How to Configuring Sitemap and Submitting it to Google Search Console
What is a sitemap?
A sitemap is a file that contains a list of all URLs or web pages on your website. It helps search engines like Google understand the structure of your site, crawl it more effectively, and index its pages. Sitemaps are essential for improving the visibility of your website in search engine results pages (SERPs) and ensuring that all pages are properly indexed.
Configuring sitemap with SEO Audit
The SEO Audit module for PrestaShop supports the generation and configuration of XML sitemaps for your website. Here's how you can configure sitemaps using SEO Audit:
- Access the SEO Audit module from the PrestaShop admin panel.
- Navigate to the "Sitemap" page.
- Turn on the “Enable sitemaps” option.
- Configure the settings for your sitemap, including the frequency of updates, priority of pages, and inclusion/exclusion of specific URLs or content types.
- Save your settings.
Submitting a sitemap to Google Search Console
Once you have configured your sitemap using the SEO Audit module, you need to submit it to Google Search Console to ensure that Google can crawl and index your site effectively. Follow these steps to submit your sitemap:
- Log in to your Google Search Console account.
- Select your website property.
- Navigate to the "Sitemaps" section.
- Enter the URL of your sitemap (e.g., https://www.yourwebsite.com/sitemap.xml). This URL is provided by the SEO Audit module on the “Sitemap” page.
- Click on the "Submit" button.
Setting up cronjob for automatic sitemap submission
To automate the process of submitting your sitemap to Google Search Console, you can set up a cronjob on your server to ping Google whenever your sitemap is updated. For detailed instructions on how to install cronjob on the server, please refer to the following post: [How to set up cronjob for your site].
You need to use the cronjob command provided by the SEO Audit module.
- After accessing the module configuration page, open the "Settings > Cronjob" page.
- Copy the command provided by the module.
- Use this command to install cronjob on the server.
Understanding the ping method for sitemap submission
The ping method is a simple HTTP request sent to Google with the URL of the sitemap. When Google receives this request, it checks the sitemap for updates and crawls the new or modified URLs. By setting up a cronjob to ping Google regularly, you can ensure that your sitemap is always up to date and that Google is aware of any changes to your site's content.
NOTE:
The process of indexing pages on a website is entirely under the control of Google, and we have no direct influence on it. It can take some time for search engines to recrawl your site and index new pages, so be patient.
In the meantime, you can continue to improve your website's SEO by creating high-quality content, building backlinks, and promoting your site on social media.
By following these steps, you can configure your sitemap, submit it to Google Search Console, and set up automated sitemap submission to ensure that your website is effectively crawled and indexed by search engines.