What is RSS - For Marketers

RSS is a technology that has the potential of overcoming many of the internet marketing challenges we are facing today and becoming a preferred tool to get 100% of your content delivered to your subscribers, as well as a tool to help you achieve top position search engine rankings.

The simple RSS explanation from the marketing point of view is that RSS is a simple to use publishing tool for marketers and publisher. It allows you to get your content delivered to end-users, without the fear of spam filters stoping your messages, and to other "content consumers" (other websites, search engines and so on).

RSS gets your content delivered, period. And it helps you increase your search engine rankings and drives new traffic to your sites.

But some marketers are still afraid that not enough internet users are using RSS feeds. Think again ?

While achieving not more than marginal penetration, its usage is growing with astounding speed.

Actually, according to a report from the Pew Internet & American Life Project, 5% (6 million) Americans online consume news and information through RSS aggregators. So the market is already out there!

>> BUT WHAT ARE RSS FEEDS?

RSS content is delivered through RSS feeds --- simple files structured in a specific way.

These files include some basic information about the RSS feed (such as RSS feed title, logo, description, URL etc.) and the actual content you want to deliver to your readers.

These content items are individual stories or articles (usually just descriptions of articles actually published on the internet publisher's web site), presented in a linear list.

But RSS is not only about text. You can easily use it to deliver audio content, video content and even PowerPoint presentations and PDF files.

>> WHAT DO YOU NEED TO SUBSCRIBE TO RSS FEEDS?

The point of RSS feeds is to get people to subscribe to them, so that they can constantly receive fresh information from you.

It's just like subscribing to e-mail newsletters, only that there's no e-mail involved ? and consequently no spam or spam filters.

But to subscribe to your RSS feeds, your visitors need a special tool, called an RSS aggregator.

RSS aggregators are special tools that can take an RSS feed and display it to the end-user. They come in many different forms and flavors, but the most popular are desktop applications and web readers.

In the case of desktop RSS aggregators (example: http://www.awasu.com), end-users need to download them to their computers and install them there. Web-based RSS aggregators (example: http://www.bloglines.com) on the other hand are websites where users can create their own accounts and then use those websites to view RSS content directly from their Web browsers.

After installing an RSS aggregator or registering at a web-based RSS aggregator web service, the user needs to proactively add the link to your RSS feed in to the aggregator to view your content.

Every time you update your RSS feed by adding new content items to the RSS file, the user is notified of that through his RSS aggregator, making the content immediately available to him, without it having to face any SPAM filters and other barricades on the way.

And, for the best part, most RSS aggregators are free to use, so there's really no excuse to not get started today. And by the way ? so are quite a few RSS publishing solutions!

Yes, RSS is the free way of getting your content delivered every time.

Copyright 2005 Rok Hrastnik

Rok Hrastnik is the author of »Unleash the Marketing & Publishing Power of RSS«, acclaimed as the best and most comprehensive guide to RSS for marketers by leading RSS experts. Discover the true marketing power of RSS: http://rss.marketingstudies.net/index.html ?src=sa5

---

E-Mail Accounts For Your Home Based Business

As a Work at Home Business you need to have... Read More

Classified Ads - What Works & What Doesn?t

Do classified ads really work? Should you include an email... Read More

10-Essential Points When Considering Pop-Under Advertising

I have been running tests on the use of Pop-Unders... Read More

New Medium, New Rules

Life is thought to have begun on Earth somewhere around... Read More

Is Your Web Site Ready For Its Visitors?

There's a great interest among the Internet entrepreneurs about how... Read More

Are You A Web Wannabe?

Web marketers see it all of the time.Companies of every... Read More

Yanik Silver Asked Some Questions That Peaked My Curiosity

It's so simple! I wish I'd discovered it a year... Read More

The Most Profitable Product In The World You Can Ever Sell!

Thank goodness, the most profitable product in the world you... Read More

What the Heck Does Vincent van Gogh Have To Do With Internet Marketing?

Nothing and Everything!Tucked discreetly away on my modest marketing website... Read More

Book Yourself Solid Key Number 2: Choose Your Ideal Clients

The Book Yourself Solid article series continues withKey Number 2:... Read More

URLs Everywhere

Your URL (www) should be everywhere and more. I know... Read More

5 Steps to Achieving Success in Marketing

1 Planning:When starting your marketing strategy, it is wise to... Read More

Increase Online Sales: 10 Extraordinary Strategies To Generate More Profits

Do you want to generate more profits from your online... Read More

SEO 101... These Tags Really Do Matter

In search of the coveted search engine traffic? Yes? Then... Read More

Is There A Future For Spam?

Will you always be buried underneath a mountain of spam?... Read More

Kindergarten Dropout Makes A Fortune In Internet Marketing

Hyperboles abound in Internet Marketing. Myth has its own area... Read More

Online Sales: 10 Incredible Online Sales Tactics To Make Your Sales Soar

Are you interested in making your online sales soar like... Read More

Using Autoresponders In Your Online Business

Autoresponders return previously stored messages or sets of messages in... Read More

Online Business Success: Its All Within Your Grasp

Despite any failures or slow starts you may be experiencing... Read More

Internet Marketing and Your Old Age

Everybody wants to learn how to make money on the... Read More

6 Ways to Guarantee Your Website Will Fail (and how to fix them)

1. Your website is an electronic brochure 2. Can't be... Read More

To All Internet Marketers - How To Get My Business

More and more people are realizing that the Internet offers... Read More

Top 10 Internet Marketing Tips For Your Home Based Business

This article can determine the success or failure of your... Read More

I Don?t Smoke, But I Love a Good .sig!

.sig, or "Dot Sig" as it's affectionately known, stands for... Read More

3 Ways In Which You Can Kick Butt With Low Cost Advertising

If you are new to the Internet Marketing arena, or... Read More