Now days nearly everyone has a Twitter and/or Facebook account at least. And nearly every company has one. But what to post where and how to use the power of social networks?

How does social media influence or result in sales?  A helpful post on BarnRaisers summarizes several studies that show exactly that:

Facebook - “The top reasons people press the “Like” button on Facebook is to have a sales relationship with a brand - either to receive promotions & coupons (40%), get updates on upcoming sales (30%) and show their support for companies (39%).” – ExactTarget 2010.

Twitter - “For over 40% of the time people are on Twitter, we spend it learning about products and services, listening to what others have to say and giving opinions.  That explains why over 20% of the time we’re on Twitter, we’re ready and willing to buy directly off Twitter.” – Edison Research 2010.

Social Networks – “For every hour we spend on online, we spend the most amount of time on social networks, almost 15 minutes of every hour. Roughly half of the time (approx 6+ mins), we are seeking out products and services and looking to have a sales relationship with brands.” Nielsen 2010.

Here are some questions:

• How does information flow in my industry?
• Where do people get their information?
• How do consumers interact in my industry?
• Do they hang out in networks?
• What influences my customers?