Firms have faith in Facebook

NEARLY nine in ten businesses in the Lothians now want to make social networking on sites like Facebook and Twitter part of their marketing.

A study of firms by Midlothian and East Lothian Chamber of Commerce found that 87 per cent believed that the sites, as well as the likes of Linkedin, E-academy and Flickr, were thought of as part of their social networking mix.

They said they used the site to contact business clients and prospective customers.

Chamber of Commerce manager Laura Socha said: "Social networking is a relatively recent phenomenon in the world of business-to-business communications but it is astonishing how quickly it has taken off and been accepted as an extra marketing tool."

She said every option needs to be explored in the current climate.