ORLANDO, Fla. - With social media use on the rise, some retailers might wonder if e-mail is still an effective marketing tool, the Orlando Sentinel reports. However, merchants from stores to restaurants are finding that e-mails continue to bring in the customers.

Take Ricky Ly, a 25-year-old who uses social media nearly constantly. But he favors e-mail when it comes to deals from restaurants and stores. "With e-mail, it's more strong for a call to action," said Ly. "They give you a coupon, and you do something about it."

Retailers are using e-mails to connect customers with deals and special events. For example, Bahama Breeze??s "Island Insider" e-newsletters invite members to exclusive parties, while LongHorn Steakhouse also offers an e-club to diners.

Sonny??s Real Pit Bar-B-Q has its own e-club, "R U Smokin??," and will be seeking to garner 10,000 new members this year. Smokey Bones Bar & Fire Grill wants to sign up 15,000 new members to its e-newsletter in 2011.

Meanwhile, Tina??s Wine Market recently started its own e-newsletter and has decided to focus more on that marketing tool than social media. "It definitely drives traffic," said Tim Varan, who owns the small chain. "E-mail is far and away our best avenue."

Despite a recent survey by Nielsen Co. that showed American Internet time in 2010 was spent on e-mail 28 percent less than in 2009, while social networks saw a 43 percent jump during the same time period. But Econsultancy found that 42 percent of customers preferred e-mailed information, compared with 3 percent who wanted it via social media sites.