What is the value of social media? It’s been a question pondered at great length in white papers, blog posts, studies, reports and so on. Coca-Cola Senior Manger of Marketing Strategy and Insights Eric Schmidt added fuel to the fire when AdAge covered a study that found that online buzz had no measurable impact on short-term sales for Coca-Cola. Coke, a brand with more Facebook fans than any other brand, naturally caught marketers’ attention.

Coca-Cola’s Senior VP of Integrated Marketing Communications and Capabilities Wendy Clark had a few words to say defending Coke’s integration of social media. Clark explained social media still plays a critical part of an overarching effort made up of multiple types of media. She explained, “… no single medium is as strong as the combination of media.”

This was a case of Coca-Cola not being on the same page internally in terms of the study’s findings and what they represent, but that’s almost beside the point. There’s clearly a healthy appetite out there for defining the value of social media. Stories like this one allow too many businesses to feel like they’re in good company for not understanding what they’re getting out of their social media efforts.

It’s time to figure it out.