Every year for the past decade, some internet writer looking to make a splash writes why he or she thinks email is dead. Whether it’s RSS, instant messaging, or the smartphone, each new application seems to spell the end of email.
But the predictions haven’t come true. And they probably won’t. Why not?
Think about what email is and why, according to Salesforce, there are more than 3 billion email accounts in the world. Email:
- Is a written record that can be created and stored easily.
- Is universal—nearly everyone has at least one email address.
- Is not restricted to a single platform or device.
- Is not instantaneous and doesn’t have to interrupt your life—people don’t expect you to respond immediately, so it’s easy to file emails away for later or ignore them completely.
- Can handle short and long messages equally well.
- Can include attachments, images, and links with one or two clicks.
- Is flexible enough to be formal or informal, depending on the situation.
No other tool can easily provide all that. These are just a few of the reasons why email is such an effective marketing tool. Most people don’t necessarily like email, but the world runs on it.
Image credit: Tango! Desktop Project