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Why You Need To Learn About RSS
You have most likely seen the RSS links popping up all over the internet. But do you know what it is and how it can help with your online marketing efforts? RSS stands for Really Simple Syndication, or Rich Site Summary. Syndication is republishing something from another source, like a webpage.
Have you subscribed to an RSS feed? undoubtedly you have seen the Buttons all over the internet. If you haven’t started using RSS You may be missing out on hundreds of new subscribers. RSS is an abbreviation for Rich Site Summary, or Really Simple Syndication, depending on who you ask.
An RSS feed is a way to publicize updates to your website. It could be the entire update including photos, or just a summary of the latest update. A RSS with a summary would allow users to skim through the update, and visit the website for full details. Usually a RSS feed includes the title of your update with a link to the original source.
Why should you learn the basics of RSS? Because, RSS has benefits to both the readers and the publishers
An RSS feed keeps your readers informed. Whatever your update is, a blog post, a new sale price on an item, new music, whatever it is subscribers are immediately updated. Many internet users look for the RSS feed to save time.
RSS can save valuable time and deliver a loyal following from busy internet users who receive the updates. By reading your RSS summary, the user can determine if the update is important to them without having to search your site to find the update.
If you are marketing online, you will reach a wider audience because people are more likely to subscribe to an RSS feed than they are to an email list. Users who utilize a RSS aggregator will be able to read your updates without their inbox overflowing.
While it may seem that the benefit of RSS is all on the user, your RSS feed can be used as a marketing tool. Subscribers to your RSS feed get the latest updates on your site delivered to them. This will focus your marketing to those who want to receive your message, and actually want your product. It also totally eliminates the possibility of your being accused of spamming.
RSS is still new, so using it exclusively may have some drawbacks. Some of your clientèle might want to receive email, or may not fully understand RSS. Also, some graphics and photos may not appear, but if this is how your customer wants to hear from you it is a good idea you make the option available to them.
Even taking the perceived drawbacks into account, a RSS feed will create more traffic. Most readers will want to get the entire update, so they will still visit the site.
How to use RSS for Internet Marketing.
Originally, RSS was intended for users who wanted to customize their homepage with links to their favorite sites, much like social bookmarking sites work. Applying internet marketing to the feed was an afterthought. Using a free service like FeedBurner, you can reach a much broader audience with your RSS feed than what you would have originally found.
Every day more people are using RSS. This innovation to the worldwide web and online marketing is becoming more widely used every day. If you are promoting a website, Blog, Forum, etc. incorporating an RSS feed is crucial to the success of your efforts. Once you get the basics down you will be able to benefit from publicizing your site through RSS.