iEntry 10th Anniversary RSS Contact


Google Now Indexing Content From RSS Feeds

By: Rene LeMerle
2009-11-03

How to Get Your Content Found. Last week, Google announced it is now using RSS and Atom Feeds to find and index new web pages on the internet. Historically Google has...

...relied on URL submission and links on other web pages as its primary way to find new online content. Using these submissions and links, Googles spiders crawl and index the relevant content it uncovers.

RSS and Atom Feeds arent new, having come to prominence with the introduction of blogging. Most blogging platforms include some form of RSS and Atom feed service as a way for publishers to push their content online.

For those of you unfamiliar with RSS feeds, Wikipedia explains them as:

"RSS (most commonly translated as Really Simple Syndication but sometimes Rich Site Summary) is a family of web feed formats used to publish frequently updated works"such as blog entries, news headlines, audio, and video"in a standardized format.-2- An RSS document (which is called a feed, web feed,-3- or channel) includes full or summarized text, plus metadata such as publishing dates and authorship. Web feeds benefit publishers by letting them syndicate content automatically."

Google has been using RSS and Atom feeds to index content into its Blog and News search indexes for some time, so it seems this latest move will simply be an extension of this practice, with the goal to feed its core web search database.

As pressure in the real time search arena heats up, the use of RSS and Atom feeds to find content was an obvious next step - and in real terms, probably long overdue.

Unlike its Blog and News search engines, where feeds are submitted for consideration, Google is suggesting it will use existing aggregators to find content.

We may use many potential sources to access updates from feeds including Reader, notification services, or direct crawls of feeds. Going forward, we might also explore mechanisms such as PubSubHubbub to identify updated items.

So how should you ensure your content is being found? If your site publishes an RSS feed for new content, be that web pages or blog posts, you should seek to have it aggregated as much as possible.

As a starter, get your new web content syndicated or published through the following services

* Google Reader
* iGoogle
* Twitter
* Friendfeed
* plus any other online RSS aggregators that make feed content accessible to Googles spiders.

While I am sure therell be much debate as to the spam risks of this indexing via RSS, its a method that lies at the foundation of Googles real time search plans. Accordingly expect to see this practice grow, with Google sure to find a way to ensure it maintains the integrity of its search database.

Let us know

* Do you currently have a site that publishes an RSS feed?
* Will this make you consider changing your CMS platform to one that includes RSS
* Is indexing via RSS a better way for Google to index pages than links or submissions.

we look forward to reading your thoughts via our comments section below.

Comments

Tag:

Add to Del.icio.us | Digg | Reddit | Furl

Have a bookmark! -


About the Author:
Rene is the marketing manager of ineedhits.com - a global search engine marketing company. He also leads the marketing for Gooruze.com - a web 2.0 style community for online and digital marketers. Rene has been in the industry since 1997 with much of that time spent helping businesses embrace the best of the internet and digital world.


Visit the SearchNewz Directory
Do you have a search site?
Submit it free to the internet's best search industry directory. » Click Here
Search Engines
Google, Yahoo, MSN...

Search Marketing
Marketing, Budget, Planning...

Pay Per Click
Bid, Price, Quality...
SEO Companies
Optimization, Manage, Company...

SEO Tools
Track, Search, Create...

Analytics
Statistics, Counter...
» Submit your site for FREE «

Latest News

Get Your Site Submitted for Free in the World's Largest B2B Directory!

Email Address:
* URL:
*
*Indicates Mandatory Field

Terms & Conditions



Titan Quest Forum Nintendo Wii Graphics Forum
Halo 3 Forum Mac Software

Privacy Policy Legal Sitemap Contact Us RSS Feeds Newsletter Archive SearchNewz.com Privacy Policy Legal Sitemap Contact Us RSS Feeds Newsletter Signup Subscribe to our feeds!