When asked at the Web 2.0 Summit to detail Facebook’s new e-mail service announcement, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerburg clarified that they’re not trying to build an e-mail product, but rather, a “modern messaging system.”
He also detailed the main problem with e-mail. That e-mail has gotten much better about segregating SPAM, but not differentiating between e-mails from your friends and e-mails from services you subscribe to.
The best e-mail has been able to do so far, is order chronologically. But, in fact, that often helps hide important e-mails. Facebook is looking to prioritize your e-mail based on your social connection with the sender. This is something that will obviously both evolve over time, and be something that you can manually assist with.
Should this worry e-mail marketers? It changes the game, that’s for sure. Those who aren’t looking to build social capital, but simply be a blaring announcement should worry. Odds are, you’re not going to make it into Facebook’s “priority inbox.” Unless the individual “likes” you of course.