Last updated on January 30th, 2021 at 10:07 am
Making sure Google knows every URL on your website is critical if you want to be found on the Internet.
Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay
We recently talked about some of the great search engines on the Internet that aren’t Google. And although we pointed out some of Google’s issues, the fact remains that Google is still the biggest and baddest search engine. You simply must rank on Google if you want to get traffic to your website without having to pay for advertising. The quickest way to get your site indexed by Google is by submitting your sitemap.
What is a Sitemap?
A sitemap is a file or URL that contains a table of all the links in your website. Search engines ‘consume’ sitemaps as a roadmap on where to look for your content. Handing over your sitemap to a search engine is basically your way of saying, “here’s everything on my website, please add it to your index”.
Submitting to Google
Having a sitemap isn’t enough. You have to tell search engines where your sitemap is located. For Google, we use the Google Search Console, AKA Google Webmaster Tools. The video below shows you exactly how to do it:
For a more detailed explanation of the steps, including site verification within Google Webmaster Tools, check out this video:
There are plenty of other search engines out there which accept sitemap submissions. Google should be your primary target though.
What You Need
You’ll need a Google account in order to access Google’s Webmaster Tools. It’s free. Do it. Questions or comments? Let us know below.
Sharif Jameel is a business owner, IT professional, runner, & musician. His professional certifications include CASP, Sec+, Net+, MCSA, & ITIL and others. He’s also the guitar player for the Baltimore-based cover bands, Liquifaction and Minority Report.
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