UK firms using IT contractors to incorporate social media profiles into their IT networks should be aware it has other uses than marketing, it has been claimed.

Social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook can also provide a valuable source of negative feedback, according to the director of SEO Junkies Di Forster, speaking at Internet World.

This public criticism of service or product can help customers to identify problems and improve and strengthen their business, Ms Forster says.

"You've got a tool which monitors certain keywords on Twitter or on a fan page on Facebook … you can actually use that to your advantage by taking that [criticism] back in-house and turning it around, spinning it to a positive," she added.

According to a rercent survey by ExactTarget, 42 per cent of US online consumers check social networking sites once a day, while of this group, 69 per cent are a fan of a brand or company.