.

And the great thing is, it’s a lot easier and quicker to make a name on Twitter and Facebook right now. This won’t be the case in five years time.