How to Create a Feed Signature with Secret Content for Subscribers Only

Jan 30, 2008
18 Comments

A lot of people ask me how I created the feed signature that allows only subscribers to download my free ebook How to Start a Business Blog.

The answer is simple and… unglamorous: I use a WordPress plugin called Sig2feed and some HTML/CSS coding. Anybody can use the plugin. If you don’t know HTML or CSS, your formatting and content options for your feed signature will be pretty limited (not that having a gorgeous feed sig block is a law, or anything).

sig2feed.jpg

Because feed readers and email clients don’t use the same stylesheet as the blog whose post it displays, I created in-line CSS to style everything up. My logo and picture of the book are linked to on my webserver. The original purpose of Feed2sig was to put copyright information into your feed content in the event scrapers steal your content, but you can put whatever code you want in it. The result looks like this:

feedsig.jpg

Sig2feed is not the only plugin that does this sort of thing. It may not even be the best one. It just so happens to be the one that I am using. I’m going to be all lazy and not go looking for the others. If anyone can suggest others they like, your no-followed comments are mighty welcome. Help make this post into a little educational frenzy of feed signature goodness.

  • Very useful post. I've been looking for incentives to get people to signup for the RSS, and this is one of the most practical. I have a book that will fit this need perfectly.
  • Michael Martine
    Some RSS readers really try their best to strip out any kind in in-line formatting so that all you see is exactly how the reader software wants it displayed, rather than how the content author wants it displayed.

    And there's nothing wrong with that, either. That is, after all, kinda the point of using a reader.

    Update: looks like our comments crossed at the same time. :) I didn't change anything. It might just be a mild case of "out of mind, out of sight" if you know what I mean.

    PS - It's a good thing you put the word deter in quotes, because of course it does nothing of the kind. ;)
  • Michael:

    Please ignore my last comment above. I hadn't noticed it before but apparently the above graphic image is now seen in my RSS feed for Remarkablogger but I hadn't seen it before. Perhaps you fixed it or something? It's fine now!
  • Michael:

    One more thing. I just realized that I'm not seeing the footer shown above in my RSS feed. I had forgotten all about that and wanted to tell you about it but kept forgetting because I was looking for it. Since I am an RSS subscriber, I figured it'd be there but it isn't.

    I wonder why?
  • Hi Michael:

    When I saw this article in the Remarkablogger RSS feed, I said, wow, this is gonna be good.

    Then my heart sank when I saw that a little bit of CSS styling would have to be done to make full use of it. As you can imagine, a lot of us aren't that saavy with that sort of thing. Yes, I know you're available for hire to help with that and that's probably what I'm going to do when I'm ready for it.

    Meanwhile, I actually found a plug-in that I'm using to "deter" scrapers from stealing my content. It is called "RSS Footer" at:

    http://www.joostdevalk.nl/wordpress/rss-footer/

    Like you said, unless the blogger knows a little about CSS styling, this plug-in is also somewhat limited but it's another option out there.
  • Michael Martine
    Koka, you're welcome. I didn't mention it was a response to a reader question, but maybe I should have.

    Glen and Pelf - Doing it this way has actually caused a problem I hadn't foreseen: People who receive only plain text emails don't see it, and I have to send them the ebook as an attachment. I will have to change it to a plainer look.
  • I was using something a little different but this looks a lot better.
  • Thanks for writing this post. Getting answers to email questions like this makes the blogging world a better place to live in.
  • I was sure it involved some CSS because it couldn't be done with HTML :D
  • You have revealed one of the great secrets of the blog feed world. :) This post has answered on of the important questions on my "Need to Learn" list for 2008. Thanks.
  • Michael Martine
    Colbs, and Mani, you're welcome. Andrew, it's okay if you don't have any other plugins to suggest. Not too many people are capable or would want to write a plugin, but that's definitely a good niche audience to write for. I think probably the most powerful and "lethal" combinations in today's business environment is the combination of programmer and entrepreneur. WordPress plugins are a great entry into that and plugins are a great freebie before selling a product for money.
  • Thanks Michael,

    In fact, I had been looking for this stuff. :D
  • Still new to blogging, html and css. I do have a word press blog that I working on personally kind of in the drawing board stages. Your ebook has been helpful. Thanks for the hard work.
  • I don't have an alternative plugin as such; however, I have recently written a tutorial on writing your own plugin to achieve this.

    It is part of a series of very simple, very quick plugins, to help beginners.
  • Michael Martine
    LOL, done. Thanks for pointing that out. :)
  • Michael

    So, isn't it the right time to change copyright info to ...-2008? :)

    Nevertheless - thanks for the tip!

    Ludwik
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