If Social Media is not part of your 2011 Marketing and Advertising plan, you could be behind the times and missing one of the biggest opportunities to add to your sales mix.   Social media marketing succeeds for the sole reason that it is referral based marketing.   There is an implied trust level when 'friends' introduce others to the product and service vendors that they find appealling.  It is clearly another form of word of mouth.

Recent studies show that while less than 14% of people trust advertisements, more than 70% prefer consumer recommendations for purchase decisions. Social media allows users to interact with other network users to whom they are not otherwise directly connected.

The newest social networking services like Facebook, Linkedin and others can be valuable sales channels.  The trick is to know how to effectively apply them for your business.