When I served as an interactive media buyer and planner at an advertising agency, one of our clients wanted to target the gay and lesbian community. I developed the plan and started working with media sales people. They were unlike others media reps I worked with in the past. Their commitment to their audience was exceptional to the point of being willing to lose business if it did not meet their criteria.

Minutes into my conversation I found myself answering specific questions. “In what ways does your client support the gay and lesbian community,” and “what events have they attended that support this community last year.” These media sales reps communicated that their media was for sale contingent on my client’s sincere commitment to their audience. The reps knew their audience would not do business with those who astroturfed. And if their audience didn’t do business, they would have unhappy clients.

The same standards should be applied to social media. Some clients are not a fit for social media. They do not welcome collaboration or transparency, and their expectations are better suited for purchased media rather than earned media.

Then there are companies who are deeply aligned with social media. Shopping at WholeFoods yesterday I noticed two stickers on the door promoting their Twitter and Facebook presence. The importance of these stickers transcended a simple promotional significance. They are symbolic suggesting, “if you Tweet or FB us we’ll listen.” And although the meaning is different, I think they should be treated with as much significance as a business featuring a pink triangle.

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