SMS is a good way to keep in touch with friends in western countries, but when it comes to making business e-mail is the preferred way to go according to a the study "ExactTarget 2008 Channel Preference Survey".
The survey reveals that nearly two out of three of Internet users prefers e-mail in order to write to colleagues, SMS hanging far behind.
Morgan Stewart, director of research and strategy at ExactTarget, said in a statement that "there is a clear trend within younger demographics toward communication via text messaging and social networks, but those preferred personal communication channels were not necessarily also preferred channels for marketing".
Asked to judge the acceptability of various channels for marketing purposes on a scale of 1 to 5, respondents gave direct mail an average score of 3.9, followed by e-mail at 3.7. All other channels averaged under 3. Nearly two-thirds of those surveyed said they had made a purchase because of a marketing message received through e-mail.
The ExactTarget results agreed with a recent survey of Internet users in North America by Habeas and Ipsos. About two-thirds of respondents to that survey said they preferred e-mail when dealing with businesses, and about as many said they expected to continue to prefer e-mail in five years.
Read an interesting summary of the study at eMarketer.com.