is Google Reader taking over RSS?
Since Google has begun reporting the number of RSS readers, my Feedburner numbers have almost doubled! Ok, I admit that 40 readers ain’t a big deal, but when it almost doubled overnight, something has to be bonkers, or that Google Reader has now become the most popular RSS reader.
So Your Web AddiCT pops open feedburner to check the stats of this blog…
Wow Google feedfetcher at 18% compared to Bloglines 8%. Bloglines and Google Reader have been on par since we’ve started using FeedBurner until a few days a go when the RSS subscribers peaked past the next 100 subscribers that stay up-to-date with this blog via RSS. Those of you who are considering adding the subscribe via email to your site, do it. There are still some people who enjoy haiving thier inbox full of your RSS feeds goodness. Depending on your audience your email subscribers might be morethan your RSS subscribers. RSS usage is on a rapid increase in South Africa! Why? 90% of the visitors to this blog are from South Africa. If your site does not have RSS yet you know who to talk to.
Let’s look at an example:
We’ve started using feedburner to manage the iDRIVE.co.za News feed (with the add to muti.co.za Feedflare 🙂 ) and due to the fact that
the target audience differs completely to this blog, 50% of the news feed subscribers are subscribed via Email.
If your deciding on wether to use RSS or Email it should not be an either or decision. Use both RSS and Email. Your Web AddiCT(s); tip would also be not to use every single subscription widget you can find in your sidebar. Giving your readers too much choice overwhelms them and decreases the chance of them making the decision of where an how to subscribe. Choice is good, too much choice is not.