If you own a business, chances are that you’ve heard the words "social media" repeated time and time again. So what does social media mean? And how can you use it to boost your business?

Social media refers to the group of web and mobile technologies that allow communication to turn into an open dialogue. Social media has essentially leveled the playing field and allowed customers, business owners, celebrities and average Joe’s to all weigh in on everything from products to news. Since so many people are in the conversation, it can actually be harmful to your business if you do not have a social media presence and a strategy to respond to any conversations that may impact your business’s reputation.

To get the most out of your social media experience, consider these top social media marketing tips:

• Concentrate on one or two social media sites that you can devote enough time to making worth your while. If you’re on every social media site, chances are that they are not getting the attention they need to actually produce results. If you think that your market consists of mainly Facebook users, develop and use a Facebook profile to attract customers and keep them interested in your business. If your market consists of Twitter users, maintain an active Twitter profile.

• Build a company blog. Company blogs make your business seem accessible and personal. Use your company blog to talk about product releases, changes to your business, and expert advice from you or your team of employees. A company blog is another way that your business’ personality can shine through on the web.

• Make finding your business on social media sites easy for customers. Place buttons on your website linking to your relevant social media sites so that connecting to your profiles is as simple as one mouse click. If you have a company blog, you can also make posts easily shareable by providing buttons to Twitter, Facebook, Digg, StumbleUpon, Google Plus, Linked In and other media sharing sites right on the post.

• Engage with your Fans, Followers and commenters. One of the best ways that you can seem interested and accessible to your customers is to communicate with them. Respond to comments and mentions on a timely basis and develop an ongoing conversation with the people that care about and support your business. A little positive communication can go a long way on social media sites.

• Encourage and entice your client base to publish good news stories, great experiences and success stories and reward them for it through discount coupons and VIP offers.

It’s important to understand that investing in social media is now essential for any business’s success and you should invest in it. If you do not have the time to do it yourself, then outsource it to a specialist who knows what they are doing.

Use these tips to get your business seen on the web and create a dynamic group of followers and fans that will help promote your products and services and ensure you respond to any negative feedback appropriately to ensure you protect your reputation.