The pace of evolution in public relations and marketing communications is enough to make your Facebook all-a’twitter.

First there was mail, then the fax, then email (actually, for us like many publicists, the handshake and sit-down lunch at some South Florida restaurant predate them all, but we’re talking specifically about media distribution and outlets here…).

Now, with electronic newsletters, social media, blogs, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube, the ability to get content distributed to the masses comes literally as fast as the click of a link.

If you know which links to click.

And knowing comes with experience, trial-and-error and a taste for the exploring realms unknown. The evolution of marketing communications in the digital age is an exercise in media Darwinism. Not only is this the Evolution of Species, but it’s survival of the fittest.

Do you bank on blogging to establish your expertise in your specific market? Should you invest time and effort in Facebook or amassing followers on Twitter? Should you create a YouTube channel for yourself or your business? Should you pursue an amalgam of all of these – and more?

The truth is, even among such fast-paced change as social media, success comes from knowing one’s limits, or at least how to moderate the pace of change. At Boardroom Communications, for example, we’ve been working in social media since around 2006 (even earlier, if you include consulting on and the creation of client Websites). In successive order, we’ve confidently steered our clients to blogs, Facebook, Twitter and other new media realms.

“Confidently” because success in social media isn’t about touching your toe to the water and proclaiming one’s self an expert. It’s about wading in yourself, getting a feel for the surroundings, sampling the tools, exploring with a trial-and-error mentality – on your own time, before encouraging clients or your internal marketing team to take that path.

Today, every new client prospect meeting includes a thorough discussion of how social media can help promote their business. Every proposal that leaves our office includes an equally thorough dissertation of how we envision the implementation of social media to position the prospective client as a high-profile player in his or her marketplace.

Of course, any discussion or proposal that includes the implementation of social media is founded on the basic, time-tested principles of traditional marketing communications and public relations. This is not an either-or proposition. No company exploring social media should do so at the expense of traditional marketing outreach.

Our Take: Evolution is synonymous with Growth. As a small business marketer, improve what marketing has worked for you, while cautiously exploring new realms. Embrace what works; abandon what fails (and some social media may fail, depending on how much time you’re willing to commit to it or whether your clients or customers are using that media in kind).

This invariably will lead to where your clients or customers are going, and keep your brand centrally located on their horizon.