Setting up Google Search Console and Uploading Your Website Sitemap

Modified on Sat, 20 Apr, 2024 at 1:31 PM

Google Search Console (GSC) is an invaluable tool for website owners to track, analyze, and enhance their site's visibility in Google search results. A crucial step in leveraging GSC is to submit a sitemap, aiding Google in comprehending your website's structure and content.

This guide will detail the steps to configure Google Search Console and submit your website's sitemap.

Properly establishing Google Search Console and submitting your sitemap are vital to ensure your website is correctly indexed and appears in Google search results.

Step 1: Sign Up or Log In to Google Search Console

Go to the Google Search Console website (https://search.google.com/search-console/) and sign in using your Google account. (If you don't have an account, you'll need to create one.)
Once logged in, click on the "Start Now" button or "Add Property" to add your website URL to Google Search Console.
Enter your website URL eg. https://www.yourwebsiteurl.com
Click Continue

Step 2: Verify Ownership of Your Website

Google will provide you with several verification methods to prove ownership of your website.

If Virtual Business 360 manage the domain for you

Select record type 'TXT'
Copy the TXT record by clicking the 'Copy' button.

Please send an email to support@virtualbusiness360.com and include the provided code in the body of the email. Request the Customer Success Team to add the code to your domain record.
Upon confirmation from the Customer Success Team regarding the addition of the code to your domain record, you can proceed with the Verify process once again.
Once verified, you'll have access to your website's data in Google Search Console.

If you manage the domain

Follow the instructions provided by Google to complete the verification process.
Once verified, you'll have access to your website's data in Google Search Console.

Step 3: Submit Your Sitemap

In the left-hand menu of Google Search Console, navigate to the "Sitemaps" section under "Indexing"
Enter the URL of your sitemap into the text field.
After entering the sitemap URL, click "Submit." Google will then crawl your sitemap to discover and index the pages of your website.

Your site map URL can be accessed anytime by going to the URL "https://www.yourwebsiteurl.com/index/sitemap.xml" or clicking the sitemap link from the admin panel

To obtain the URL of your sitemap via the Admin Panel:

Login to your admin panel
Click 'Content' then 'Sitemap'
Copy the URL for the Sitemap "https://www.yourwebsiteurl/index/sitemap.xml"

Step 4: Monitor Indexing Status and Performance

Once your sitemap is submitted, you can monitor its status and performance in the "Sitemaps" section of Google Search Console. Google will provide information on how many pages were submitted, indexed, and any errors encountered during the process.

By following the steps outlined in this guide, you can take advantage of the valuable insights provided by GSC to optimize your site's performance and maximize its visibility online.