What are the drawbacks of RSS?

  • The disadvantages of RSS use are brought about by its being a new technology and some user-preference concerns.
  • Some users prefer receiving email updates over an RSS feed.
  • Graphics and photos do not appear in all RSS feeds. For conciseness and ease of publication, RSS feeds do not display the photos from the original site in announcing the update except for some web-based aggregators
  • The identity of the source website can be confusing. Since RSS feeds do not display the actual URL or name of the website, it can sometimes get confusing on what feed a user is actually reading.
  • Publishers cannot determine how many users are subscribed to their feed and the frequency of their visits. Moreover, they would not know the reasons why users unsubscribe which could be important in improving their advertising.
  • RSS feeds create higher traffic and demands on the server. Most readers still prefer the whole update over a brief summary of the entry, thus they still access the site.
  • Since it is a new technology, some sites may not support RSS.

 

Stay Tuned For Part 3 - How To Start Using RSS

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Filed under: Getting Started • Marketing Tools

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