If you are one of the approximately 75% of people who have not embraced Real Simple Syndication (RSS) along with your web browsing habits, you are about to learn about a technology that can help you get the edge on your small business competition, find work, and keep up with the latest breaking industry news all from one window on your computer.
The technology is Real Simple Syndication (RSS), and while it has been around for years, many small business owners are not embracing RSS for its full potential.
For those of you new to RSS, if you browse the web, chances are this symbol has caught your eye.
That symbol means that the web site, blog, news site or other page has an RSS feeds. RSS feeds are most always sites with changing content, such as blogs, forums, or news sites, and that symbol means that you can plug that website into a RSS Feed Reader (sometimes called an RSS aggregator or a content aggregator). Basically, RSS feed readers negate the need to bookmark websites and refer back to them. Instead, you can visit your RSS feed reader and have all the newest news and blog posts bundled together right before your eyes.
Better yet, your RSS feed reader is often packaged with email applications such as Outlook Express or Thunderbird, so checking your RSS feeds is as simple as checking your email messages.
As a small business owner, you have a lot to do and keeping up with the outside world can fall by the wayside. That’s where RSS comes in to save the day:
Keep up with industry blogs and news sites – Is there someone in your industry that just seems to get it right? Do you want to keep up with their blog or website? Or are you working in a rapidly changing industry where new innovations spring up every day? RSS feeds allow you to track industry blogs and other news sites that give you the information you need to stay on top of the ever changing business climate.
Keep tabs on your competitors – Let’s face it, we are always trying to outdo our competitors, so it makes sense to stay on top of their latest news, too. Bookmark their blogs or news sites in your RSS feed reader and never let them get one past you again.
Find work – If you are a freelancer or someone who routinely bids on jobs, RSS is the technology for you. Many online job boards, including the likes of Craigslist and Indeed.com (itself a job board aggregator), allow you to create your perfect job search at the website and then enter it into your RSS feed reader. Using this technology, anytime a job utilizing your keywords (i.e. “copywriter + Houston”) appears on sites like Indeed.com, it also pops up in your RSS feed reader. If you work in a bid-heavy industry with intense competition, such as freelance writing or web design, the time factor can give you an edge over those other talented, but slower, sole-proprietors out there.
Keep up with general news – Websites like CNN and even many local newspapers have RSS capability. This allows you to keep up with trends that might affect your business, or even find great opportunities. And don’t worry about information overload. Most news sites have multiple feeds divided up by topic, so if you only need to keep up with local real estate news you likely won’t have to wade through all those bizarre crime reports.
After you have chosen a RSS feed reader, we would be honored if you plugged our address http://blog.outright.com into your Reader for more news and tips for sole-proprietors, entrepreneurs, and small business owners. Already set? You can also subscribe here.
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What do you think?
Do you use RSS?
What kinds of things do you keep track of?
1
Oh goodness, I LOVE RSS! I like to know things immediately, and RSS is great for that. I keep track of my favorite news sources, my favorite blogs and a few random things that I frequently search Craig's list for :)
Posted Mar 17, 2010 10:45:19 AM by: Holly@Accounting SPOT