Recently, I had the realization that my favorite Web sites were the ones I visited the least. The first thing I do when I find a Web site that I want to visit again is look for an RSS feed. If I find one, chances are I won’t come to the Web site again for a while. If the Web site doesn’t have an RSS feed, I’ll forget about it and the site will miss out on some traffic.
My RSS reader has become one of my information or lifestyle hubs. For me, there are others that I use daily. My mobile phone and my television are all places where I expect to be able to receive all of my various feeds of information. They are my viewports into the world.
We are moving away from this idea of having to view a Web site to view Web content. The thing is… this is so radical. Web content creators need to realize that they’re going to have to give up a lot of control if they want to be successful.
The content you put online is going to be viewed out of the context of which it was initially created.
This is all part of the reason why I’m so into the idea of widgets. It’s an easier way for users to aggregate your Web content or Web application… much easier then trying to explain RSS to someone.
For example, the popular online chat application Meebo received 84% of it’s traffic through it’s widget.
5 responses so far ↓
(jeff)isageek // January 22, 2008 at 7:40 am
I am in the same category with ya here.
I have also found that google reader/firefox/greasemonkey scripts have made my visits to site even less. now i dont even have to leave google reader to tag and save stories i find to put on del.icio.us or twitter about.
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Dan Byler // November 9, 2008 at 3:40 pm
Totally agree, with one caveat: newsfeeds’ strength and weakness is their linearity. I always know I’m getting the latest info when I check NetNewsWire – but this reflects a bias for new content, which may or may not be the same as the best content.
I appreciate your “possibly related posts” plugin because it leads me to interesting posts that predate my newsfeed subscription. This ability to provide a nonlinear approach to content is one way websites – blogs, in particular – can stay useful.
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