RSS communication evolution for Public Relations

12 October 2006

As Rainier PR launches its free RSS news feed service for clients, what does this mean for client news in the future?

Rainier PR launched its free RSS news service in November to simplify the flow of data between its vendor client base and journalists, who are increasingly asking for subscription news feeds to filter out the proverbial news “wheat” from the irrelevant “chaff”. But what is RSS? How is it going to change the way PRs operate in the future, and how are those that embrace RSS early on going to see increased coverage?

What is RSS?

Without getting too technical, RSS is generally known as shorthand for ‘Really Simple Syndication’ and is an XML (extendable mark-up language) format designed for sharing headlines and other content over the internet. News sites such as the BBC, CNN, Forbes and CNET use RSS to publish content and a number of news aggregators automatically draw RSS files from contact providers and present them in a news format. Many technology companies, such as Cisco and Intel, already use RSS files to announce their news to the market.

RSS enables the syndication of data so that readers can discern whether or not they want to follow a hyperlink to a story or content. News feeds can therefore be personalised so that journalists can filter out data which will be of limited or no interest to them. Feeds can also include related information – often weblogs. The process is simple: Journalists log on to a web-based news aggregator, such as Bloglines, Feedreader or Google Reader, copy and paste in the relevant web address and they will begin to receive notification of a client’s news and content as soon as it is made public.

Benefits for journalists

This approach is one favoured by prominent technology journalist Charles Arthur. At a recent presentation to PR professionals, Charles implied that he no longer relies on press releases and prefers to get his story leads from technology industry blogs and PR feeds.

This view should not surprise the PR industry. Journalists receive hundreds of emails daily, most of which are barely newsworthy and won’t be converted into a story. Leading IT freelancer Danny Bradbury has been vocal on the need for PRs to engage with RSS feeds as it greatly aids journalists who have to wade through reams of unusable press material daily.

RSS feeds, for the more techie journalists at least, appear to be the way forward. How long before it permeates the rest of the journalist community? Arthur believes that the tectonic plates of journalism and the PR community are increasingly drifting apart and that the PR industry will fall into the chasm produced by the rift…within two years. Rainier PR believes this change will come in five to 10 years, but nonetheless PRs need to be smarter about how they provide news to journalists.

Benefits for clients

News and content that reaches journalists in the way they want it stands a better chance of inclusion in news pieces and articles. It also enables firms to build stronger relationships with the media and, due to the nature of RSS feeds, promote the client in search engine rankings.