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How Yahoo's Recent Facelift Can Mean More Traffic To Your Site
By Tinu AbayomiPaul (c) 2004

It even surprised me. 

Yes, even though I have been pointing out the possibility since 
July, and was forced by demand to release my study findings 
before my book was even half finished, I was shocked when I 
heard the news as well. 

You see, I was sure we were at least a year off from this 
glorious day.

The News

Yahoo has had a little facelift, which you've probably read 
about by now. The real news is more important for your site
- the "My Yahoo!" page looks different too. 

On September 28, 2004, surfers who logged into their 
personalized Yahoo area saw an announcement explaining the RSS 
and Atom files that show updated information to a website as 
content feeds, effectively pushing news feeds into the 
mainstream. 

The new look to this section of Yahoo was presented as a full 
page ad to every single account holder upon first log in that 
day, and even now, there remains a notice posted.

When I logged into my page in the "My Yahoo!" section, I saw a 
big difference in the number of feeds left to choose from, as 
well as in the way they were presented. 

Currently, the RSS module boasts "150,000 sources". If your site 
isn't one of them, its crucial that you act now. If you have one 
and you're not getting the results you'd like from your set-up, 
there are small changes you can implement that will make a huge 
difference in your listing.

Best results aren't as easy as submitting your feed now, but 
you're still within the window of opportunity - if you do it 
properly.

What the News Could Mean For Your Site If You Act Now

One of my clients recently called this "the back door into 
Yahoo". Whether that statement is accurate as far as getting 
included, or receiving an increase in rankings within Yahoo's 
search engine via your feed, depends on your site, and whether 
you create your feed correctly. 

If you could use a daily stream of traffic from even a small 
portion of Yahoo's estimated 20 million users, this could be 
your final wake-up call. You'll want to learn how to create a 
feed that gets well listed immediately.

Currently, the RSS module boasts "150,000 sources". Yahoo will 
still need hundreds, perhaps thousands more, even if it only 
intends to list the "creme de la creme" of the submissions it 
gets. Being in that group is as easy as submitting your feed.

Being at the top of the list isn't. However, you're still within 
the window of opportunity if you take the time to learn how to 
do this properly. You can get free details on how to do that at 
helpmerss.com .

"My Yahoo!" RSS Headline module Coming Out of Beta?

If I had to guess, I'd say all signs point to yes. When that 
happens, Yahoo's RSS/Atom directory will likely contain only 
those who added their feeds early. New feeds seeking to be 
included will probably face stricter standards.

If you don't have one yet don't worry, because it's never been 
easier to make one. If you can cut and paste, there are tools 
all over the Net that will show you how - some will even generate 
the file for you. 

However, there are still certain guidelines you need to follow 
with your feed to get a good result out of Yahoo - it's not as 
simple as adding your feed now that there are more competing 
listings.

Yahoo is still accepting new sources for RSS feeds. Readers of 
my last book state that they are getting excellent results 
following my instructions, though initial inclusion no longer 
occurs at the same rate. Plenty of markets have few feeds 
available, or none at all. Your site could fill that void.

That means you still have a chance at a first page ranking. The 
traffic I get on a daily basis from My Yahoo readers alone sounds 
like I just like to brag.

And I do, but that's hardly the point.

The point is, there's no place you can even go to buy the 
caliber of exposure to the quality of audience that reads feeds. 
The typical audience that accesses information by feed are also 
blog readers. A study this summer estimated that the 69.3% of 
blog readers are aged 29-50, and that 40% of this audience are 
people who have household incomes greater than $90,000. 

The type of surfer that would subscribe to your feed has
pre-qualified themselves as a lead, with a certain level 
of understanding and interest in your topic, often on a 
professional level. And if you don't spend every post hitting 
them over the head with your sales pitch, they can be both 
loyal and interactive.

(If you do, they'll unsubscribe from your feed faster than
you can spell s-p-a-m.)

And if you're in the business of providing information you can 
use, in a way that shows how you can solve their problem, it's 
like preaching to the converted. If your product solves their 
problem, and you show that you deserve the trust of this 
subscriber, you'll also find the route to a sale an increasingly 
downward slope. 

The bottom line - this is the power surfer's favorite toy. And 
if your content appeals to them, you need to learn how to play.

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Learn how Tinu saw a 75% increase in both traffic and sales
from feeds at http://freetraffictip.com/rssbook  . For free
reprint rights to her articles (and a potential $500 bribe)
send a blank email to moneyarticles@freetraffictip.com . 
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