The massive growth and popularity of Facebook, the social networking phenomenon, has propelled its founder, 23-year-old Mark Zuckerberg, onto the exclusive Forbes' super-rich list.

With a fortune of $1.5bn, Zuckerberg is probably the youngest ever self-made billionaire.

Amid all the talk and speculation about the economic downturn and consequent tightening of marketing budgets, digital emerges as the sphere where opportunities remain to promote your business, engage existing customers and attract new ones—all with relatively low costs.

Whole new set of challenges 

One thing will be certain: winners and losers will emerge over the coming period, defined by how they chose to adapt to a tightening market and their increasingly demanding customers.

The web certainly offers expanding opportunities for marketers to communicate with wide and diverse audiences, but it also throws up a whole new set of new challenges as consumers' expectations and values shift.

Success stories such as Facebook and YouTube demonstrate our fascination with social networking and self-expression online.

These sites are variably lauded and derided for their social effects, but the fact that a multitude of companies try to emulate them demonstrates the significant mark they've made on the web.

Yet it is clear that emulation of hyped-up Web 2.0 tools is not enough. And neither can marketing in itself be the saving grace for a business.

Trendy online gadgets 

Many businesses still struggle to provide products and services that consumers really value and getting excited by. Adding trendy online gadgets is no substitute for genuine innovation in products and services.

It is clear that consumers value the net for providing choice, cutting out unnecessary middlemen and making brands more transparent, but businesses still have a long way to go in satisfying our needs and expectations, especially during a period of economic uncertainly.

More and more retail is carried out online. A recent survey by Prospectiv showed that while 84 per cent of individuals polled tend to shop online, hunting out bargains in search of the best deal, 74 per cent still wanted more communication like newsletters and emails outlining promotions and special offers.

Customer habits are changing 

A recent poll of 1,000 consumers carried out by InQuira showed that only 44 per cent believed information on company websites met their needs.

Realising that customer habits are changing is vital, especially in an economic downturn, when budgets are likely to tighten.

The internet is now the frontline of business, but if the craving for convenience, utility and value, on the part of the customer, is not properly met, they are likely to lose patience and can easily look elsewhere.

While the internet provides new opportunities for marketing, it is also a more level playing field and so adds an extra element of competition.

Mistakes and weaknesses are more apparent when comparing and contrasting businesses is easier than ever for consumers.

Those businesses that get it right, however, will draw considerable gains from being able to market, target and engage customers online.

Integrate offline and online marketing efforts 

Unlike for traditional outlets like television and newspapers, the efficacy of digital media is more straightforward to measure and so marketing spend becomes easier to quantify and justify against the bottom-line.

This is not to say that bigger brands should stop spending money on traditional marketing. Highly visible campaigns are useful in reminding the public of their presence.

The competitive edge, however, will be with those who successfully manage to integrate their offline and online marketing efforts.

Put simply: customers will increasingly want greater evidence of value before parting with their cash. Convincing them to do so can only partly be achieved through intelligent marketing.