swore I wasn't going to write about Facebook again this week. Then a Facebook ad started up with the name-calling again. It wasn't a bad name, or inaccurate, but such ads do have a knack for getting noticed.

The rapid growth of SEM management services, the ad networks and ad exchanges, and the development of various toolsets in the marketplace, point to the automation of much of the online media planning, buying and management process in the next two years. But in order for this to happen, we need to address some infrastructure concerns.

Virtually every advertiser is asking for it. They have all heard about examples of YouTube videos going "viral" and reaching millions of people practically overnight. They have read the stats that say modern consumers' top trusted source for information is "people like them," and that they don't trust advertising. So advertisers have quickly jumped on the bandwagon of "social media marketing." But doing social media marketing usually takes the form of brand pages on MySpace, Facebook fan pages, or YouTube channels of brand videos. Doing "social media marketing" right is a different story entirely.

Last week was like pea soup here in the suburbs of Boston. We had several days of the three H's: hazy, hot and humid. In other words, it goes from a palatable temperature to oppressive, unhealthy air. After work my son and I were visiting with my godson, who is 10. He was walking around in swim trunks, sitting close to the air conditioner register, clearly overheated. "Come on, we'll take you back to the house so you can swim," I said. "No, thanks, I'd rather just hang around and play my game on the computer," was his response

As a consumer, I've found that wireless carriers are among the most difficult companies to do business with. But as a marketer, their flops underscore live-or-die principles in how to win customers -- or how to make them hate you. My wireless carrier -- which I'll keep nameless -- recently made this abundantly clear.

Have you ever felt insulted by overzealous ad targeting? I've been hearing this come up more in conversation lately, often with people who aren't in the advertising or technology industries. One example was first mentioned to me by a female friend who saw an ad on the left side of Facebook that mentioned her age and suggested she was overweight (for the record: she's not). She was insulted enough that she actually had to close out of Facebook to escape the ad for a bit.

If ever there's been a media vehicle which was being overlooked, it's digital outdoor. I recently spent the better part of a week in New York City and was taking note of the array of beautiful digital displays that paper Times Square as well as the backs of bus shelters and kiosks throughout the city. If you live in the Bay Area and you drive 101 South or cross the Bay Bridge in either direction, you've seen the gorgeous outdoor boards that feature a rotating array of advertisers with timely messages that are exponentially more noticeable than the standard outdoor …

My article last week, "Social Media Demands A Reinvented Agency," has drawn out a great dialogue that the marketing and advertising industry needs to have, and I am really glad to be a part of it. The fact of the matter is that agencies and marketers alike agree that the "social" aspect of social media changes the dynamic of the entire marketing industry. The holy grail of marketing, word-of-mouth, is becoming more amplified, more obtainable and more measurable -- but brands still can't buy it. Brands have to earn endorsements by taking part in the conversation. Brands are looking to …

This may not be the best week to ask for reader responses, since many in the U.S. are taking an extended holiday weekend. However, something's been on my mind. My intention is to take a lot of recent conversations that have come up and throw them out to those of you responsible for the buying of digital media. It doesn't matter if you are an assistant planner/buyer, the head of a global media group or a brand marketer. I'm hoping to hear from you. So here goes....

By now, you know which "Sex and the City" character you are, along with which Disney princess, Victoria's Secret angel, Spice Girl, "L-Word" character, and Desperate Housewife. Yes, thanks to Facebook, psychological and philosophical mysteries are constantly unraveled, as mankind can finally log on, add an application, and solve that once unanswerable question: "Who am I?" Now, it's time to solve the question behind the question, the one that gets to the depths of your moral fiber: "Which Facebook app are you?" Take this simple quiz to find out....