Before I explain why and how to set up an RSS feed, let me explain what an RSS feed is. RSS represents Really Simple Syndication. WordPress websites automatically have an RSS feed on them. (Other sites can have RSS enabled.)
For example, the RSS feed for Rocks Digital is https://www.rocksdigital.com/feed. For most WordPress websites you simply add the word feed to access their RSS at the end of the website URL.
Categories and authors of content also have their own RSS feed created automatically within a WordPress website.
Rocks Digital RSS Feed Examples
- https://www.rocksdigital.com/category/social/feed
- https://www.rocksdigital.com/author/lissa-duty/feed
Why You Should Use RSS Feeds
- Quick and easy way to share trusted sources
- Feed content you wrote to multiple social media sites at one time
- Positions you as a resource for great content
RSS feeds are particularly useful for posting on social networks you or your clients aren’t as active on. Especially with Twitter, it is acceptable to post the same article multiple times, even on the same day; so, don’t think if you post with RSS you can’t manually post at different times during the day for a period of multiple days. (Actually, for a piece of content you want to feature, write multiple tweets marketing it in different ways and schedule them out to tweet.)
How to Set Up RSS to Feed Your Social Media Accounts
- Identify the RSS feed URL for the site, your author profile or the category you want to feed.
- Go to the tool you would like to use to feed to your social media via RSS (Hootsuite and dlvr.it are a few that support RSS. They have free and paid options available).
- Based on which tool you elect to use, set up your RSS feed following their instructions.
- Authorize access to your social media accounts via the tool you have selected to use.
Voila! When a blog is published, it automatically updates your RSS feed. Your RSS feed is connected to your social profiles and will post new content real time.
As a co-founder and contributor of Rocks Digital, I want to support the site in multiple ways, so I have set up RSS feeds for the main URL, category URL and my author URL to feed to Twitter. Now I realize you are thinking, “But that is all the same content,” and you are right. However, if you have a paid account on dlvr.it, you can specify the posting schedule (i.e. days/time) so I have each RSS feed set to post on different days/times, so I can drive more traffic to the site. I am also feeding to LinkedIn, Google+ Page and my less active Facebook Pages.
I am also really digging how dlvr.it will post to my Tumblr via RSS and drive traffic to my website.
Using RSS feeds is just one example of how to post content to your social media channels. Don’t set up the RSS and use it as a replacement for something else you are doing on social media. Use this method to enhance your online presence. Subscribe to our RSS feeds / setup up to feed your social media channels.
Are you using RSS feeds as part of your social media strategy? Comment below and let me know how it is working for you.
