There is no doubt in this day and age that if a company is not involved in social media they are definitely missing the train on a lot of potential business. The fact that millions of people are walking around with smart phones, communicating via facebook, twitter and other social networks only scratches the surface of how many people you can attract if your company is involved in this wonderful high tech way of marketing.

Today I received a tweet about Earls Restaurant launching a facebook application called Earls Treats where a facebook user can purchase an online gift certificate for any of their facebook friends and send it directly to their account inbox. Once received all the recipient needs to do is bring the Earls Treat ID number either by certificate printout or text message to his or her favourite Earls Restaurant to enjoy their treat. 

I'd like to congratulate Earls on utilizing social media to better their business and also better their customers experience. With an estimated 200 million people using facebook it is obvious that Earls knows where to go to increase sales and spread word about their amazing restaurant.