One day, I opened my inbox to a message from a client.
The subject line? “Is email even worth it anymore?”
Inside, he wrote:
“Hey Kartik, I was watching a big YouTuber yesterday, and he said email marketing and search engines are dead. He claimed social media is the only platform where I can actually get clients and leads. What do you think?”
I smiled. Because I’ve heard this exact concern dozens of times before. And every time, my answer is the same: email marketing isn’t dead — in fact, it’s stronger than ever.
Let’s look at the data for a second:
📩 User Growth – Email has 4.48 billion global users in 2024, projected to reach 4.89 billion by 2027 (Moosend).
🏢 Company Adoption – 81% of companies actively use email in their marketing strategy (Social Firm).
🎯 Effectiveness – Email is the #1 marketing channel for 44% of marketers, ahead of social media and paid search (Shopify).
💰 Budget Trends – 37% of brands are increasing their email budgets (Uplers), with analysts projecting an 11–16% CAGR for years to come (Roots Analysis). Why? Because email delivers one of the highest ROIs in marketing — often $36+ for every $1 spent (DemandSage).
Now, does that mean social media is useless? Not at all.
Social media is incredible for getting discovered by new audiences. As of January 2025:
🌍 5.24 billion people use social media worldwide — that’s 63.9% of the global population. (Backlinko)
👥 The average user actively engages on 6.83 different platforms monthly. (Backlinko)
💼 And 38.3% of internet users rely on social media for work purposes (Backlinko).
Imagine waking up tomorrow and Instagram shuts down. What happens to your 20k followers? Now imagine your 5,000 email subscribers—you can still reach them instantly. That’s the difference between email and social.
So here’s the truth I always tell my clients: email marketing and social media aren’t enemies — they’re teammates. Social media helps you get found, but email helps you build trust, nurture relationships, and turn followers into loyal customers.
👉 And here’s the exciting part: in this article, I’m not just going to compare email marketing and social media. I’ll also share a smart prospecting strategy I personally use — a method that has helped my clients skyrocket their growth. Stick with me, because once you see how it works, you’ll never look at email and social the same way again.
Reach & Control — Who Really Owns the Audience?
Here’s the uncomfortable truth: on social media, your followers don’t really belong to you.
They belong to the algorithm gods.
You could have 100,000 followers today, but one feed update tomorrow and suddenly only 10% see your posts. Ouch. That’s like building your business on rented land — the landlord can change the rules anytime. And it’s not just my experience saying this — studies show the average organic reach on Facebook is now under 5% for most pages.
Email flips the script. When someone subscribes, they’re saying: “Yes, I want to hear from you directly.” You own that relationship. You can export your list, switch platforms, and keep connecting without permission from an algorithm. That’s why 81% of companies use email as a core part of their marketing strategy (Social Firm).
As Erik Harbison puts it:
“If social media is the cocktail party, email marketing is the meet-up for coffee.”
And he’s right. Social is loud and crowded — great for introductions. But email is the quiet coffee chat where trust and sales actually happen.
I’ve seen this first-hand. One client lost 80% of Facebook reach overnight after an update. Brutal. But their email list kept revenue alive — because unlike social, it was theirs to control. And that’s a pattern I see over and over again in this industry: businesses that build lists survive algorithm storms.
👉 Takeaway: Social media = borrowed attention. Email = owned attention. One is fragile, the other is your long-term safety net.
ROI & Cost-Effectiveness
Let’s be real: at the end of the day, marketing is judged by one thing — return on investment.
And here’s where email absolutely crushes social.
📈 Email marketing delivers an average ROI of $36–$68 for every $1 spent (Litmus, Omnisend, Forbes).
💸 Social media? ROI is far less predictable — especially with ad costs rising year after year. What works today can flop tomorrow if bidding wars drive CPMs higher.
Even McKinsey made it clear:
“Email is 40× more effective at acquiring new customers than Facebook or Twitter.”
Whenever I talk about ROI with clients, I always bring up two very different campaigns I’ve seen firsthand.
📧 Client A: Email Campaign (Black Friday)
Last year, one of my e-commerce clients was nervous about competing with big brands during Black Friday. Instead of pouring money into ads,
we doubled down on email. With just $500 invested (mostly in copywriting and design), we sent a simple but targeted email sequence. The result? Over $18,000 in sales in under two weeks. That’s a 36× return—and the best part, the list is still there to use again.
📱 Client B: Instagram Ads
On the other hand, another client insisted on testing Instagram ads for a product launch. We ran a $1,000 campaign, and while the creatives performed decently,
the campaign only generated $2,000 in sales. Sure, that’s technically profit… but once the ads stopped, the sales vanished. Zero long-term leverage.
From these two experiences, I learned (and now always tell clients): when budgets are tight, email is predictable money. Social media ads can give a quick sugar rush, but email keeps the cash flow steady.
👉 Takeaway: If ROI matters to you — and let’s be real, it always does — email is where the real returns happen.
Engagement & Conversions
Let’s be real: visibility is nice, but conversions pay the bills.
And here’s where email marketing leaves social media in the dust.
📧 The average email open rate is around 21–25% with a click-through rate of ~3% (Campaign Monitor).
📱 Compare that to Facebook organic reach at just 5.2% (Hootsuite) and CTR often below 1%.
💳 Even more telling: 4.24% of email traffic converts into purchases, versus only 0.59% from social media (OptinMonster).
Now, numbers are great, but let me give you two real stories from my own client work:
📧 Client A: Email Campaign (Consulting Offer)
One client of mine had a mid-ticket consulting package. For two months, they were posting daily on LinkedIn — thought leadership posts, carousels, engagement pods, the whole playbook. Lots of likes and comments… but zero actual sales.
We decided to test email. We sent a single, well-crafted email to a small list of just 2,500 subscribers. Within 72 hours, that one email generated 6 booked calls and 3 closed deals — worth more than two months of LinkedIn posting combined.
📱 Client B: Social Media Grind
Another client was convinced Instagram Reels were the key. They posted consistently for 60 days straight, building up decent reach. But after all that work, the results boiled down to vanity metrics: followers and likes, but barely any paying customers.
👉 Takeaway: Social builds awareness, but email drives decisions. When you need people to actually click, buy, or book a call — email beats social every single time.
Personalization & Trust
At the end of the day, marketing isn’t just about blasting messages — it’s about making people feel understood.
And this is where email shines.
📧 Personalized emails see a 26% higher open rate when using segmentation and behavior-based triggers (Omnisend).
Even experts keep stressing this:
James O’Toole: “The internet is about building relationships instead of just selling.”
HubSpot: Personalized CTAs convert 202% better than generic ones (HubSpot).
McKinsey: Companies that excel at personalization generate 40% more revenue from those activities than their peers (McKinsey).
📱 Meanwhile, social media feeds are broad and noisy — one-size-fits-all posts competing against memes, politics, and cat videos.
Even experts agree. As James O’Toole once said:
“The internet is about building relationships instead of just selling.”
And relationships thrive on personalization.
Here’s what I’ve seen firsthand:
We segmented one client’s list into three groups — cold leads, warm prospects, and past buyers. Each group received slightly different messaging. The result? Open rates jumped 24% overnight, and conversions doubled, simply because people felt like the email spoke directly to them.
On the flip side, another client poured weeks into a “viral” Instagram content plan. The posts got engagement — likes, shares, comments — but when we looked at actual pipeline revenue? Almost zero. Why? Because the messaging was broad, trying to please everyone, and ended up converting no one.
👉 Takeaway: Emails feel like a 1:1 conversation in someone’s inbox. Social posts? More like shouting into a crowded room and hoping the right person hears you.
Analytics & Measurability
If you can’t measure it, you can’t improve it. And this is where email wipes the floor with social.
📧 Email gives you clarity — dashboards that show opens, clicks, conversions, and even exact revenue attribution.
📱 Social mostly gives you noise — likes, shares, and impressions that look good on a slide deck but rarely tie directly to sales.
The experts agree:
HubSpot: “87% of marketers say email is critical to their business success.”
Campaign Monitor: “Email marketing generates 174% more conversions than social media.”
Forrester: “Email remains the most measurable channel, with ROI that can be attributed down to the campaign level.”
From my own experience, the difference is night and day:
One SaaS client of mine was struggling to figure out which offers were resonating. Using email analytics, we tested subject lines, CTAs, and pricing tiers over three campaigns. Within a month, we had clear data showing one pricing model outperformed others by 3× — leading to a permanent revenue uplift.
Another client ran a viral social campaign that racked up 50,000+ views and thousands of likes. Sounds amazing, right? But when we checked the backend, actual sign-ups were negligible. They couldn’t tie the campaign to real sales. The buzz was there, but the bottom line wasn’t moving.
👉 Takeaway: Email analytics = a microscope on your revenue engine. Social analytics = vanity metrics that make you feel good, but rarely pay the bills.
Longevity & Future-Proofing
Let’s get real: social media content fades fast. If you’re not in the right place at the right moment, it’s gone—without a trace. Meanwhile, email lingers in the inbox, ready to act when the moment is right.
Twitter/X: Average tweet lifespan is just 15–20 minutes before it’s buried (TodayMade).
Instagram: Posts see the majority of engagement in the first 48 hours (Levitate Media).
TikTok: Videos typically peak in a few days, though occasional resurges happen if the algorithm favors them (Measure Studio).
Email: Messages remain in the inbox until the user reads, clicks, or deletes — no algorithm burying (Campaign Monitor).
My Perspective
Here’s what I’ve seen: social posts come and go. I’ve made posts, watched them get a few likes, and then—just hours later—they’re gone, buried under new content. It feels like running on a treadmill… always moving but not really going anywhere.
Email works in a completely different way.
About two years ago, I set up a small email series for one of my offers. I wrote it once and let it run. Even today, I still get sales from that same email sequence. Imagine that—something I wrote years ago is still bringing results, without me touching it again.
That’s when I realized: social posts are like fireworks. They look great for a moment, but then they disappear. Email is more like planting a tree. You plant it once, and it keeps giving value for years.
👉 That’s why I always trust email more. It keeps working for you, even when you’re not working.
Reader Takeaway
Social media = short-term buzz. Posts vanish fast, forcing you into an endless content treadmill.
Email = evergreen visibility. Your message stays until action is taken, and automations can pay off for years.
If you care about future-proofing your marketing, email isn’t just an option — it’s the foundation.
My Secret Strategy — Why I Never Choose Between Social & Email
I’ll let you in on a secret…
When I first started, I used to think I had to pick one channel — either go all-in on social media or stick with email.
But two years ago, I ran a campaign that completely changed my mind. It was one of those campaigns where everything clicked. I didn’t just rely on social or email — I used both, together. And the results? Honestly, it blew me away. That was the turning point where I realized the smartest move is to never choose one, but to integrate both.
Here’s how I think about it 👇
Social Media: My Attention Machine
Social media is where I catch people’s eyes.
It’s like standing on a stage in front of a huge crowd — exciting, noisy, and fast. You get attention, you get engagement, but… it doesn’t last.
A tweet disappears in 15 minutes.
An Instagram post peaks in about 2 days.
TikTok? If the algorithm doesn’t love you, you’re gone in hours.
That’s exactly what I noticed in that campaign — I got a big spike of attention, but it dropped just as fast.
That’s why I don’t stop at social.
Email: My Conversion Engine
Email is where the real connection happens.
It’s private. It’s personal. It’s one-on-one.
When I send an email, it doesn’t vanish into thin air. It waits in the inbox — until my reader opens it, reads it, and decides to take action. That’s where sales, trust, and long-term relationships are built.
And honestly? This is my favorite part. Email feels like sitting down for a coffee chat — not shouting in a noisy street.
In that 2-year-old campaign, I saw it clearly. The buzz started on social, but the sales happened through email. Every real conversion came from the inbox, not the timeline.
The Secret Sauce: Combining Them
Now, here’s where things get powerful.
That campaign taught me one thing: when I combine both — using social to grab attention and email to build trust — the results multiply.
And it’s not just me. McKinsey found that businesses that integrate channels see:
+23% more conversions
+37% better customer retention
+41% more revenue growth
That’s not a small lift. That’s a business-changing difference.
My Step-by-Step Playbook (from that campaign)
Here’s exactly how I ran it — my personal system:
Grab attention on social
I posted short tips, behind-the-scenes stories, and quick insights. Nothing too polished — just real, scroll-stopping content.Pull people into my email list
I offered a simple freebie (a checklist). The key was making the next step super clear: “Download this, and I’ll send you more useful tips.”Nurture & sell via email
Once people joined my list, that’s where I went deeper. I shared personal stories, lessons, even a few failures. Over time, people trusted me. When I recommended something, they were ready to act.
The campaign crushed it. And the best part? The system was simple.
Why I’ll Never Choose One
Here’s my honest takeaway:
Social starts the conversation.
Email finishes it.
If you rely only on social, you’ll get attention but no depth.
If you rely only on email, you’ll miss out on reaching fresh audiences.
That’s why I never separate them. It’s my little secret — and now, it’s yours too.
Real-World Case Studies (and Why They Prove My Point)
Case #1: Fitness Brand — Social Died, Email Saved Them
One of my favorite examples is a fitness brand I studied.
For years, they were riding high on Instagram. Tons of likes, reels going viral — everything looked great… until the algorithm changed. Overnight, their reach dropped like a rock.
But here’s the crazy part: their business didn’t collapse.
Why? Because they had spent years building their email list.
Even while IG was failing, their list kept generating $20,000 in monthly recurring revenue.
👉 That’s the safety net email gives you.
Case #2: E-commerce Store — From 0 to $50k With Email
Another example: a small e-commerce shop.
They weren’t huge, just scrappy founders trying to grow without a massive ad budget.
Instead of dumping everything into paid ads, they focused on building a 10,000-subscriber email list in six months (using freebies + simple lead magnets).
Here’s the kicker: those subscribers ended up generating $50,000 in revenue — all from email.
Not ads. Not social. Email.
👉 That’s the power of owning your audience.
Case #3: My Agency — Social Gets Attention, Email Gets Revenue
Now let me share something personal.
When I first started my agency, I made the same mistake as most — I thought social media would pay the bills. I was wrong.
Social was great for attention. I could get people curious, get them to follow, even start a few conversations. But the real money didn’t come from likes or DMs.
It came when I pulled people into my email list.
That’s where I nurtured them, shared my strategies, and built trust. And when I finally made an offer, they were ready.
Today, my formula is simple:
Social = list-building
Email = revenue
And that’s why, no matter what, I’ll never choose one over the other.
Which One Should You Choose in 2025?
I get asked this question all the time:
“Should I focus on email or social?”
And honestly, the answer depends on where you are right now in your journey.
1. If You’re Just Starting Out
Forget trying to be everywhere at once.
Your #1 job is to build your email list first.
Why? Because that’s the foundation you own.
Think of it this way: your email list is your home, while social media is someone else’s rented apartment. You can decorate it, invite people in, but the landlord (aka the algorithm) can kick you out anytime.
👉 Start with email. Then use social as a tool to promote your list (share your freebie, newsletter, or lead magnet).
2. If You Already Have a Social Following
Congrats — you’ve done the hard part: grabbing attention.
But here’s the truth nobody tells you… followers don’t equal customers.
Your next step is to move those followers into your email list.
That’s where you turn attention into trust — and trust into revenue.
👉 Don’t just post content. Post content that funnels people toward your list.
3. If You’re Scaling Your Business
At this stage, it’s not about “email vs social.”
It’s about using both together in an omni-channel system.
Here’s what that looks like:
Social grabs attention.
Email nurtures and sells.
Both keep feeding each other.
And according to McKinsey, businesses that integrate channels see:
+23% conversions
+37% retention
+41% revenue growth
👉 That’s why smart businesses don’t pick one. They play the full game.
FAQs
1. Is email marketing better than social media in 2025?
Yes — but with context.
Email still delivers the highest ROI (most studies say $36–$68 back for every $1 spent). That’s because your list is an asset you own, not something controlled by an algorithm.
But here’s the twist: social media is where people first discover you. Think of it as the “top of the funnel.” Social grabs attention, email closes the deal.
2. Can email replace social media?
Not really. Both have their place.
Email is unbeatable for sales, nurturing, and building long-term trust. Social is unbeatable for reach, discovery, and brand personality.
The smartest move in 2025 is integration. Use social to get people curious, then guide them into your email list where the real relationship (and revenue) happens.
3. What has higher ROI: email or social?
Email wins every time.
On average, marketers see $36–$68 ROI for every $1 spent on email. Social rarely comes close because of ad costs, declining reach, and constant platform changes.
That’s why my agency always builds email-first systems for clients — because that’s where the money comes from.
4. Should small businesses start with email or social?
Start with email — always.
Your email list is your home base. Even if you only have 50–100 people, that’s 50–100 people you can reach anytime without worrying about algorithms.
Then, use social as a feeder system to keep growing that list. I did the same two years ago with a campaign that started small — and it turned into one of the best-performing growth systems I’ve ever run.
5. How do email and social work together?
Here’s the simple framework I use inside my agency:
Social attracts → you post, go viral, get attention.
Email converts → you nurture those leads and make sales.
Both retain → the mix of fun social + deep email trust keeps people loyal.
That’s why the smartest businesses in 2025 don’t ask “email or social?” They ask: “How can I make them work together?”
