The internet is getting bigger and growing faster very minute. One couldn’t have gauged 15 years ago that life would be so incomplete without the presence of technology. It is the epicenter of activity in the lives of a majority of the world’s population. Be it the preferred way of communication in the form of the email and online chatting, the source of entertainment, the fastest route to news from all around the world or be it online bidding and shopping – the internet is as much a part of our daily lives as a bar of soap. Its presence is indisputable, its place in our lives indispensable.

The internet has rubbed out the geographical boundaries, which one finds on maps, separating all countries and its men. No wonder there were speculations about it being nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize this year. One can buy things on-line from shops in or outside one’s own country.  The goods available on the internet are cheaper than the average market as the overheads in online stores are fewer and the savings are passed on the customer. A range of websites and reference sources make the internet an oversized encyclopedia where information on any topic is available at the click of the mouse. The chat rooms and messengers of various web portals have made communication much more simplified than ever. Social networking sites are the latest addition to the internet and have taken the concept of a virtual world to an entirely different plane.

Social networking sites like Facebook, Orkut, MySpace, You Tube and Twitter have taken the cyber world by storm. Starting from expressing one’s view to having one’s own little virtual world in the form of a farm or a restaurant and taking care of a virtual pet, these sites have a variety of options which have been never heard of. Social bookmarking or in simple words, sharing a link with someone makes information travel faster than ever before and makes the ‘word of mouse’ the most powerful tool when it comes to sharing information.  Imagine staying in touch with old friends and knowing what is going on in their lives even while living miles apart.

The internet has touched upon all aspects of life and marketing isn’t far behind at all. The social networking sites have initiated a new form of marketing in the form of social media marketing.  Social media networking involves the brands getting in touch with their target market using the medium of social media. It can be by opening a blog or an account in one of the leading social media sites and posting news and information about their new products and services.