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.