Is Social Media Going To Kill Email?

By Abinaya Harish

The phenomenal rise of social media has created a wave of excitement in the marketing industry. It has never been as easy to share information online and to connect with like-minded individuals as it is today. Social networks such as LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter are changing the way we as individuals, and as businesses, communicate. There are 2 key questions that we are facing with:

How to incorporate these new mediums into an effective marketing strategy? Will B2B social media communications replace email marketing?

The answer is: yes, email isn’t going anywhere yet. Social and email can comfortably co-exist. Here are 4 reasons social media isn’t going to kill email:

1. Email is the preferred communication medium in business. Confidentiality and security are 2 very crucial and sensitive business matters. Can you imagine sending an internal financial statement via Facebook or LinkedIn?

2. You need an email address to connect to social networks. Email has been the common denominator for account creation and identification in all online social networks. It’s virtually impossible to create an online profile without providing an email address. Email is still a default means of access to your online accounts and it looks like it is going to stay that way for a long time.

3. Email is social too. One of the most popular ways to share content with friends or family is to send a link via email. Here we see a true synergy between social networks and email, where we find interesting content, and then share it with those closest to us. It’s true that social media has reinvented the concept of ‘sharing’, but the path a message takes is long and complex. And chances are high that somewhere along the line, email plays a role.

4. Mobile and email work well together. Emailing is a dominant activity on mobile devices, and the trend is increasing. For every hour spent on a mobile device, an

average of 25 minutes is spent on email. This habit will become more pronounced as mobile usage increases, both business and personal.