Online networking and social media are being hyped for B2B as well as B2C sales. It will happen, but not immediately. Purchasing managers at Boeing are not 19-year-olds, addicted to Facebook (Another decade and they will be in that role, though: God help us). A more fundamental issue is whether business buyers and their salespeople would naturally be in the same networks.
For a well-reasoned discussion of why the social media era for B2B may be a while in coming, as well as links to proponents of the connected age, see Dave Stein’s Blog:
http://davesteinsblog.wordpress.com/2009/01/28/social-media-in-b2b-sales-is-the-time-right/
I think that having social media could potentially help when it comes to networking. Sites like facebook give people much easier access to businesses and other professionals in their field they normally may not meet.