What is an XML site map? A site map is a listing of all the posts and pages on your website. XML stands for eXtensible Markup Language. XML is a markup language that is easily read by search engines.
Google, currently the leading search engine, was the first search engine to allow websites to use XML site maps to notify their website indexing robots of the pages on their websites. Other search engines adopted Google’s format. So, one site map will work for all the major search engines.
Why do you need a site map? Search engine indexing robots follow links on your pages to discover other pages. A site map is helpful if your website is new and has not been discovered by the search engines, uses a navigation scheme that a robot cannot follow, and if your site is large and the pages are not well interlinked.
Here’s how to create an XML site map for your WordPress website.
Step 1: Install the Google XML Sitemap Plugin
1. From your WordPress Dashboard, click on Plugins | Add New
2. Search for google xml sitemap
3. Install and activate the Google XML Sitemaps plugin
Step 2. Configure the Google XML Sitemap Plugin
1. Click on Settings | XML-Sitemap
2. Leave the default settings (or tweak the settings to your liking), and click on the Update Settings button.
3. Go to the top of the page and click on the Click here to build it now link.
Step 3. View your Sitemap
Add sitemap.xml to the end of your website address to view your sitemap.
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