I heard an interesting story from a coworker recently. The story was about an insurance agent. It goes like this:

The agent — let’s call him Willy — was signing people up for his brand of insurance during an company’s open enrollment period. Only that’s not entirely accurate. He was supposed to be signing people up, but even though he had posted flyers and sent emails asking people to come visit him in the conference room on the 18th floor, no one came.

And that was a problem for Willy. See, Willy is a very good salesman. He closes an insane percentage of people he talks to. He’s funny, affable, outgoing — everything you could want an insurance agent to be. But if Willy isn’t talking to people, he isn’t selling policies. And if he isn’t selling policies, he isn’t making money.

Willy was in trouble.

This story got me thinking about something else I heard recently (and forgive me, but I forget where): We are built to be social things. We are at our best when we interact face-to-face. Jokes are funnier in person. Stories are sadder. Compliments are more sincere.

But even though we are hard-wired — or “created”, if you prefer — to be social beings, face-to-face interaction isn’t always possible or practical. So then what do we do?

It seems to me that this is the void that social media fills. Not permanently, of course, but as a temporary fix, or as a means to facilitate face-to-face social interaction. Social media is a temporary replacement for having an in-person conversation, when the alternative is not connecting with anyone at all.

As marketers, we replace in-person interaction with lots of things. Emails could just as easily be handshakes. Direct mailings could be a cup of coffee. Banner ads could be lunch on me. We market to people because while face-to-face interaction is more effective, most times wider spread communication is more efficient.

But that’s the thing. Everything in marketing is either social or a replacement for social activity. And social media is just an online — and admittedly lacking — manifestation of our nature as social creatures.

More specifically, what social media represents is a way for Willy to do his job. His Twitter account is a means for him to set up conference rooms all over the world. It’s a surrogate for knocking on doors and shaking hands. Not a replacement by any means — Willy will probably be less effective on Twitter than he is in real life. But in terms of output per gain, there is the potential for Willy to be just as successful. More successful, certainly, than he was in the conference room on the 18th floor.

The end of the story? Well, everyone felt bad for Willy and bought lots of insurance from him. That part may or may not be true. But what’s a story without a happy ending?