There is one final point before we finish and it is something optional you may wish to choose. You may wish to keep your existing feed address if you have existing subscribers and to future proof your feed. To do this you will need to use an HTTP redirect in your htaccess file. If this means nothing to you I would suggest further research before doing this.

You will need to add a new line to your htaccess file.

redirect temp /rssfeed.xml http://feeds.feedburner.com/feedburnerFeed

You will need to change /rssfeed.xml to name of your current feed and Feedburner path to new feed address you will be given by Feedburner. You will need to point Feedburner to a copy of your feed that only Feedburner will see. You will then offer /rssfeed.xml feed address you created in your htaccess file to you visitors to subscribe to your feed.

This is how it should work. Feedburner will periodically check your address you gave to Feedburner for new posts. Your visitors will subscribe using address you used in your htaccess file and get redirected to feed that Feedburner has created for you. This will mean that in future if you wish to stop using Feedburner service all you need to do is remove line from your htaccess file and your readers will not notice any difference.

Resources for finding RSS feeds for syndication: RSS Network - http://www.rss-network.com RSS Locator - http://www.rss-locator.com

LINK DIRECTORY While this takes a little more time, compiling a collection of niche websites on related topics can significantly enhance value of a portal. Topic-specific directories and search engines can achieve high search engine rankings with larger engines like Google and MSN, and can easily be optimized for a collection of search terms. The process can even be automated if you have programming experience.

Sample Link Directory - http://www.investing-partners.com

TOPIC SPECIFIFC FORUM The most successful forums are those that are highly focused and niche-oriented. Establishing a community of individuals with common interests will result in return visitors. Managing a forum is not overly complex and there are free forum scripts available that will provide forum structure. Many of forums have scripts available that will allow for search engines to spider contents and forum posts. As content flourishes, site will increase in value.

Free Forum Scripts: http://www.phpbb.com

More on topic-specific portals or information radars can be found in Robin Good's book 'Newsmastering'. http://www.masternewmedia.org/reports/newsmasterstoolkit/

A site that is focused on a relatively narrow range of goods and services will find that there is less competition. Topic-centric websites that provide a gateway to niche information related to a particular industry, sector, topic or market segment are becoming increasingly valuable and popular. Compiling resource using free resources will minimize capital investment. Regardless of whether you are marketing a product, service or advertising, narrowing topic focus will attract a targeted audience who genuinely are interested in website topic, allowing you to monetize portal, and minimize expense.

About the Author: Sharon Housley manages marketing for FeedForAll http://www.feedforall.com software for creating, editing, publishing RSS feeds and podcasts. In addition Sharon manages marketing for NotePage http://www.notepage.net a wireless text messaging software company.