Facebook Tests Reply by Email, But Will There Be Ads?

Reply by email. Seems simple enough, and it would make things a world easier for those users that would prefer to remotely interact with their web content. Facebook is currently testing just this feature, enabling you to respond to various site activity with remote actions to be carried out via email. That means a Facebook email about a comment left on one of your photos can be replied to in order to add your additional two cents t the comment thread.

As Mashable mentions, the feature shows Facebook’s willingness to let go of some page views in order to make things easier on the consumer end. Seeing as Facebook has made several changes to its privacy settings that are considered upsetting to many pundits and advocacy groups, appealing directly to consumers’ needs is a smart move for Facebook.

Already implemented for mobile SMS use, the ability to directly respond to different Facebook alerts through indirect methods is something that will likely become standard across most web-based social networks. Even enabling remote email interaction gives nearly any web-based service the ability to provide a useful mobile front, as many consumers have phones with access to email.

Several Twitter apps have also taken on similar functionality, making it even easier for you to interact with that Twitter app as well as your Twitter account without ever having to login. The result is an expedient method of social interaction that appeals to consumers, many of which have multiple accounts across the social web.

Granting actions in the realm of immediacy actually encourages interaction, as users don’t have to remember to go back and check something out, or wait to be redirected to the site. Just reply to the email, and you’re good to go. In all, it makes social network interaction far less time-consuming, and those new to total social network immersion will be far less overwhelmed with all the activity that’s actually going on.

The move also puts Facebook at the center of another hub for your online social networking activity, even if it’s not taking place directly on the site. Being among the first to offer such features from an integrated standpoint gives Facebook a one-up over Twitter, which still relies on third party apps to offer such functionality. Twitter, however, does have a far more robust SMS integration for remote interaction with your account, if you’re willing to develop the skill set associated with this type of mobile networking.

And Facebook may not even have to give up much of its advertising with the loss of page views. The move towards making your preferred email client the actual hub of all your web-based and mobile activity means that these email clients will have to incorporate advertising further. Google has already begun testing for dynamic email messaging, which would be a permission-based way of enabling brands to offer a far more interative email messaging campaign. Emails from Facebook could essentially act as web pages, complete with ads and additional visual context necessary for involved remote interaction.