By Michael Dorausch, D.C.
Thanks to advances in Internet technology such as Really Simple Syndication (RSS), web content that in the past may have only been available in one location, can now be distributed through a potentially unlimited number of channels, offering much greater access to the source information. For example, a current news article written about whales in San Francisco, could potentially appear in minutes across thousands of web sites thanks to the technology behind RSS.
Many major news companies are increasingly using RSS as a way to distribute articles published to their websites, making those articles available to readers via tools such as RSS browser plug-ins, and RSS readers available from companies like Google, Yahoo, Microsoft, and AOL, to name a few. The newer versions of Internet Explorer (7.0) and Mozilla Firefox (2.0) have the ability to display an RSS feed in a similar fashion to a typical HTML coded web page. What that means basically is when someone goes to visit a web site and clicks on the RSS feed, they will get to view the content (sometimes the entire article) instead of seeing a bunch of computer code that often does not make much sense to end viewers.
But RSS is not just for news content. While news distribution is by far the most popular use of RSS feeds, it is only one form of content out of many, being distributed across the Internet. Some web sites are distributing photos (Flickr by Yahoo!), pod casts (both audio and video), slideshow presentations, as well as other forms of content, such as classified ads.
A great example of how this technology is being used, for forms other than news and article content, is the RSS feeds that have been added to the chiropractic classifieds section at Planet Chiropractic.
With the addition of RSS technology, someone can now post a classified ad to one location and have it potentially appear on a multitude of web sites, thus increasing the likelihood that someone will view the ad, respond to the ad, and make a connection with the person or party posting the advertisement.
As an example, a chiropractor posted an ad late last week and stated that he was available to substitute at chiropractors offices in the state of California, for those seeking such services. As is typical, the ad was posted (for free) in the “associates available category” on the website. It should’ve technically been posted in the “substitutions and locum positions” category but that’s a topic for another day. Normally, someone seeking a chiropractor to cover their office would visit the classified ad pages and either do a search or browse for related information. With the addition of RSS feeds, this post (since it was a recent post) would appear in the feed and could potentially appear on any number of websites (typically related to chiropractic) across the Internet.
Additionally, using RSS reader (like the ones mentioned in this article) a person could “subscribe” to a feed (even a classified ads feed) and have the information within that feed delivered to their desktop or mobile phone. This ensures that the information one is receiving is always fresh and up-to-date, a fantastic addition to any website featuring classifieds or auctions.
Read more about Planet Chiropractic and the use of RSS feeds for classified ads here: RSS Feeds Added to Chiropractic Classifieds
About the RSS Features
Currently, the only information included in the RSS feed version of a users classified ad, is the title and the description (also known as subject or body) of the advertisement. This means it’s more important than ever that users engage in best description practices so as to improve the results intended from their posts. For example, when selling a practice in Las Vegas, a great title would be “Las Vegas Chiropractic Office for Sale” rather than “office for sale” or the ever so popular “practice for sale” heading. It’s just as important to include relevant information into the body of content so that people can better find out where you’re located.
planetc1.com-news @ 1:36 pm | Article ID: 1180557415
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