The Tendo View

Although the rumors of email’s demise may be exaggerated, there’s no denying that the use of email is on the decline as people spend more time on social sites. (I can attest to this with the changes in my own personal communications habits). And though email currently remains the most popular media among marketers, social media is running a very close second.

For email to remain a relevant marketing tool, it needs to become “social” as well. Whereas email was merely a means to delivering a message, email is now a way to interact with and engage your customers. For example, an email from Starbucks promoting its new VIA Ready Brew invites customers to tell the company what they think of the new product—in writing, with a photo, or on video.

In 2008, 40 percent of email participants used social sites to collect product-related information and recommendations. There’s a natural intersection occurring between email and social media. If you have a Facebook page, Twitter account, etc., then you should be promoting those in your emails. Interestingly, only about half of online retailers are including links to their social media presences in their email campaigns.

So, it’s no longer enough to simply include a “forward this message” link in your email messages. You need to make them shareable. If you consider that the average social networker has between 150 and 200 friends, then combining email and social sharing means your message is reaching a much wider audience and resulting in increased click-throughs.