Free Website Content - Innovative Business Use of RSS as
a Technology
RSS, or Really Simple Syndication, is a new
way to broadcast corporate news and structured information.
RSS offers a quick, easy corporate communication channel.
The RSS contents are published as a feed and the feed's
content keep customers, partners and journalists abreast
of corporate news and information. The RSS feeds are read
using a tool referred to as a news aggregator, or an RSS
reader. The aggregator periodically checks to see if the
RSS feed has been updated. As the feed is updated, new information
will automatically appear in the RSS reader.
While RSS was at one point only considered
to be a means to deliver news headlines, RSS has quickly
become a powerful medium to disseminate all kinds of information.
As traditional marketers are attempting to rein in content
delivery, measuring e-mail open rates, click-throughs and
conversions, Internet users are fighting to gain control
over the content they receive. Savvy marketers and business
owners are using RSS as a way to improve corporate communication
and increase their external exposure and brand appeal.
What is the enclosure tag?
RSS 2.0 is quickly becoming the definitive RSS standard,
all because of its support for the enclosure tag. The enclosure
tag is an optional field in the RSS 2.0 specification that
allows the feed publisher to include a link to a file. The
file can be just about anything. Businesses have seized
the opportunity, including tutorials, streaming audio lectures,
PDF proposals, Power Point™ presentations, podcasts of
sales meetings, and advertising portfolios among other traditional
uses for RSS.
Many businesses have yet to realize the potential
hidden in the enclosure field. The implications and power
of how RSS can be used is really awe-inspiring. Consider
the following business uses for RSS:
1. PDF Documents - Consider
broadcasting meeting agenda notes or documentation as a
PDF included with a feed, allowing interested individuals
to access information without having to deal with cumbersome
e-mail attachments.
2. PPT Presentations - Presentations
can easily be distributed in a feed enclosure. The added
benefit is that presenters using Power Point™ will not
have to lug their notebook to a meeting to present - they
can manage the presentation from an iPod or similar handheld
that reads RSS feeds.
3. Video - Video or streaming
video are both possible via the enclosure field. Have lectures
or even political debates come to life with the added video
component.
4. Audio - Audio content does
not mean that feeds are limited to your favorite songs.
Podcasting is the coined term for audio content contained
in a feed and can include language instruction, talk shows
or editorials.
5. Images - Imagine realtors
using the enclosure field to display photos of homes to
interested buyers. Now they can carry a light-weight catalog
with them to show potential buyers at a moment's notice.
6. Downloads - Consider an information
technology department in a large corporation conducting
proprietary software updates, including executables or zip
files in the enclosure field which allow users to update
the software at a convenient time.
Feedreaders are playing catch- up
RSS news aggregators were initially designed to receive
text-based content. As users find outside-the-box uses for
RSS, developers of RSS readers are struggling to release
new versions that support the enclosures businesses are
eager to use.
FeedDemon, a popular RSS reader, has recently
added support for every type of enclosure in their latest
release. They have created a safe list that can be customized
to include specific types of file types like PDFs. This
will automate downloads of files that are deemed "safe".
This was clearly designed with security in mind, to prevent
automatic downloading of executables.
Businesses are revolutionizing RSS as a communication
medium. While some traditional businesses are struggling
to include monthly newsletter summaries in an RSS feed and
reap the benefits of RSS, other innovative businesses are
adopting incredibly creative uses for both internal and
external corporate communications.
About the Author:
Sharon Housley manages marketing for FeedForAll http://www.feedforall.com
software for creating, editing, publishing RSS feeds and
podcasts. In addition Sharon manages marketing for NotePage
http://www.notepage.net
a wireless text messaging software company.
**********************************************************
This article may be used freely in opt-in
publications and websites, provided that the resource box
is included and the links are active. A courtesy copy of
the issue or a link to any online posting would be greatly
appreciated send an email to sharon@notepage.net
.
Additional articles available for publication available
at http://www.small-business-software.net/free-website-content.htm
**********************************************************
|
