Back when the Internet wasn’t widely used yet, advertisers primarily used TV, newspapers and magazines to inform all people of their latest products and services. If you think of any reputable brands today, you will recall that they have made a lot of advertisements – creative and informative ads – that have helped make their names big. Anyone who thinks about how important these ads are may say that their purpose is to get more and more new customers or clients. Advertisers, however, do it not just to get new customers but to keep those that they already have.
The same thing is still true today. With the aid of the Internet, information spreads faster provided that the source (web site) is search engine optimized – that is, its content has relevant keywords. While site optimization is a sure way to make a web site visible to Internet users, the question that advertisers seek to answer is this: how can we keep our visitors posted?
Is it by adding new features on a web site? Yes, that helps. It gives a sense of excitement to visitors, and thus may keep them going back to it. Is it by refreshing old contents? That will absolutely help, too. It’s important in search engine optimization of web sites. However, the best way to keep visitors informed of the latest is by providing them with updates directly through RSS Feeds.
What is an RSS Feed?
Really Simple Syndication (RSS) is a way used by web sites and bloggers to send new information to their visitors who have subscribed to their RSS Feeds. An RSS Feed contains the title of the content, a brief description of it and a link. It is especially useful to blogs and other sites (like news sites) that are regularly updated. Unlike e-mail subscriptions, RSS Feeds are received on time; so, subscribers get new information right away when the feed is ready. Subscribers can receive completely informative updates without having to go back to any site of interest to them – a convenient way for them to stay informed. Instead of going back to the sites they’ve visited, they just wait for those sites to send them the updates.
What can RSS Feeds have?
Audio and video files catch the attention of Internet users fast, and RSS Feeds can have them as enclosures. In addition, RSS Feeds are much better when they have images in the content or in the description. Brands are easily recognized through images, so an image will not only improve the appearance of a feed, but establish a brand name.
How do site visitors receive RSS Feeds?
To receive RSS Feeds, subscribers need to use RSS Feed Readers, which are also called Aggregators. When visitors see the RSS button on a web site, they simply have to click on it to receive feeds on their aggregators. Sometimes, they still have to copy the URL of the feed and paste it to their aggregators. Visitors can subscribe to as many different feeds as they want and see them all in the same place. Moreover, if you’ve ever asked yourself if spam will always be a problem, the answer is no. RSS feeds are spam-free. You can completely focus on reading the feeds you received, even if they are in vast quantities, without getting distracted by spam.
There are many different kinds of aggregators (My Yahoo, My MSN, Google Reader, Bloglines, etc.), and it’s up to the subscribers to do some research on them, to know which will exactly meet their needs.
Can RSS feed help improve SEO?
Some people who are not subscribed directly to your RSS feeds can still receive your feeds if they’ve subscribed to search engines like Google Search. In other words, RSS Feeds can be used to get new customers. It is important, therefore, that your feeds still follow SEO guidelines on writing content titles, descriptions, and etc. RSS feeds that are thorough and rich in keywords are preferable to summaries SEO-wise. The good side of sending summaries with a link to the site, on the other hand, is that it offers an option to the readers as to whether they wish to continue reading the content or not.
Whether it’s B2C or B2B market, getting new customers is one thing and keeping them interested in you is another. If an enterprise can do both, it is sure to make it big. RSS Feeds can help any kind of business do both.
