Sitemaps and SEO - Do sitemaps help your Google PageRank?

With the millions and millions of websites in existence today, how do you get yours noticed? The most common way is for it to be high up in the rankings of useful and relevant websites. Google is the most widely used search engine today. When someone keys in a search term on Google, you can only hope that your website comes up in the first ten pages of results. You do not have to sit there and just hope, though. There are a number of things you could do to improve your chances of being noticed. Google came up with a system to determine how important a website is. Everyday, Google’s automated programs called spiders “crawl” the World Wide Web. The purpose is to index all the existing web pages out there. The information these spiders gather is used as the basis for calculating what Google calls PageRank. This concept was developed by Google founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin of Stanford University. What exactly is PageRank? It is an algorithm which assigns numerical weights to linked pages. The higher the figures, the more important the page is. The PageRank is resultant of how many pages link to your own page. It is of no use to make bogus incoming links to your page though. Google gives more weight to more reputable sites that link to your page. Bogus and paid incoming links can actually be detected. The algorithm takes into account all incoming links – both external and internal. This is where sitemaps come into the picture. As can be gathered from the name, sitemaps are basically a guide to what can be found in your website. It is a page within your site wherein the user can see the overall structure and informational content. It contains links to all the pages in your website. Will providing a sitemap increase your Google PageRank? The answer is simple: yes it may. As mentioned earlier, the PageRank system also takes into account internal links. The more pages you have in your website, the higher you PageRank. A word of caution is necessary here. Pages should contain original content and not simply be copies of each other. Otherwise, your PageRank may actually decrease. As the spiders follow links to get to web pages, a sitemap will actually facilitate the “travel” of these spiders within your site. If each of the pages on your web site are interconnected and are easily accessible from one page, then chances are the spiders will find the necessary information faster and easier. Experts suggest that you put only a maximum of 100 links in one page. If you have more than that number of links, you should create different sets of sitemaps. In order for the idea of the sitemap to really work, you need to provide a link to the sitemap on every page on your website. The keys to increasing your PageRank are fairly simple. Include original content in as many pages as you can. Link your pages together. Create a sitemap to make navigation easier. Provide links to the sitemap for each page. This way, both user and spiders can find all the information that you have to offer.

Striking out on your own: Do you really need a sitemap generator?

There are so many responsibilities that are associated with starting a website. Each step towards the realization of a website requires a lot of hard work and utmost dedication to achieve results and to pay attention to detail. Only by doing this can one ensure that a website is set up successfully and able to meet the goals set for its creation. Aside from the mental mind frame that a website creator or business owner must possess in order to make an effective website there are also certain tools that are a requirement to ensure the success of a website. One of these important tools is a sitemap. A sitemap is an instrument that is used in order to make the navigation on a website so much easier. The word “map” truly describes what it does as it serves the same purpose in a website. A sitemap contains the website’s structure, indicating the pages and how each one is interlinked to one another. This is indicated through the form of the various links that point to the major sections as well as subsections of the whole website. The sitemap that a website uses is not just made for cosmetic purposes. It has a real useful and very essential role to play in making a website more effective. Its most important use is to make it so much easier for visitors to the website to navigate through all of the pages inside it. In effect, a sitemap prevents a visitor from getting lost inside a website – a very frustrating and irritating experience that turns off visitors and effectively makes them refuse to go back to the website again. The sitemap also ensures that they find the information that they are looking for immediately and without too much effort. A visitor who is able to find the information that he is looking for quickly (and painlessly) will be enticed to visit the website again. This return business is ultimately the foundation of a website’s success. As a way of helping web designers and business owners who have websites make effective sitemaps, sitemap generators have been introduced to make the task easier. With a sitemap generator, making sitemap becomes fool proof and easy. Is it possible to make a sitemap on your own without the aid of a sitemap generator. Of course, it is possible. Before the creation of the various sitemap generators, web designers make sitemaps on their own. But this process is quite long and tedious, not to mention fraught with errors. Even though it would ultimately be the choice of the website owner, web designer or business owner if they will use a sitemap generator or not, there really is no compelling reason not to use one. With a sitemap generator, making sitemaps are made so much easier and error free. What’s more, with a sitemap generator, every single change in the page line-up or content change is abruptly reflected, something that needs to be done manually every time if one will not use a sitemap generator.

I, robot: How do search engine spiders and robots work?

Some internet surfers still hold on to the mistaken belief that actual people visit each and every website and then input it for inclusion in the search engine’s database. Imagine, if these were true! With billions of websites available on the internet and with a majority of these sites offering fresh content it will take thousands of people to achieve the tasks made by search engine spiders and robots – and even then they won’t be as efficient or as thorough.

Search engine spiders and robots are pieces of code or software that have only one aim – seek content on the internet and within each and every individual web page out there. These tools have a very important role in how effectively search engines operate.

Search engine spiders and robots visit websites and get the necessary information that it needs to determine the nature and content of the website and then adds the data to the search engine’s index. Search engine spiders and robots follow links from one website to another so that it can consistently and infinitely gather the necessary information. The ultimate goal of search engine spiders and robots is to compile a comprehensive and valuable database that can deliver the most relevant results to the search queries of visitors.

But how exactly do search engine spiders and robots work?

The whole process begins when a web page is sent to a search engine for submission. The submitted URL is added to the queue of websites that will be visited by the search engine spider. Submissions can be optional though because most spiders will be able to find the content in a web page if other websites link to the page. This is the reason why it is a good idea to build reciprocal links with other website. By enhancing the link popularity of your website and getting links from other sites that have the same topic as your website.

When the search engine spider robot visits the website, it checks if there is an existing robots.txt file. The file tells the robot which areas of the site are off limits to its probe – like certain directories that have no use for search engines. All search engine bots look for this text file so it is a good idea to put one even if it is blank.

The robots list and store all of the links found on a page and they follow each link to its destination website or page.

The robots then submit all of this information to the search engine, which in turn compiles the data received from all the bots and builds the search engine database. This part of the process already has the intervention of search engine engineers who write the algorithms employed in evaluating and scoring the information that the search engine bots compiled. The moment all of the information is added to the search engine database this information is already made available to search engine visitors who are making search queries in the search engine.

Anatomy of a Good Sitemap

A sitemap is an aid used in making navigation through a website easier. It contains the structure of the website along with the included links to the major parts and subsections of the website.

A website’s sitemap has a practical and essential use. It makes it easier for visitors to visit through and navigate the website. The navigational help ensures that they do not get lost and that they will not have to look futilely for the information or page that they need. A visitor who immediately finds the information that he needs quickly in a website has a higher chance of coming back for another visit.

Many website administrators, designers and webmasters do not fully exploit the uses and benefits of having a good sitemap. For most of them, merely providing a list of links that do not really give a good service to visitors to the website is more than adequate. For them, as long as spiders can find the pages in their website then they are content. But wouldn’t it better if you can design a sitemap page that is not only big help to your visitors but also adds value to your website?

The characteristic of a good sitemap is that each link has an accompanying description about the target page for each link. This helps visitors who go to your site and would rely on it in navigating through your webpages.

Let’s look at two examples:

Example 1

Link with no description

Rock music

Example 2

Link with description

Rock music, the history of British rock music, From the Beatles to the Rolling Stones, David Bowie, Duran Duran, U2, The best British bands and rock acts in history. Trace how rock music in Britain evolved.

There is a definite difference between these two examples. From a mere cursory look at the two examples it is obviously apparent that the second example is far more effective in giving the proper information to visitors. Website visitors are more likely to appreciate the kind of listing illustrated in Example No. 2. This is because most people are more at home with a search engine style listing because it is easier to navigate. No one would like to visit a website and see a sitemap presented similarly to the first example because there is a complete lack of information.

There is also an added benefit to making a descriptive sitemap. It helps in raising your search engine ranking.

By building your sitemap in such a way that you put all the links to related pages on each sitemap page, you are making, in effect, a themed sitemap page. Let us say that you have 7 pages that all relate to British rock music, by putting it all together you make a British rock music themepage. This kind of page will have the element a search engine considers is essential for a high ranking web page: keyword rich text.

It pays to make a good sitemap. Making a conscious effort to make one will bring great benefits to your website.

Virtual Hand-Holding: Aids in making sitemaps

In virtual hand-holding, it is an important tip to remember that people visit the site in order to look for some information. Internet surfers are an unforgiving lot. They only visit sites that are useful to them. With thousands of websites out there that offer the same features as your own site, how do you stand out? This is where sitemaps come in.

What is a sitemap, you ask? Just as the name implies, this is an aid that makes navigating a website easier. The premise is basically the same as in an ordinary map. A sitemap contains the structure of the website as well as links to the site’s major parts and subsections. Now, if your site offers sufficient information as well as easy navigation then you have hit the jackpot. Your site will probably generate more traffic than your competitors’.

Another advantage to having a site map is that search engines love it, mainly because of two things -- text and keywords. Therefore, it might also prove beneficial to combine relevant keywords with hypertext links. For instance, if your sitemap has a link to website promotion, then your hyperlink should contain the words 'website promotion' and then linked directly to that page in your site.

Contrary to what a lot of people think, a site map need not be fancy. It’s good for it to be catchy, though what’s important is for it to be clear and easy to navigate. In order to have a good site map, one must remember four things.

First, a prominent link to your sitemap should be placed on every page. It should be labelled as SITE MAP so that surfers can easily spot it.

The next thing you need to remember in order to have a good sitemap is that your sitemap should show all your web pages through different levels as basic text links.

The third thing to remember is to use standard colours for links and for the visited links as well.

Lastly, your sitemap should show a quick and easy-to-follow overview of the site without the need to scroll around in the web browser.

Google and Yahoo had begun allowing people to submit site maps to their account as a way of informing them about your web pages as well as the updates to your site. Although it does not help your page ranking any, it’s still worth taking the time to set up properly.

As more people came to the conclusion that sitemaps are indispensable, more and more sites have began offering free software for generating site maps. A quick search on Google for advice on creating a site map initially cropped up many links to software you could buy or download for free to create a site map. One such site is www.xml-sitemaps.com, which offers a free online sitemap generator.

When you are done with your sitemap, do not forget to tell Google about it so they can nose about and hopefully index all the pages of your site.

Sitemap Generators: Good investment for online businesses

For those who are not familiar with sitemaps, a sitemap is quite simply a map or a guide that lists all the sections and pages of your website. One may find that a lot of websites have this feature, particularly the HTML type, for the benefit of users or visitors who have specific needs that may be answered by content in your site that is not readily located by clicking on section links or using search engines. It is a practical way of ensuring that users of your site are able to maximise the site to suit their needs.

Aside from the HTML sitemap, other types are the Text and XML sitemaps. A text sitemap is a simple text file containing your website’s list of URLs, and that may then be submitted to a search engine, such asYahoo, to inform them that the pages are up. This, then, allows their search engine spiders to visit the site and index it for future searches. An XML sitemap, meanwhile, is one in a formatted file recognised by Google Sitemaps that helps the search engine index your site’s URLs and keep track of changes made in the site.

Those who do business online recognise the reality that their sites need to be constantly updated with offerings and content that are interesting and in high demand, to keep the business running. As your site grows with more and more pages, while the increase of similar sites—your competition—threaten to reduce your hits, an updated sitemap proves more vital in the survival of your venture. Moreover, using all three types of sitemaps can help boost exposure for your site.

For this job, owners of big websites or a multitude of small online businesses can make use of free sitemap generators available online. Purchasing an unlimited version sitemap generator is also a good idea for the most updated sitemaps. You can think of using sitemaps as free or low-cost advertising for your business.

Online businesses with constantly updated sitemaps of their websites can make sure Internet users who are voluntarily seeking out specific information will find their way to the site’s content that even closely matches their needs. For instance, when a user does a search for a specific product, an updated sitemap can help a website with a wide array of product offerings to be included in the results and provide the user with a direct URL. Consequently, both the website and the user benefit from it; with the help of a sitemap, the search engine takes the user directly from the results page to the relevant web page, and with more people easily finding your site, business profits are not that far behind.

The easy way to build sitemaps for your site is to find a website generator that creates all three types of sitemaps. One such product is provided by XML-Sitemaps.com, which has basic the information on sitemap generation, as well as easy to follow guidelines.