RELAX. That's the advice Paul Gillin of AdAge has for marketers panicked by the prospect of managing social media. It's true that blogger reception has infected the mainstream media, but there is no need to panic.

There's nothing new about bottom-up publicity. Toyota achieved its reputation for quality three decades ago not because it said its cars were good but because thousands of customers told Consumer Reports its cars were good. The only difference today is that we don't need mediators or researchers. People can speak for themselves, and the conversations that result are richer and more diverse than anything you can find in a survey.

I encourage you to read an interesting study from Fox Interactive Media that was released yesterday examining both the growth and marketing power of online social networks.

Some key stats:

1. More than 70% of Americans 15-34 are actively using social networks online, and the research showed social networking sites taking a strong foothold in the primetime hours.
2. 31% of online users claim they spend more time on the Web in general after starting to use a social network.
3. Brands such as adidas and Electronic Arts attributed more than 70% of their marketing return on investment to the 'Momentum Effect' that is created by social networks.

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