Clara Shih --creator of the business networking tool Faceconnector , and author of The Facebook Era -- is a true believer in social media's potential to transform how we do business. She spoke earlier this month at Hewlett Packard headquarters about social media as a "transformative technology," and how businesses might use Facebook, Twitter, and other popular social media tools to connect with the right customers, partners, and potential employees. In this excerpt, she covers the marketing potential in social media: Watch Shih's full address here .