Social media, I would say, is a confluence of technology, interaction and networking through words, pictures, videos and audios. It is used for a whole lot of different things on the web.
Social media marketing (SMM) can be best described as a method of using social media to create awareness and credibility leading to profits for the business.

So what are the benefits of SMM?

•  A lot more online conversations about your brand
•  Quick turnaround in traffic when you hit a major social network
•  Partial or full replacement of traditional marketing at a fraction of the cost
•  Major impact on search engine rankings through huge quantities of backlinks
•  The power of recommendation is huge and one can reach influencers with SMM
•  Online advertising (read banner ads) blindness is increasing and SMM has the potential to send visitors to your website.