No matter what what industry you are a part of, providing high-quality information on your site or blog is important. For example, if your business provides accounting services, you may want to include information from the taxation office, such as news and updates on tax rulings, small business tax deductions, etc.
The problem with providing this kind of information, however, is that it involves a great deal of time and expertise. You have to do a ton of data sorting, researching and organizing, checking the accuracy of your facts, writing and editing content (or hire someone to do this for you), and then make sure that this information is continually up-to-date. As you can imagine, this is not only a lot of work but most of the information you are dealing with is well beyond your control.
Thankfully, there is a simpler way to keep your readers up-to-date with your information.
It’s called RSS …
(RSS - One of the simplest ways to provide your site readers with the latest information)
The Ultimate Guide To WordPress RSS
Basic Information About RSS
- RSS, which, according to some experts stands for Rich Site Summary, is more commonly referred to as Really Simple Syndication. It can also be referred to as a “feed” or “newsfeed”.
- RSS lets content publishers automatically syndicate their content to save users time from having to keep revisiting sites to check for updates.
- Feeds are typically used to publish frequently updated information, such as new blog post items, news headlines, audios, etc., to which any user can choose to subscribe.
- RSS feed content can be read with software called feed readers, or aggregators. Aggregators can be used to find content on all different kinds of topics and distribute this content to online properties.
- There are different kinds of feeds, read by different feedreaders. Some of these include RSS feeds, Atom Publishing Protocol) feeds and RDF (RDF = Resource Description Framework) feeds. All of these formats, however, use a standard XML file format to ensure that feeds are compatible with different devices and programs.
- Many sites and software tools also allow you to combine several RSS feeds to receive news and updates from many different sources.
In this in-depth guide, we show you where your RSS feed is located, how to syndicate your content online using RSS feeds, and how to add someone else’s content to your site via their RSS feed.
RSS (Really Simple Syndication) Feeds
Content syndication is a powerful way to share content online. RSS Feeds provide a simple way for web users to receive the latest information published on different sites.
First, let’s look at how content syndication is used.
Media publications use content syndication to publish stories from news sources around the world.
Syndication allows news reporting agencies and leading media publications to deliver readers interesting stories and up-to-the-minute news headlines from all over the globe without having to post more reporters and writers to every location in the world …
(Many online newspapers and influential online media publications use syndication to publish newsworthy items from news sources all around the globe.)
Syndication is a legitimate method of sharing content with other sites. online media publications syndicate newsworthy content using news feeds …
(Syndication is a legitimate method of sharing information)
Most websites actually would like you to share their content. Syndicating content not only allows valuable information to be shared, but it also drives visitors back to the original site that published the content being syndicated. This creates new ways to drive traffic back to their site.
Many news reporting agencies and leading online media publications include an RSS feed section (look for links that say “RSS” or “Newsfeeds” in them, or just search for “name of site/keyword + rss” – e.g. “nytimes rss”, “calgary herald rss”, “sydney morning herald rss”, etc.) …
(Most leading online media publications provide links to an RSS feed section. Source: smh.com.au )
Clicking on a site’s RSS feeds link will bring up a list of different RSS feeds …
(RSS feeds section. Source: nytimes.com RSS feeds)
These RSS feeds give readers access to different areas of the website (e.g. business news, travel news, editorials, etc.)
Feed sections can also contain further subcategory feeds …
(RSS Feed section. Image Source: latimes.com)
Note: An RSS feed is only a URL. To use a feed, all that’s required is to copy the URL and paste it into an application that can translate the feed into something readable. We’ll cover this further below.
RSS Feeds – Benefits
Syndicating content from someone else’s website or blog on your website has some obvious benefits. It not only gives someone else’s content additional exposure online, it also adds value to your site without you having to create the content …
(RSS Feeds Has Many Benefits!)
While adding an RSS feed from another site is a great way to add content to your site without having to create it, it’s worth keeping in mind that there are benefits in getting other sites to syndicate your content.
When other websites and blogs syndicate your feed, this gives you the opportunity to get increased exposure online and drive more web traffic …
(Get users to syndicate your content … it will help drive more traffic to your site!)
Overview Of The WordPress Feed
WordPress automatically publishes a feed of your posts, allowing other online users to easily syndicate your content on their websites.
Depending on the WordPress theme you have installed, there are a number of ways to get the WordPress RSS feed:
1) If your theme allows the Meta widget to display in a standard or custom menu, you can scroll down to the Meta section and click on Entries RSS …
(WordPress Meta widget – Accessing your RSS feed)
2) You can also find built-in links and buttons on certain WordPress themes that let your visitors copy your feed.
In the screenshot below, for example, a visitor can copy the RSS feed URL by right-clicking and copying on the Subscribe to RSS link …
(Copy RSS URLs to your clipboard from “subscribe” buttons)
3) On some sites and again, depending on the WordPress theme you have installed, you can find the RSS feed displayed in a Link To Us, Share, or Follow Us section …
(Look for an RSS button in a a Link To Us, Subscribe, or Share toolbar)
4) You can also view your WordPress site’s RSS feed by typing your site’s URL into a browser and adding “/feed” after the URL, e.g.:
- http://www.yourdomain.com/feed
- http://www.yourdomain.com/blog/feed (if your WP site installation is in a subfolder, e.g. “blog”)
Using any of the above methods will bring up a page containing your WordPress RSS …
(RSS feed entries as seen using Firefox)
Note that your feed content will display differently depending on which web browser you are using …
(Feed items displayed on Chrome web browser)
Specify Number Of Items To Display On Your RSS Feed
To specify how many items you would like to display in your RSS section, go to your Reading Settings section and enter the number of items to show in the “Syndication feeds show the most recent” field …
(WP Reading Settings – Syndication feed items setting)
Your feed section will show as many recent items you have specified in your WordPress Reading Settings section …
(The feed page will show the number of items you have specified in the WP Reading Settings section)
Display Full Text Or Summary Of Posts In Your RSS Feed
Another setting in your WP Reading Settings section that affects your feeds is whether to display articles as full text, or a summary …
(Reading Settings – ’For each article in a feed show’: ‘Full text’ or ‘Summary’)
Post Excerpts can also affect how the content in your feed appears …
(Post excerpts can affect how your feeds appear)
If you need help using excerpts in WordPress Posts, go here:
View The Content Of Your RSS Feeds
As mentioned earlier, to view a feed’s content, you need to copy the feed’s URL to your clipboard and paste it into a feedreader, i.e. an application that reads and translates feeds into readable content.
Let’s see how this works.
First, go to a website or blog and look for a ‘subscribe’ link or icon using any of the methods described earlier …
(Search for an RSS feed link. Image source: http://www.yourcoffeeguru.com)
Next, copy the feed URL to your clipboard …
(Copy the URL of your feed)
If you want, you can check what the feed contains by pasting the URL of the feed into an online feed reader …
(Paste your feed URL into a feed reader to view the feed content. Image Source: Feedreader.com)
Like feed readers, WordPress has the ability to process RSS feeds.
Adding Feeds To Your WordPress Site
In the example below, we’ll add content sourced from another website or blog to yours.
How To Add RSS Feeds To Your Sidebar
As mentioned earlier, no matter what industry your business operates in, you can add to your site the latest news and updates from an industry-related government department or authoritative site in your industry by simply adding their feed. You can easily display a range of information on your WordPress site like news, Facebook comments, or content from thousands of sites using the WordPress RSS widget.
Let’s add content sourced from an RSS feed to the WordPress sidebar area …
(Add content from an RSS feed to your sidebar)
First, Go to a website or blog containing content that you would like to display on your sidebar and copy its RSS feed URL …
(Copy your feed URL to the clipboard)
Next, paste the feed into a new RSS widget …
(RSS Widget)
To learn more about adding content to sidebars using widgets, go here:
Refresh your web browser. The content will now appear in your sidebar (or wherever the RSS widget has been placed) …
(RSS Widget)
Add Your WordPress RSS Feed To Search Consoles
You can add your WordPress RSS feed to Google and Bing’s search consoles. This will help them index your content faster.
(WordPress RSS feed added to Google Search Console)
Adding your site’s RSS feed to search consoles is simple, fast, easy, and requires no technical skills. For a step-by-step tutorial, go here:
How To Add RSS Feeds To WordPress Posts
What if you want to add content from an RSS feed to posts instead of a sidebar?
You can do this using plugins. Just search inside the Plugins section for RSS, RSS feed to post, etc.
(‘Add Plugins’ section – RSS plugins)
Note: Most RSS plugins typically require configuration – visit the plugin sites for complete instructions, or contact us if you need assistance with plugin configuration.
The plugins below are useful for adding feed content to posts, or “autoblog” (An autoblog is a blog with content that is automatically gathered and compiled from RSS feeds):
WPeMatico
(WPeMatico Plugin)
WPeMatico is an auto blogging plugin that allows you to publish posts automatically from RSS/Atom feeds that you choose.
You can manage all of your imported feeds and organize feeds according to categories.
For more details, go here:
WP RSS Aggregator
(WP RSS Aggregator WordPress Plugin)
WP RSS Aggregator is an RSS feed importer and auto blogging WordPress plugin with additional functionality with a number of premium extensions (add-ons).
For example, the Feed to Post add-on allows you to import RSS feeds directly into your WordPress posts.
For more details, go here:
RSS Post Importer
(RSS Post Importer)
The RSS Post Importer plugin can be used to syndicate, import, curate, merge and display full text RSS feeds on your WordPress website or blog.
The plugin fetches an RSS feed and publishes the full article content of each feed item as a standalone post.
For more details, go here:
Powr RSS Feed
(Powr RSS Feed WP Plugin)
POWr RSS allows you to combine content from multiple content using RSS feeds.
This plugin also lets you display images, videos, and articles, adjust sizing and spacing of feeds, use custom backgrounds, fonts, colors, and more. It is also mobile responsive and supports text in any language.
The premium version of this plugin contains a number of additional features, such as the ability to display different feeds, accept or reject posts, and more.
For more details, go here:
WP Pipes
(WP Pipes Plugin)
WP Pipes is a powerful data migration plugin that lets you create curate content from RSS feeds, Google News, and many other sources.
This plugin provides functionality like CSV importing for posts/WooCommerce, RSS feed creator, autoblogging, auto post to Twitter/LinkedIn/Facebook, export WordPress posts as iTunes podcasts, create Google XML sitemaps, and more!
For more details, go here:
FeedWordPress
(FeedWordPress Plugin For WordPress)
FeedWordPress is a simple and flexible Atom/RSS syndication plugin for WordPress.
As stated in the FeedWordPress site …
FeedWordPress is an open-source Atom/RSS aggregator for the WordPress blog publishing platform. You set up feeds that you choose, and FeedWordPress syndicates posts from those sources into your WordPress posts table, where they can be displayed by your WordPress templates like any other post — but with additional meta-data, so that your templates can properly attribute the post to the source it came from.
You can use this plugin to create aggregator sites, or display all your online activity (e.g. from your blog, LinkedIn, Flickr, or other online services, into a Lifestream.
For more details, go here:
Autoblog
(Autoblog WordPress Plugin)
Autoblog is an easy-to-use plugin that can be set-up very quickly, with no coding required and no complicated instructions. Simply copy and paste in the URL of your feed, name your feed (for admin purposes) and select a blog that you want it to post to.
For more details, go here:
RSS Includes Pages and Custom Post Types
(RSS Includes Pages WP Plugin)
By default, WordPress only includes posts in your RSS feed. Install RSS Includes Pages and Custom Post Types to include pages in your RSS feed and not just posts.
For more details, go here:
Useful Tips
Tip #1 – WordPress Comment RSS Feeds
WordPress makes available RSS feeds of comments posted on your site in addition to making RSS feeds of your latest posts available.
You can inspect the comments in your feed by clicking on Comments RSS in the ‘Meta’ widget of your sidebar (note: your theme may not be configured to display this widget) …
(Comments RSS)
Comments posted on your site by visitors and users will appear in the Comments RSS page …
(RSS comments feed items as seen using Firefox)
Like post entries, your comments feed items will display differently depending on the browser you use …
(RSS comments feed content displayed on a Google Chrome web browser)
Again, you can check the feed content by pasting the feed URL into a feedreader …
(Paste the URL of your comments feed into a feed reader to view the feed content. Image: Feedreader.com)
Note: If the Meta section is not displaying on your theme, you can view the Comments RSS section of your site by opening up a browser and typing in the following URL:
- http://www.yourdomain.com/comments/feed
- http://www.yourdomain.com/blog/comments/feed (if your WordPress installation is in a subfolder, e.g. “blog”)
Tip #2 – Displaying RSS Feeds For Individual Post Items
Being able to select an RSS feed for individual posts can be useful. For example, you may want to add feeds from specific posts to RSS aggregator sites, or you may have created a valuable resource that other online users will want to syndicate.
The formula for making an RSS feed for a specific post item is shown below:
(Single Post Feed)
To create the above feed, copy the web address of your post, and add “/feed/?withoutcomments=1” to the end.
(Single Post Feed)
Note: By default, if you only add “/feed” to the end of the post, WordPress will return the comments for that post, not the content of the post itself.
Tip #3 – Displaying Category Feeds
Some your site visitors may only want to syndicate content about specific topics. They may not want to subscribe to your entire site’s feed.
With WordPress, you can create category feeds.
Just use the format below:
(Format for WP post categories RSS feed)
Copy the selected category link address to your clipboard …
(Copy the selected category link address …)
And append “feed” to the end of it …
(WordPress post categories RSS feed format)
The feed now only includes content published in this particular category …
(Category-specific RSS feed)
The WordPress Codex also provides different ways to create feeds not just for post categories, but also feeds for tags, authors, search, etc.
For this example, let’s create a feed for a specific post category using the format shown below:
(Post Category feed format. Source: WordPress Codex)
Here is the feed format WordPress recommends using. In this example, the post category ID is ’42’. We’ll need to replace the post category ID and the domain name …
(WordPress post category feed format)
To find the post category ID, go to Posts > Categories …
(Posts > Categories menu)
Locate the post category you want and hover your mouse over the title to reveal its unique ID …
(Post Category ID)
In our example, the post category ID is ’29’ and the post category feed format we need to use for this specific category with our domain name looks like this …
(Post category feed format with domain name and ID)
Copy and paste the feed into your browser and hit enter …
(Paste the feed into your browser)
This will display the feed for that specific category …
(RSS feed of a specific post category)
Note that in this example, WordPress automatically converted the feed format we pasted into the browser into the category feed we had used in the previous section of this tutorial …
(Post category feed format)
Here is the feed format again …
(Post category feed)
In this case, the simplest way to create additional feeds for specific categories is to simply change the post category slug …
(Change the post category slug to create a new category specific feed)
Paste the edited feed into your web browser and hit enter to display the content for that specific category’s feed …
(Post category feed content)
Now that you have a method for creating feeds for specific post categories (or tags, authors, etc.), you can even create a directory or list of individual feeds for visitors.
Tip #4 – Publish Your Own List Of Feeds For Your Site Visitors
You can create your own directory of RSS feeds that allows your readers to subscribe only to specific categories, just like large authoritative sites …
(Set Up Your Own RSS Feeds List)
You can also link a button graphic to each category feed and then create a table or a list of your feeds on a new page …
(RSS button image. Image: public-domain-photos.com)
To learn more about creating tables in WordPress, refer to this tutorial:
WordPress RSS – Additional Notes
You can customize feeds in a number of ways, such as adding images to feeds, ads, etc. Some of these feed customizations require editing code.
WordPress allows several RSS feed configurations without code editing skills. For example, here are some of the kinds of feed formats you can create …
(Different Feed Types You Can Create With WordPress RSS)
For your convenience, here are the different feed types, descriptions, and feed examples shown above:
- Feed Type: All Posts
- Description: Content feed – Includes your latest entries
- Example Feed: http://yourdomain.com/feed/
- Feed Type: All Comments
- Description: Comments feed – Displays the latest comments posted on your website
- Example Feed: http://yourdomain.com/comments/feed/
- Feed Type: Individual Posts
- Description: Feed containing specific items
- Example Feed: http://yourdomain.com/title-of-blog-post/feed/
- Feed Type: Individual Posts Comments
- Description: Includes the latest comments made on a specific post entry
- Example Feed: http://yourdomain.com/title-of-blog-post/feed/
- Feed Type: Archives
- Description: Day – Contains the latest post entries in each archive
- Example Feed: http://yourdomain.com/2013/05/15/feed/
- Feed Type: Archives
- Description: Month – Displays the latest post entries in each archive
- Example Feed: http://yourdomain.com/2014/09/feed/
- Feed Type: Archives
- Description: Year – Contains the latest entries in each archive
- Example Feed: http://yourdomain.com/2016/feed/
- Feed Type: Search Results
- Description: Includes the latest items for a search query
- Example Feed: http://yourdomain.com/search/term/feed/
- Feed Type: Custom Post Type
- Description: Includes latest post entries for a custom type (e.g. book)
- Example Feed: http://yourdomain.com/feed/?post_type=book
One last thing …
It’s a good idea to promote your RSS feed. Place your ’subscribe to RSS’ button image somewhere visible …
(Encourage visitors to subscribe to your RSS feeds!)
Also, keep in mind that online users will only syndicate your content if you provide your subscribers with high-quality information that will add value to their sites and benefit their visitors.
(Add great content to your site and get other sites to syndicate your content online using WordPress and RSS!)
If you need help coming up with content ideas subscribe to our FREE content creation course using the form below:
Also, don’t forget to subscribe to our RSS feed 🙂
RSS – Additional Resources:
- RSS Feed Images – Visit an online resource site like Feedicons.com or search online (e.g. “free RSS icons”, “RSS images”, etc.) for sites that allow you to download Free RSS graphics.
- RSSBoard.org – The RSS Advisory Board provides useful information about RSS.
- Wikipedia.org/RSS – Learn more about the history and benefits of using RSS.
- WordPress.org – WordPress software documentation and information. Visit this site for additional information about using RSS feeds in WordPress.
Congratulations! Now you know how to find your WordPress RSS feed, how to use your WordPress RSS feed to get your content syndicated online, and how to display someone else’s content on your site using RSS.
Hopefully, now you have a better understanding of issues that can affect your website and how WordPress can help you grow your business online. To learn more about the benefits of using WordPress for a business web site please click on links to visit other great articles and tutorials we have published on this site.
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