I disagree with this post of Rick Bruner’s, but I am too tired to really rant. At the moment, Rick’s key argument against the use of RSS in business is that such a small percentage of people are using it. It’s hard to argue on numbers alone… RSS is still in it’s infancy.
As tools develop and people realize that they can be in control of their own information choices, it will grow. It may take a Microsoft OS implementation, but I doubt people will wait that long. Microsoft doesn’t even get it right most of the time on the first try…
The push (pun intended) is going to come through a development from someone like Apple or a very savvy developer who gets that the tech needs to be hidden. Information is the hero in reading feeds… the tech is way to much for most people to really even care about.
Keep in mind that MP3’s and digital music existed long before Apple (and broadband) came along and proved it was easy to manage on the consumer end, as well as sell to them. There are a great deal of people today buying and selling music and more services (Yahoo and Microsoft come to mind) on the way. I realize RSS, Feeds and the tools are still in the hands of early adopters, but they will mature (sooner than later) and this will grow. Understanding RSS today is a good move for your business, not a foolish one or a waste of time.
Still in its infancy after five years, what is it, a giant tortoise or a redwood? Besides, I am not saying it’s foolish to start an RSS feed. I’m saying it’s foolish to talk of abandoning email marketing programs in favor of RSS anytime soon.
JG,
The reality is RSS + IM is what can replace email.
If you look at MSN Messenger it already saves in XML which easily converts to RSS ready format, sort of.
The idea of forward and deliver IM already has been around since ICQ. By replacing email with IM you go P2P and by saving as RSS it becomes a permanent record.
While we’re watching the internet is actually 35 years old. It took the development of the World Wide Web, a browser and low priced access beyond universities to get it rolling…
RSS is complex given the nature of the feed… while it might be able to be formatted for publishing or syndication, the original intent when Netscape thought it was wise to pursue for use on their portal.
I think companies might not be looking to enhance their email offerings with a rich RSS feed. Give people a way to manage how they wish to communicate or receive information. Companies don’t have to start blogs to do this… they just need to tweak how they publish info.
I don’t think email is going away either… but with the increase in spam, companies would be wise to develop ways to make sure their messages get through the filters.