By S. Housley
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 software for creating, editing,
publishing RSS feeds and podcasts. In addition Sharon manages marketing for NotePage
a wireless text messaging software company.