RSS won’t kill the online newsletter. It is simply a different way to get information. Yeah, the headline is a little dramatic.

Think about the many ways people like to retrieve the news. Some people want news events emailed to them as they happen, others like to pick up the paper off the stoop and fold it, touch it, and drink coffee with it. Still, others like to access the newspaper’s website online. It is a matter of personal preference. I personally do look at RSS feeds often, although I am subscribed to hundreds. I use them as a reminder of a site I liked - like bookmarks I actually sift through.

What is RSS? It is a format used to syndicate web content like blogs, news alerts, product updates, and press releases – automatic syndication of content. RSS stands for Rich Site Summary/Really Simple Syndication. I think sometimes it is so popular because it makes distribution easier for publishers as opposed to making life easier for readers. It has become popular through a “push” strategy instead of a “pull” strategy.

In this day and age of information overload there are hundreds of ways to receive information. While RSS and newsletters may in some ways be conflicting, there is enough room for them to coexist peacefully - at least for now - and to even work together for the optimal benefit of your company.

From a quick survey, here are some reasons why newsletters might be preferred to RSS:

1. You have to be proactive to get the information in a RSS feed, it doesn’t just sit in your inbox like an email does. In a world of burnt-out multi-taskers, asking them to proactively read your articles is probably asking too much.
2. RSS feeds require that software be installed. Because a software installation is required (however simple), a large chunk of users that don’t know how to do it are wiped out.
3. Information overload. A newsletter is a snapshot of information that a quick synopsis of all the news that “fit to report”. RSS, on the other hand, includes everything and it is too easy to let it get out of control.
4. People tend to do what they have always done. Newsletters have a loyalty factor – nearly 82% of business professionals prefer to get their information via newsletter, according to E-Marketing.
5. People have short attention spans. Emailed newsletters are the easiest to get to, with the least barriers in getting the information. That is, they arrive anyway.
6. Checking email is part of people’s everyday routine so receiving an emailed newsletter is just like receiving any other emailed message, and is more likely to be read.

There are, however, many advantages to using RSS feeds instead of newsletters:

• Most attractive to your reader is that they will avoid the spam that is so annoying, and cumbersome, in email inboxes.
• RSS provides in-the-moment breaking news updates to people that have expressed an interest in your business.
• E-newsletter authors love RSS feeds because their newsletters go directly to an interested group that has subscribed to their newsletter because they WANT TO READ IT.
• Using RSS to distribute a newsletter is cheaper, too. You won’t need to pay for emailing lists because subscribers come to you.

Of course, there is also the case that newsletters will be used less frequently as readers’ preferences change. If the tendency is for readers to have information sent to them in-the-moment, then that quality in RSS will make newsletters less popular – and thus a less effective method of communication for the masses – in the future. For more about if RSS will replace email content distribution, check out Kent Thompson’s thought provoking article. An in-depth look at the pros and cons of RSS vs. email information distribution can be found in this provocative article by Robin Good. Lastly, this interview with Chris Pirillo of Lockergnome on the topic is interesting.

For now, Newsletters and RSS feeds are both great ways to keep your customers, employees, and vendors abreast of the latest news in your company. Utilizing a smart combination of both methods of delivery – emailing and RSS feeds – will take advantage of technology and use it as a tool to help you communicate better. From the publisher’s (yours) standpoint, it is easy enough to use both. So, use both. 

RSS KILLS NEWSLETTERS!

nah, too dramatic for my tastes.

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