Issue #43
RSS & How to Use it - Part 2
Welcome to part 2 of the article that aims to give you just enough information to help you understand RSS and start using it.
Part 1 gave you simple instructions on how to read and subscribe to an RSS site feed, part 2 will give you simple instructions on how to publish your own.
Firstly, which websites can benefit from a site feed? Well, pretty much all of them.
If you provide a service, you could use a site feed to announce amendments and upgrades.
If you sell stuff, you could use a site feed to announce new products and special offers.
And if you own a website or web log that is regularly updated with news of any description, a site feed is virtually a necessity.
Site feeds may not be exactly commonplace at present but don’t doubt for a moment that their popularity is growing. If you get a site feed up and running now, you’ll be ahead of the game for some time to come and offer a friendly alternative to email communication.
Site feeds are usually written in a code called XML. If you view the code for a site feed it will look a little like HTML.
You could:
- Learn the language and write your own site feed. Each time you want to add an update, just update your site feed page.
- Buy some fancy software that writes and updates the site feed for you.
- Or… setup a site feed online that automatically updates, for free in about 20 minutes.
Third option sound good? Ok, start by setting up your own blog at Blogger.
This is free to do and, if you want, they will even host it for you in exchange for a couple of banners at the top of the blog. The great thing about Blogger is that it works in tandem with the Google Toolbar.
Found a website you want to note in your blog? Click the icon in your Google Toolbar and it’s taken care of.
Everytime you add or change something on your website, record it in your blog so individuals and search engines viewing your blog can be made aware of it.
The other great thing about Blogger is that it automatically creates and updates a site feed for you. Everytime you post a message to your blog, this is added to your site feed as well.
You can get the address of your site feed from the Blogger control panel by visiting the section marked “Settings” and selecting “Site Feed”.
Now you know the web address of your site feed, you are free to add it to your homepage, submit it to RSS directories, anything you want.
But wait, before you rush off, you’ll want to know how to track visits to your site feed.
This bit is even easier. Just convert your site feed address into a FeedBurner address.
Go to: www.feedburner.com and enter the address of your site feed into the box marked “Feed URL:”, then click “Next >>”.
Play around with some of the options and at the end of it you will have a new site feed address that looks something like this:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/yourwebsitename
Now advertise this site feed address instead of the site feed address Blogger gave you. It will do exactly the same thing, except now you can login to FeedBurner and view statistics on how often your site feed page is visited.
Among other things, FeedBurner will also:
- Dress your site feed up so when someone views it in their normal internet browser it will explain what it is instead of just showing the source code.
- Tweak the code of your site so it can be read by all RSS readers, even those that only support ATOM.
All done? Let's recap:
- You now know how to identify, view and subscribe to an RSS feed.
- You now have a blog you can submit to blog directories that allows people and search engines to see updates to your website.
- And you have a site feed address you can submit to RSS directories and advertise on your website. Visitors to your website can subscribe to your feed and never miss anything new you have to offer.
And you thought this would be hard? Next week, understanding quantum theory and the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle in five easy steps.
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David Congreave is joint owner of The Nettle Ezine. When he is not editing this weekly newsletter, he is looking for new programs worthy of being announced at The Early Bird and administrating the PayPerShop website.
David lives in Leeds in the United Kingdom with his wife Leanne.
This article can be reproduced in your website or ezine after six weeks from the publication date. However, you must seek permission first. Please email David if you would like to use this material.
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CaptKirk - A sideways look at the web marketing industry
CaptKirk offers an independent view that does not necessarily co-incide with that of The Nettle. You can respond to his column at The Nettle Forum
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What Do People Want or Need?
People want or need more Traffic to their websites.
I’m a member of many forums and even moderate a few of them. In doing that, I’ve found the one thing people need help with is generating traffic.
I guess if they can solve this problem of getting traffic to their sites they can focus on other things.
Some of the questions I see are:
- What method of marketing would you recommend?
- How do Traffic Exchanges work?
- Do FFA’s really work?
I agree with most people that knowing how to generate traffic is one of the important keys you need to grow your business.
I would suggest that you join Downline Traffic Building clubs like:
ProfitRally
CyberWheelers
TrafficHoopla
TrafficTornado
These are excellent ways to generate traffic to your site on a daily basis.
When you join the various downline clubs you will be able to offer others what they want and get in return what you want – T-R-A-F-F-I-C!
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Editors' Note
On November 18th 1992, Superman died.
Many dismissed it as a publicity stunt and if viewed in this light it was certainly successful. Some 3,000,000 copies of the comic book were sold and newspapers and television picked up the story all over the world.
And yet the writers claim that the "Death of Superman" was simply a great idea for a story and offered plenty of creative opportunities. The extent of the media interest was apparently unanticipated.
The stories that followed (compiled in "World Without a Superman" and "The Return of Superman") certainly bear this out.
Superman, of course, is still alive and still popular. But there is a moral to the story.
If you're going to bring something that works to an end, you've better have a darn good reason. And you must have a good idea of what happens next.
So it's with a touch of trepidation that I announce next weeks issue of The Nettle Ezine as the last one.
The Nettle itself will live on, but in an entirely different form. The Nettle stands for taking that first leap into web marketing AND web design. Hard work as opposed to laziness. Questioning standards and processes instead of blindly accepting them. Making a success of your home business.
The Nettle will re-emerge later in the year and I'll be using next weeks issue to announce what it will become. You definitely will not want to miss this issue, so mark your calendar.
And if you can't wait until next week, the final article will published on the Nettle Blog and the Site Feed, this Friday. A little reward for those that have taken the trouble to subscribe to it.
I'm looking forward to next weeks issue. I'll be sorry to say goodbye to The Nettle Ezine but, I'm excited about announcing my new project.
Until next week...
Best Wishes,
David Congreave.
david@thenettle.com
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COMING IN ISSUE #44:
The Death of The Nettle Ezine
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Another creation by Jon Olson that I thought was worth telling you about.
Hit exchanges are one of the most popular choices for people looking to start their own on-line business. A script can be brought relatively cheaply and their viral nature can build a good-sized membership in a short period of time.
And yet how many times do you see a hit exchange surface one day only to disappear a few weeks or months later. Starting a hit exchange is one thing, making it successful is another.
Jon Olson is a long-time hit exchange owner and user and is offering a consulting package designed to help anyone, start their own hit exchange and make it stand out from the crowd.
The package includes:
- A full featured manual hit exchange script.
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This is not a cheap package, but considering the content of the package and the inclusion of one-to-one support, I believe this represents excellent value for money.
There is still room in the market for more hit exchanges, but only if you can make it stand out. The HitExchange101 consulting package should be able to help you do just that.
If you're serious about starting your own hit exchange, and are willing to put in the hard work it takes to make it successful, then this is well worth considering.
Go to www.hitexchange101.com for more details.
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Essentials
There are four websites that carry a standing recommendation from The Nettle, each of which will be reviewed in a future issue. Until then, you can read the brief description below.
The Early Bird: If you like building downlines, being notified when new programs are released can be extremely helpful.
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Join up using the above link and work your way through the lessons to achieve Gold status. Once you've achieved this, email us with your MPAM link and we'll give you $100 of advertising in The Nettle.
Hit Exchange News: If you use Traffic Exchanges to any degree, a subscription to this weekly ezine is essential. Complete the form below for your free subscription.
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