The answer of What is a Sitemap question is A sitemap is known as an XML file with a list of URLs and additional information for each URL. Especially one of the priorities of search engines is to crawl your website. Search engines that want to perform this crawl will read your sitemap. Thanks to the sitemap, you will show Google the importance of the pages and files on your website. Along with your site map, you can submit the information that you will update your pages and show their change status to the search engines together with the site map. There are many important functions that a sitemap will provide for websites. These functions come to the fore in subjects such as providing content information on video, pictures, and news content. If you are wondering what a sitemap is and how to create an SEO-friendly sitemap, you can review the rest of the article. In this way, you will be able to access the details. For the question of what is a sitemap, a detailed summary can be created in this way.
What is a Sitemap?
If we detail the question of what is a sitemap, Sitemap has an important function for your website. Thanks to the sitemap, search engines will be able to find your new and updated pages easily. At the same time, you will not need to follow effective internal linking practices. Sitemaps will be able to present all the details about the pages of your website to the browsers for you. Your website will be able to continue exploration activities with your sitemap, new and with few backlinks.
- If you think your website is small, you may not need a sitemap. Also, since your website is well connected internally, Google will be able to find all your important pages by examining the links. Also, you will not need to use a sitemap in cases where you do not have much media to show in the search results.
Explore Sitemap Formats
There are some formats that Google has adopted in the sitemap. Below you can review the formats that Google has accepted for multiple sitemaps and sitemap index files.
- .XML: XML Sitemap (Extensible Markup Language) is known as a text file that lists all the URLs of the website you own. This format, which provides details about each URL, will include information such as when it was last updated, the importance of this update, as well as whether there are other language variations of the URL.
- RSS, mRSS, and Atom 1.0 –: If you have a website with regularly changing pages, it makes sense for you to use an RSS feed to notify Google of new updates to your website. Thanks to the RSS feed, you will only speed up the processing of new pages.
- Text–: If your sitemap has a layout that contains only the URLs of web pages, you will need to submit a simple text file to Google with a URL on each line.
How to Create an SEO-Friendly Sitemap?
After you determine which URLs will be included in your sitemap, you can create an SEO-friendly sitemap. But there are some methods you should choose for this.
- You can choose to have your CMS generate a sitemap for you: If you prefer to use a content management system (CMS) such as WordPress, Wix, or Blogger, then a sitemap will be available to search engines.
- You can opt for Automatic Sitemap: If you have more than a few dozen URLs on your website, you will need a sitemap. You can choose many free tools for this.
- You may prefer Manual Sitemap: If you have a web property with less than a few dozen URLs, you may prefer a manual sitemap. To do this you will need to start a text editor and then follow the syntax of the sitemap formats section.
Top 5 WordPress Sitemap Plugins
If you have a website created with WordPress, you will need to take advantage of the XML sitemap functionality. Thanks to the plugins with custom sitemap functionality, you will be able to provide more control for your website. You can also opt for the comprehensive WordPress SEO plugin and check out its plugins that focus on a flexible XML map. Below are the 5 best WordPress Sitemap plugins for you. You can review and choose them below:
- Yoast SEO
- Rank Math
- Jetpack
- XML Sitemaps
- Companion Sitemap Generator
Sitemap plugins you can choose like this will be one of the logical choices you can choose to increase functionality. By choosing many more plugins, try to help the development of your site and help search engines easily recognize the pages of your site.
Conclusion
There are many effects that site maps have provided in the formation of a website. Thanks to the sitemaps, which will especially help with SEO compliance, you will be able to increase the control of web designers on the pages to be scanned with the preview. At the same time, you can create a professional experience for your visitors who will view your site.
In this article, we answered the question of what is a sitemap. You can find comprehensive information about SEO tools by reading our Small SEO Tools article.
Frequently Asked Questions About Sitemap
You have learned about the installation and details of the site map in the article. If you want to know more about the sitemap, you can review the frequently asked questions and answers provided for you below.
What is the purpose of a sitemap?
The question of what is a sitemap is followed by the question of what is the purpose of a sitemap. The sitemap has a very effective function in providing a preview before the website is created. Thanks to the site map, you will be able to provide professional support in the process of creating your website, allowing search engines to scan your website pages better.
How do I create a sitemap?
If you want to create a sitemap, the most important step for your website will be to buy a plugin. In this way, you will be able to perform the operations using the plugin and then send the sitemap you have prepared to Google and provide the formation you want.
Does every website need a sitemap?
Not all websites need a sitemap. A sitemap is not needed for websites that consist of several pages and have a small appearance. For this reason, it would be more logical to choose a sitemap for sites that are thought to have large websites and appeal to high audiences.
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