• by Loren McDonald , Op-Ed Contributor, May 22, 2008

Great first day at the Email Insider Summit! I think the general consensus was that the panel of students from Ball State Univ. was the highlight. But then marketers always lean forward and listen intently when customers speak on what they like and don't like.

For me the summary of the student panel and much of the discussion today was really simple. Email is not going away. It isn't dead, and won't be dead for a LONG time. What is changing with the Facebook generation is that the preferred communications they use to connect with friends is via text, IM or social networks such as Facebook. But as they enter the workforce or seek to communicate with businesses - the preferred communications channel is... email.

Humans are creatures of habit and are hard to get to change. Because the dominant way businesses communicate (internally and with customers) is via email - the post-college demographic is forced to adopt the existing paradigm. So while "Mary" may not be using Gmail to discuss the latest fashions and great restaurants (text, IM and FB most likely) - it doesn't mean she won't sign-up for emails from the Body Shop or Macys. But it also means that if your emails are obtrusive or not relevant - she may not stay around as long as her elder siblings or parents will.

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