Blog Talk: Should your blog use a site map or Sitemap?
Say what?
I'll just start by saying that I'm not the most internet techy person. But I pick up a lot of information as I talk to other bloggers, scan other pages, and rework this site. Let's start off with what a site map and Sitemap is (yes there's a difference between the two which will be discussed later). According to sitemaps.org, "Sitemaps are an easy way for webmasters to inform search engines about pages on their sites that are available for crawling."
Sitemap (XML) is used by the biggest search engines; Yahoo, Google, and Microsoft. (Other, but not all, search engines are capable of reading Sitemaps and using them to index pages.) It uses site information and tags to categorize data, and that data is what search engines look for. There are various types of sitemaps; each serving a unique purpose. Some are meant for site visitors to use (site map), others are meant for only search engine use (Sitemap). I don't know all of the differences, so I will just leave it at that. If you're really interested in learning about the fine details visit sitemaps.org for coding, descriptions, and more.
Sitemap vs. site map
A Sitemap is for fancy search-bot reading by the big companies while a site map is something that can be perused by both average search-bots and humans. Using this simple definition, a site map is most handy for all websites because of the ability for site visitors to easily find information.
The pros and cons of each
The conversation of Sitemap/site map use is something that randomly comes up and it seems to be one of those topics where the consensus is not sure about its usefulness; especially if you're like me and find yourself lost in the jargon. I use a site map more as an automatic indexer so that all of my titles and tags are categorized for visitors to peruse versus me having to make a separate page and link up every blog post myself. I've had it from the start, so I can not say whether it has helped my page in terms of internet discovery. However, I think it is very useful for any website.
This is the pro/con of site map: It provides a great road map for your site that anyone/anything can navigate. However, it may not be directly indexed by major search engines.
I decided to do some research to try to see exactly what the point of a Sitemap is and why it may or may not be useful.
What Google has to say (this is from Google Webmaster, Sitemap information)
Sitemaps are particularly helpful if:
"Google doesn't guarantee that we'll crawl or index all of your URLs. However, we use the data in your Sitemap to learn about your site's structure, which will allow us to improve our crawler schedule and do a better job crawling your site in the future. In most cases, webmasters will benefit from Sitemap submission, and in no case will you be penalized for it."
Simply search for Sitemap generator and a ton of links will appear. Basically what these programs do is track down all of your website's links and puts them in a line-by-line HTML file. You then put the code into your site.
I'll just start by saying that I'm not the most internet techy person. But I pick up a lot of information as I talk to other bloggers, scan other pages, and rework this site. Let's start off with what a site map and Sitemap is (yes there's a difference between the two which will be discussed later). According to sitemaps.org, "Sitemaps are an easy way for webmasters to inform search engines about pages on their sites that are available for crawling."
Sitemap (XML) is used by the biggest search engines; Yahoo, Google, and Microsoft. (Other, but not all, search engines are capable of reading Sitemaps and using them to index pages.) It uses site information and tags to categorize data, and that data is what search engines look for. There are various types of sitemaps; each serving a unique purpose. Some are meant for site visitors to use (site map), others are meant for only search engine use (Sitemap). I don't know all of the differences, so I will just leave it at that. If you're really interested in learning about the fine details visit sitemaps.org for coding, descriptions, and more.
Sitemap vs. site map
A Sitemap is for fancy search-bot reading by the big companies while a site map is something that can be perused by both average search-bots and humans. Using this simple definition, a site map is most handy for all websites because of the ability for site visitors to easily find information.
The pros and cons of each
The conversation of Sitemap/site map use is something that randomly comes up and it seems to be one of those topics where the consensus is not sure about its usefulness; especially if you're like me and find yourself lost in the jargon. I use a site map more as an automatic indexer so that all of my titles and tags are categorized for visitors to peruse versus me having to make a separate page and link up every blog post myself. I've had it from the start, so I can not say whether it has helped my page in terms of internet discovery. However, I think it is very useful for any website.
This is the pro/con of site map: It provides a great road map for your site that anyone/anything can navigate. However, it may not be directly indexed by major search engines.
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| Example: Sitemap for The Book Cove categorizes posts by their tags and identifies new posts. |
I decided to do some research to try to see exactly what the point of a Sitemap is and why it may or may not be useful.
What Google has to say (this is from Google Webmaster, Sitemap information)
Sitemaps are particularly helpful if:
- Your site has dynamic content
- Your site has pages that aren't easily discovered by Googlebot during the crawl process—for example, pages featuring rich AJAX or images.
- Your site is new and has few links to it. (Googlebot crawls the web by following links from one page to another, so if your site isn't well linked, it may be hard for us to discover it.)
- Your site has a large archive of content pages that are not well linked to each other, or are not linked at all.
"Google doesn't guarantee that we'll crawl or index all of your URLs. However, we use the data in your Sitemap to learn about your site's structure, which will allow us to improve our crawler schedule and do a better job crawling your site in the future. In most cases, webmasters will benefit from Sitemap submission, and in no case will you be penalized for it."
What the bold text means is that you can submit your Sitemap to various engines, such as Google, and they can then index your site pages. However, they do not guarantee that they will index those pages. What determines indexing vs. not, I do not know.
This is a pro/con of Sitemap: if it's used by the search engines, then great! But if it's not then it does no good.
I say it's better to try than not try. Every little bit of search engine optimization (SEO) helps, so why not submit a Sitemap and hope for the best.
What does this boil down to?
You want both.
Having a site map is highly advised for all websites, especially for new sites that may not have a good potential to be indexed by the big search engines. Site maps are quick and easy to implement with some simple coding you can find many places. Send The Book Cove an email if you'd like the coding that we use.
A Sitemap is a little more complex, in terms of customization, but can really boost SEO.
Both can be implemented on a site.
What does this boil down to?
You want both.
Having a site map is highly advised for all websites, especially for new sites that may not have a good potential to be indexed by the big search engines. Site maps are quick and easy to implement with some simple coding you can find many places. Send The Book Cove an email if you'd like the coding that we use.
A Sitemap is a little more complex, in terms of customization, but can really boost SEO.
Both can be implemented on a site.
Where/How can you get a Sitemap or site map generated?
Simply search for Sitemap generator and a ton of links will appear. Basically what these programs do is track down all of your website's links and puts them in a line-by-line HTML file. You then put the code into your site.
Google Sitemap protocol and codes - coding to make your own according to Google preferences (based on sitemap.org)
Sitemap protocol and codes for major search engines - coding to make your own (sitemap.org)
Site map codes can also be easily searched. If interested in the one pictured above, contact The Book Cove.
Site map codes can also be easily searched. If interested in the one pictured above, contact The Book Cove.
If readers have any suggestions about Sitemaps/site maps/other indexing and traffic options, please discuss in the comments below!
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