As I wrote in another post, you cannot assume your blog readers know how to use RSS.

Even though you’re comfortable with it, the majority of web surfers simply don’t understand it.

So if you use Feedburner, make sure you also offer the “Subscribe by Email” feature in addition to your RSS feed.

This will allow people to subscribe to your blog with a more conventional, recognizable method.

Now, I personally think RSS is the best thing since sliced bread, but it’s not for everyone.

I have to admit. I just recently added the email feature myself. A lady was kind enough to suggest this on one of my posts.

To be honest, I’m not sure why I didn’t offer it at first.

I guess I just assumed my explanation of RSS would be enough. Apparently it wasn’t. Here’s a perfect example…

Read this comment posted by Bill last month.

I gotta say, Bill’s comment made me chuckle a bit, but he represents a lot of Web surfers today.

When I did add Feedburner’s email subscribe feature I immediately gained 200 subscribers in a couple of weeks.

More proof my audience is still not very comfortable with RSS. It took me much longer to gain 200 subscribers through my regular feed.

Unless you’re sure your audience understands how to use RSS, make sure you offer the Email Subscribe feature.

Of course you need FeedBurner’s service to do this. It’s completely free and easy to setup. You can export the email addresses to a local file if you wish. Plus, FeedBurner reports your subscriber stats.

And if you aren’t using FeedBurner and/or don’t plan on it, at least put a text link near your RSS feed explaining what RSS is and how to use it.

Remember, know your audience.

If you use RSS and are familiar with how it works, it’s easy to assume your audience understands it too.

And even though it’s been around for a few years, the average surfer still doesn’t know what an RSS feed is, much less how to subscribe.

It’s worth taking the time to explain what RSS is and the benefits of it. I recommend placing a link underneath (or near) your RSS button like I did (see right nav on this blog).

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By the way, that wasn’t an invite for you to copy my content on my RSS explanation page. Please tap into your own creativity.

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Or you can add a small question mark image next to the button that links to a short explanation of how to subscribe.

By the way, don’t bore them with all the technical details. Explain it briefly and stress the benefits of this functionality. Reassure them it’s the easiest way to keep track of your content.

There are many ways to educate your audience about RSS, so choose what works best for your site. Just make sure you take the time to do it, and don’t assume that little orange button is enough.