Posted on December 6, 2008 - by Kelly Verge
RSS Directory Submission – Easy, Semi-Automated, and Free
Yesterday I posted a comprehensive list of RSS directories to which you can submit feeds from your sites for both backlinks and traffic.
However, the list is huge.
I can only speak for myself, but although I’d like to be able to say that I would submit every new site to that entire list, I know that over time there would be a dropoff. Before long, I’d be lucky if I remembered to add my feed to the first five on the list .
I prefer an automated solution for this type of repetitive task.
I have a couple of software tools that are designed to help automate this – one of which only handles RSS directory submissions. Neither has anywhere near as many directories as are on the list. (The second tool, SENuke, also does many other things very well, so I’m still happy with it.)
I’ve ironed out a mostly-automated system over the past few days that will make it super simple to add your RSS feed to all of the sites on the list with just a couple of easy steps each time you create a feed-enabled site. Follow along:
- Copy the link for one of your feeds. For Wordpress blogs, http://yoursite.com/feed/ will work.
- Go to http://pipes.yahoo.com/pipes/.
- Either create an account or log in to your account if you already have one.
- Once inside your pipes account, click on the “Create a pipe” button.
- Drag the “Fetch Feed” block into the workspace. This will also create the “Pipe Output” block.
- Enter your feed URL’s into the feeds block. If you want to add additional feeds, just click on the small “+” next to “URL.”
- Click and drag the control point from the feed block to the output block. This will create the “pipe” for your data. (Yahoo pipes is designed to be able to do some pretty complex stuff, but we’re just mixing feeds)
- Click on “Save” and name your pipe something memorable. Your new pipe will be your friend, so treat it kindly.
- On the next page, click on “More Options” to get to the URL for the pipe’s RSS feed.
- Right-click on “Copy Link Location” to copy the feed’s URL into your clipboard.
- Paste the RSS URL from your brand new pipe into every single directory on the list from yesterday’s post. This step is tedious, but the great news is that you only have to do it once.
Whenever you create a new site with a feed, just head back to your saved pipe and add the additional feed(s) to the pipe’s input. You’ve already added the resulting combined feed to the RSS directories, so you’re just adding content to the existing feed.
If you think this is a great tip, sign up for my list at http://backlinkage.com/secret/ and I’ll let you know when I find a cool trick, technique or product.
Also don’t forget to digg or stumble this post if you found it extremely useful. Just use the “share/save” button just below this text.
You've visited a few times and I would appreciate your thoughts on this post. Why not comment?
28 Comments
We'd love to hear yours!
Leave a Comment
Here's your chance to speak.
Visit My Website
December 7, 2008
Permalink
Thanks a lot for sharing this! I’ve been only submitting to 4 directories. I wasn’t really thrilled about manually submitting feeds to more than that so I’ll be sure to try this tool out. I was hoping for a FREE automated tool.
Visit My Website
December 7, 2008
Permalink
I like saving time, great tip thanks!
Visit My Website
December 7, 2008
Permalink
This is awesome, as I’ve just started submitting to RSS directories.
I found you through another site and would like to subscribe. Can you please enable the email feature for subscription?
Visit My Website
December 7, 2008
Permalink
@Dennis I’ve activated email subscriptions through Feedburner. Alternatively, you should be able to choose “email” from the big RSS logo on the upper right and simply choose a service. Hope that helps.
Thanks for the comment!
Visit My Website
December 7, 2008
Permalink
I don’t understand why this works. Doesn’t “make new mix from this mix” issue a new number, so it doesn’t make any difference to the feed already submitted to the directories?
Visit My Website
December 7, 2008
Permalink
@John
My original plan was to write this post explaining how to do this with Yahoo Pipes (current, revised post). A friend suggested RSSMix as a much simpler solution.
You are correct that RSSMix doesn’t work the way he and I thought it did. I’ve edited the post to follow my original thoughts. I’m terribly sorry if anyone has gone to a great deal of effort following the original post.
Visit My Website
December 7, 2008
Permalink
Thanks for the quick update
I bet this could be done as a team effort.
1 person make the pipe and add all participant feeds.
Everyone else submit the feed to a couple of directories.
Anyone interested?
Visit My Website
December 9, 2008
Permalink
This sounds like a good idea. I’m curiouis about the RSS directories? Do people really search for information in RSS directories?
Visit My Website
December 9, 2008
Permalink
Gerald:
I submitted to the first 10 or so directories on the list that I didn’t need to register for. I’ve received 6 visitors in 24 hours. I’ll submit to another 10 today.
Visit My Website
December 9, 2008
Permalink
Hey Kelly, I tried the link at the top and it still says, “The feed does not have subscriptions by email enabled”, can you please check it?
Also the RSS button seems to be hooked to your social sites share links, not email.
Visit My Website
December 9, 2008
Permalink
@Dennis
I found the problem. I missed an option within the theme’s settings. The email subscription link at the top is working now.
Visit My Website
December 9, 2008
Permalink
@Gerald
You might get some direct traffic, but more importantly you’ll pick up backlinks over time as people syndicate the feed (assuming that you regularly add content).
Visit My Website
December 10, 2008
Permalink
Done! Thanks.
Visit My Website
December 17, 2008
Permalink
Thanks for sharing this great post! Very helpful………….!
Visit My Website
January 7, 2009
Permalink
Thanks for sharing!
Visit My Website
January 13, 2009
Permalink
Thanks for the post. I have several blogs. And this free tool will help me a lot.
Visit My Website
March 14, 2009
Permalink
great tip! ill surely be doing that! thanks for posting this article and making our jobs easier! thanks!
Visit My Website
March 31, 2009
Permalink
Hey, Thanks, for the cool information.
Take Care,
Ray.
Visit My Website
April 7, 2009
Permalink
I will have to Twitter this Website.
Yahoo Pipes is really cool, I will tell my friends to check this out.
Take care,
Ray.
Visit My Website
April 26, 2009
Permalink
I really like all the screenshots you included in this post, it helped me follow along much better. I guess I’m a bit of a visual learner.
Visit My Website
May 8, 2009
Permalink
Cool, I didn´t know much about RSS directories so far
Visit My Website
July 5, 2009
Permalink
Hi..
I am just wondering if using the Yahoo pipes method is better of just buy the RSSBot to auto submit is better.
Anybody had any xperience with RSSBot? or the yahoo Pipes method?
Al
Visit My Website
September 16, 2009
Permalink
I can only speak for myself, but although I’d like to be able to say that I would submit every new site to that entire list, I know that over time there would be a dropoff.
Visit My Website
September 23, 2009
Permalink
Great post. I had not heard about the Yahoo Pipes method. Currently, I have seven blogs on different niche topics. Creating one feed that will syndicate each blog will certainly save time.
As far as submitting to more than one RSS directory, I take a slow but steady approach. I have set a goal for myself to submit to five directories per day. I do not always make this goal but it does break the job down into smaller pieces.
Visit My Website
September 25, 2009
Permalink
[...] Re: Looking for a good free RSS submitter..any ideas? RSS Directory Submission – Easy, Semi-Automated, and Free | Backlinkage [...]
Visit My Website
September 25, 2009
Permalink
I have used Yahoo pipes before to combine feeds, but only when all the feeds were on the same topic (for example, my site on the topic, my squidoo lens, and my hubpage) and then I named the pipe with the name of the topic and submitted it using the inexpensive rssbot software (which only submits to about 30 sites of their choice).
So this idea of yours is cool for expanding, but I am bit cautious about combining my niches. Kelly, any thoughts about doing this with totally unrelated niches in the same feed?
Visit My Website
December 27, 2009
Permalink
I have the same concern as Jay. How effective can this be with unrelated niches?
Visit My Website
January 12, 2010
Permalink
I am all about short cuts. I have a small concern as to whether this will really work primarily because part of the trick is to get multiple listings in each of the RSS directories, so while you get the coverage, it’s not multiplied by anything and link juice will be passed off onto Yahoo Pipes instead of your RSS feed. That’s the SEO guy in me talking I guess. Thoughts anyone?