How do you hear about currents events? Do you read the news in the paper or watch it on TV? Or, like many people, perhaps you get the news via social networks such as Facebook and Twitter.

Twitter and Facebook have become one of the leading sources for breaking news. Facebook “friends” update their status with current news, immediately spreading it to their network, which in turn spreads it to theirs, and soon the information becomes viral. One recent example of this phenomenon is that the actual raid on Osama Bin Laden’s compound was unknowingly tweeted live by a local in the area. In times of disaster, social media has prevailed when cell phone networks crashed or television crews cannot get through to the disaster site.

Since news stories are breaking via social media because it is current and very popular, businesses are learning to leverage the popularity of social media when responding to world disasters. They use social media to generate awareness about a certain cause and how their company is “doing their part” in order to reach a new market for their fundraising and charity efforts.

Here are a few ways in which leveraging the power of social media can make a big difference:

Generate awareness about a cause. During the Japanese earthquake and tsunami, there were 5,530 tweets per second at the peak, and 177 million tweets total that day. When such a high number of people are concerned and passionate about the same topic, companies take notice and become involved. This is a prime opportunity for a business to set up a charity- and what better way to reach their market than through social media, where all of the discussion is taking place? Businesses have used Facebook campaigns such as donating a dollar for every “like” or for every new Twitter follower. Companies can use their influence to benefit a cause and raise money for help.

Generate awareness about a company. Corporate giving benefits a charity or cause, but also generates awareness about the company. A good example of this is the Pepsi Refresh project, where Pepsi challenged people to impact their communities in a positive way. People voted online for the ideas they liked best, which drove traffic to the Pepsi website while showcasing innovative ideas to improve a community. People liked to be part of the voting process and helping benefit a good cause. What Pepsi gained was added traffic to their website and increased awareness about their company and product, all due to a simple online contest.

Reach a new market. Social Media is a great way for companies to reach a new market. This is exemplified during times of world disasters because everyone wants an easy way to help those in need. Companies can reach new markets by starting a fundraising campaign that instantly raises money using methods that people are already comfortable using in their everyday lives. For example, The Salvation Army and American Red Cross ran text message campaigns for the disaster in Japan, raising $68,000 and $1.6 million respectively through text message donations in response to an online tweet. Celebrities also chipped in and tweeted donation codes which reached millions of social media users who would not normally hear any news regarding the Salvation Army or Red Cross. The ease of cutting out the middleman when donating to a cause makes it easy to raise money while penetrating a new market.

Social Media provides a multitude of opportunities for fundraising, publicity, and reaching new markets. Every business can easily take advantage of the power of social media. It is free, easy, and available to everyone with Internet access. Consider these tips the next time your business is looking to help out the community.

Maggie Theisen is a Sourcing Specialist at Celarity Inc. She can be reached at maggie@celarity.com