Tracking the volume is only one important metric for marketers executing today.. tracking percentages is potentially an important indicator for tomorrow. Obviously in the case of social media, that potential is rapidly being fulfilled.

With all the hype surrounding social media though, sometimes it is useful to be reminded where the volume is :)

I see your point - fixed!

I think we will see both - it doesn't seem to be a priority for social networks today to build out their email-like offerings. It is only a matter of time though.

could not agree more - this makes it very tough to continue with just a batch and blast approach. Unless of course, everyone on your list loves the same content!

For those using Google Apps instead of gmail - the priority inbox feature is due to roll out over the next few weeks..

hmm.. intense debate failed to load for some reason after I logged in, losing my original reply but here was the basics..

less crashing and faster I cant help you with.. though with about 800 contacts mine doesnt crash and isn't slow compared to outlook at all suggesting there might be some other underlying issue.

For flexibility on fields - you can edit the card template and add fields for skype (i also added twitter) and that adds fields for all contacts.

I ended up sticking with apple address book and managed all my contacts through google apps - I sync that on my iphone and also with my address book so having my exchange account empty is no big deal for me. I still miss outlook contacts though. Maybe with Office 2011..

I am having trouble answering your question without knowing what you are looking for - agreed the address book app is weak but what features do you actually want?

this sounds like a good move to me :)

great work guys - ID has come on leaps and bounds in the last few months

wow - I have seen a lot of posts around book recommendations - almost always I scan the recommendations with a "blah" - almost all these have been added to me amazon wish list - cheers for the recommendations! :)