CANNOT BE USED FOR: You can't directly generate a lead, close a deal or make a sale using social media. No one will give you money through social media and the minute you start advertising, it's no longer social media – it's bad advertising.
ABUSES AND MISUSES: Spamming and Retweeting and saying things like “I just wrote a great blog post – you should read it” or “We've got an amazing deal at XXX – you should check it out”. People who do business on social media should be sent to Leper Colonies. I also know lots of people who no longer work at their jobs. They just Tweet and Facebook and work on their LinkedIN resume to find someone who will pay them a higher salary not to work.
BIGGEST MYTHS: The biggest myth is that posting business offers or a sales pitch is a good strategy. If I tell you that Woot <http://www.woot.com> is offering a 32″ HDTV for $399 today, then its a quality recommendation from a friend who has Credibility because I have nothing to gain. If you Friend someone else who starts spamming you about business opportunities, then it just pisses you off and makes you want to sneak into their bedroom at night and club them 'til they stop breathing.
Social Media is like the Roman Roads – A form of engineering that improved the connection of the civilized world. A tool which can be leveraged as a means, not an end.
Soon-to-be Wizard of Ads partner Manley Miller