What is RSS Submission?
RSS is Really Simple Syndication . It is a method that is used by web publishers to syndicate their web content. When users of their website subscribe to RSS feeds, they are automatically informed of any updates to the site in the form of content, blog posts, inclusions of new audio or video files, etc. These updates are stored in web feed files, also known as web feed channels, in the form of complete or summarized content. The update can also include metadata including the date and the name of the author, if applicable. In order to read the data stored in web feeds, users will have to use an RSS reader, also known as an aggregator. Most email services – Yahoo!, Google, MSN – also act as aggregators, so it is not necessary to specially go and get one.
What are the Pros of RSS Submission?
Marketers use RSS as a promotional tool to a large extent. By allowing feeds, they are letting interested visitors to be automatically informed of updates. This helps in consolidating their presence in the visitor's mind.
The traffic that RSS brings in is targeted. Because someone who has submitted to the RSS feeds will get a summary of the content that has been updated, they will already know what the content is about before they check in. It can be assumed that they have liked what they saw in the summary. Hence, the visitor already has an impression about the update.
Residual income can be made through services such as Google's AdSense for feed. This will pay out to the publisher every time a visitor clicks onto a feed.
What are the Cons of RSS Submission?
Some webmasters feel that RSS submissions are too technical and they can do without it. RSS is a relatively new idea – it came to the fore only in 2005 – and most people are still unaware of how to use them.
RSS requires optimization to become effective. This can take time and effort and may even cost money if a professional is hired.
