Really Simple Syndication (RSS) may be simple to those who are technically oriented, but for most business owners, PR and marketing people, it's not simple at all. RSS is being touted as the best online marketing tool today, yet most marketers don't know how to implement the technology or how to integrate it into their marketing and PR strategy.
PRESSfeed, a content syndication service developed specifically for non-technical marketing and PR folk, aims to change all that by offering a really simple system anyone who can type in Word can use successfully. They offer a free feed for 90 days and a free newsreader to encourages companies to get their feet wet.
RSS is the technology that allows you to improve your online marketing by distributing and syndicating your content. Predictions from analysts like Jupiter Research say RSS use will be fully mainstream by the end of 2006.
People are rapidly adopting RSS because it gives them control over the vast inflow of messages and information. And it's not only web savvy users who are moving to RSS. USAToday.com and NYTimes.com show double-digit increases in their RSS subscriptions every month.
Still, concerns often voiced are "Who is reading RSS feeds?" and "How would we get our customers and web visitors to read our feed, if we had one?"
"RSS is a technology that has the potential of overcoming many of the internet marketing challenges we are facing today and becoming a strong, if not preferred, content delivery vehicle." says Rok Hrastnik, co-author of The Power of Online Syndication in PR and Unleash the Marketing Power of RSS.
"RSS allows marketers to easily get their content delivered to end-users, without it being stopped by any spam filters or similar problems along the way. And it can also be delivered to search engines, specialized RSS directories and special content aggregation sites."
By offering content already on your site in an RSS feed you reach a wider audience and increase your online visibility through
RSS marketing. Offering your visitors a free newsreader, along with regular useful information in an RSS feed, gives you an edge. It marks you as a forward thinking and helpful company. And it drives qualified traffic back to your website.
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Sally Falkow is founder and co developer of PRESSfeed, an RSS service for marketing and PR use. She is co-author of The Power of Online Syndication in Public Relations. http://www.press-feed.com