I published a piece today at Search Engine Guide entitled "5 Ways Small Business Can Benefit From Social Media/Networking Sites" which lists five ways small to medium sized businesses (SMBs) are benefiting from the social media/networking space. Sites like Facebook, Flickr, LinkedIn, YouTube and many others are providing numerous opportunities for SMBs to brand themselves, build link popularity, attract traffic to their sites, interact with consumers and network with others in their industry.

A few excerpts:

In the same manner that it is important for companies to make sure they have all the various domain names that relate to their brand (.com, .net. .org, etc.), it is now becoming important for companies to make sure they secure their brand on social media sites - at least the popular ones.

... just like millions of people are using search engines everyday, millions of people are using social media and networking sites as well. Creative marketers will discover ways to tap into these users in order to drive additional traffic to their web sites.

Having the ability to interact with consumers is not just about dealing with bad mojo but also taking advantage of social media to bring further attention to products, services, company news or even put a personal face on the company. I reveal personal things all the time about myself and my company and have received numerous compliments from clients stating that they feel more comfortable doing business with us due to the fact that they now know something personal about us.