Posted by Christopher Hosford under Web/TechResponses (2)

In the June 13 issue of MeetingNews, I wrote about the various ways meetings managers are marketing their events. I documented how digital marketing tools —  email, e-newsletters, websites, etc. — have really come into their own, swamping more traditional forms of outreach. But one of my sources, David Berkowitz, of the search engine marketing firm iCrossing, said he thought RSS feeds also would eventually become just as popular as these other meetings marketing tools. After considering this, I agree. In fact, RSS technology could be a meeting planner’s favorite digital marketing tool in the years ahead.

RSS is a relatively new technology. (Here’s a pretty comprehensive website devoted to describing the technology.) It’s used most often these days by news organizations with breaking stories — consumers use RSS-equipped browsers or RSS readers to collect and monitor these pre-selected feeds in one centralized location, without having to wade through all the news sites individually. But RSS also has tremendous potential as a nifty and efficient way for a meetings manager to distribute updates about his event. And if you’re an association member or potential attendee, it’s an obvious means of learning from your favorite organizations and convention websites about deadlines, meeting room changes, session time swaps, etc. The news gets “pushed” to you when it’s posted.

But despite the technology’s obvious virtues as a meetings marketing tool, I haven’t been able to find RSS capabilities on the websites of any conventions or associations which hold conventions. Even the big professional tradeshow companies, like Reed Expositions and VNU Expositions (a sister company of my own company), seem to be lacking RSS capability. The website of my own company's trade show, MeetingWorld, does not feature RSS technology either.

Traditionally, meetings websites have been pretty static creatures. Meetings managers throw up a website, complete with session descriptions and a link to a registration service, and then they forget it. But imagine if the meetings manager created a web page or linked blog that updated attendees regularly with all the late-breaking news and reminders and price-break deadlines and new exhibitors and special exhibitor offers and new hotels in the room block and after-hours events and banquet menus, and on and on and on. And most importantly, instead of attendees or association members having to remember to check the website for updates, the updates would come to them courtesy of an RSS feed. Pretty cool, eh? I think so.

Does anyone out there know of a meeting or convention website using RSS feeds? I’d like to know. They’ll get a Tip of the Hosford Hat (pace, Jimmy Hatlo), and recognition in this space as an industry trend-setter. Please respond to me by email, or reply to this blog by clicking on the link below.