Social media refers to the use of web based and mobile technologies to curve intercommunication into a correlative dialogue. Social media can be collectively defined as a bundle of different breed of online media.
“It connects people across globe and share information just on single click”
They encourage voting, feedbacks, comments and sharing of information. For businesses it represents a marketing opportunity that leaves behind the traditional middle man and through that those companies can communicate directly without any mediator. This is why nearly every business on planet is connected each other through some or the other social networking sites like facebook, twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube etc. This helps companies to expand their business and can be in touch professionally. Social media services allow and open to participation in feedback and comments from anybody who is interested. There are rarely any barrier to accessing and making use of content. Social media introduce simple ways of communication between organizations, communities, and individuals. It dims the line between media and audience. Social media is an interrelationship with others sharing common approaches, interests and ambitions through regular interaction which helps in leveraging online tools that promotes current and future prospects and dominates the target market.

At this time, there are basically seven kinds of social media
1. Social networks:
These sites allow people to build personal web pages and then connect with
Friends to share content and communicate. The biggest social networks are -
MySpace, Facebook, Twitter and bebo.

2. Blogs:
Blog is a type of website or part of website. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video.

3. Wikis:
It is a website or a webpage that is user friendly means it allows user to create or edit any number of interlinked web pages.

4. Podcasts:
Podcasts are no more different then webcast, it is just like a show that is broadcast over a web and is broken up in different parts or episodes.

5. Forums:
It is just like a message board which is a online discussion site where people can hold conversation in the form of posted messages.

6. Content communities:
Communities which organize and share particular kinds of content. The most popular
Content communities tend to form around photos (flickr), bookmarked links (del.icio.us) and videos (YouTube).

7. Micro blogging:
Micro blogging is a broadcast medium in the form of blogging. Where the content is typically smaller such as short sentences, individual images, direct video links.

Advantages of Using Social Media


Now a days social media have taken an exclusive part in marketing mix in many of the businesses. It is best among all to reach directly to client and customer. The dominance of social media like blogs, facebook, YouTube, twitter actually has innumerable profit to the companies and also they are drastically overtaking the traditional media formats like email campaigns, TV ads, and brochures.
• Social media platforms are free to use, in contradiction traditional media are exclusively expensive especially for small scale companies.

• Social media tools are unlimitedly accessible to everyone; on other hand traditional media actually requires lots of money and a ultimate media network channel.

• Social media is easily understandable, which actually does not require good command over IT, but a computer and good speed internet connection is enough.

• Social media tools have a global reach, with free of cost work transactions.

• A social media platform gives a good opportunity to build up relations with customers with anytime interaction, through which companies can give best customer service by taking their feedbacks and reviews regarding the service used.