"RSS" stands for "Really Simple Syndication." In a nutshell, it is the technology that is enabling blogs, podcasts, and all major online news rooms. RSS is rapidly displacing email and Web sites as the preferred method for distributing online content.

However, although the syndication technology may indeed be "simple," highly effective RSS deployments are not. Success hinges on a careful re thinking of content channels and marketing strategies.

To get RSS right the first time, companies need to understand the basic paradigm shift it represents, and how they should integrate it with overall corporate marketing and PR communications.

The RSS Paradigm Shift

RSS is a relatively straightforward technology that completely changes the model for distributing content online:

  • RSS is anonymous—subscribers receive your content without ever having to provide their name, email address, or other contact information.

  •  RSS is highly focused—it's easy and essential to create individualized content channels that let the consumers choose which content is of interest to them.

  •  RSS is instantaneous—new content is instantly delivered to the subscriber's RSS reader, without the need to "surf" or manually check Web sites for updates.

  • RSS is trusted—it goes straight to the subscriber, without having to run the gauntlet of corporate or ISP email/spam filters. RSS content feeds always reach subscribers.

  • RSS is "expert"—search engines (correctly) recognize RSS feeds as highly focused content and therefore give it a higher "expert info" weighting that boosts search rankings and overall credibility.

All of these characteristics are fundamentally superior to the current models of content distribution based on Web sites and email. However, without a fundamentally new strategic plan to capitalize on RSS's strengths, many companies will spin their wheels and squander any "first mover" advantage they may have had.

RSS Offers True Choices

Marketing guru Seth Godin frequently points out that "people simply want what they want"—in the exact form they want it, and exactly when they want it. Pleasing people is all about giving them an easier and faster to way to satisfy their desires. When something pleases them, they want more of it. And when they come back for more, they tell others along the way.

RSS creates an entirely new channel for consumers who want specific content but don't want to exchange their contact information for it. They subscribe (paid or free) to receive your content anonymously, according to their own preferences.

RSS equips companies with the power to segment content—written, audio or video—for any audience. This means no more cramming all manner of content into a single newsletter to please the masses. Instead, you can now create individualized content channels that let consumers choose what's of interest to them.

Content channels might include...

  • News
  • Product development
  • Sale items
  • Sales team programs
  • Corporate or employee blogs
  • Training
  • Departmental updates
  • Articles
  • Case studies
  • Research
  • Anything else applicable to your business

This deceptively simple shift in how content is organized and distributed promotes subscriber loyalty and interaction. You'll see the positive results in whatever metric you use—readership, listenership, or viewership.

No Barriers to RSS

As a marketer, relying on consumers to come back and check your site regularly for new content is an increasingly risky proposition. With the availability of search engines, desktop widgets, and RSS feeds, fewer and fewer consumers are willing to spend hours surfing the Web for information.

Likewise, an increasingly dying practice is relying on the spam-battered email inbox as the sole repository of key information. For example, if it's important for journalists to see your information, does it really make sense to expect them to create a folder for your specific information? Not likely.

RSS feeds offer the ultimate "opt-in" model of receiving content: Consumers can easily and immediately control their secure subscription (free or paid) to information.

Unlike email, consumers receive information through an RSS feed while remaining completely anonymous. Nothing—not even an email address—needs to be submitted to receive information via an RSS feed. There is no "request to unsubscribe" step, as in email. All the consumer needs is an RSS reader, most of which are freely available.

Once a user subscribes, previously published information becomes immediately accessible and new content is delivered as soon as it is posted. With Web-based RSS readers, that content also doesn't pile-up on the consumer's hard drive. Plus, email servers are bypassed, so the many frustrating problems associated with lost emails or spam filtering are completely eliminated.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

James Clark and Jason Cormier are cofounders of Room 214 (www.Room214.com), a Boulder, Colorado, search marketing and social media agency.