Off Page Optimization: Search Engine Submission
Search Engine Submission is the first and foremost off page SEO activity checklist that you should perform as soon as the website of your business is live. Though many consider it as unnecessary but according to many SEO experts, it is important as this activity tells the search engines about the existence of your site on the web. Let’s discuss about the importance of search engine submission in the present day context.
What is Search Engine Submission?
Search Engine Submission or URL Submission is the action of directly submitting the URL(s) of your website or its individual pages to search engines like Google, Yahoo, Bing, etc. to ensure they are indexed and appear in search results. This process helps search engines discover new websites or updates to existing ones faster than relying on their crawlers alone.
Why is Search Engine Submission important?
If you do not submit your URL(s) tot he search engine chances are there that your website might not get listed and its URL(s) indexed for a long time. This affects the ranking factor of the site. It is the fastest and easiest way to tell the web about your website and its existing pages. While search engines can automatically find websites through links, manual submission offers several benefits:
- Faster Indexing: New websites can be discovered and indexed quicker.
- Error Identification: Search engines provide insights on indexing errors.
- Control Over Crawling: Webmasters can guide search engines to the most important pages.
- SEO Optimization: Ensures proper indexing of SEO-optimized pages.
- Re-indexing Updates: Useful for updating changed content or site structure.
How is Search Engine Submission done?
A. Google Search Engine Submission
In case of Google the best way is to go to the Google Search Console and submit the .xml sitemap. The sitemap already has the URLs of all the pages that your website has. Hence the search engine bot gets the chance to crawl and index all the pages at one go.
Google is the most widely used search engine, and submitting a website to it is straightforward.
1. Submit via Google Search Console
Google Search Console (formerly Google Webmaster Tools) is the official tool for submitting websites to Google.
- Step 1: Go to Google Search Console.
- Step 2: Log in with your Google account.
- Step 3: Click on “Add Property” and enter your website URL.
- Step 4: Verify ownership using one of the following methods:
- HTML file upload (recommended)
- Meta tag verification
- DNS record update
- Google Analytics or Google Tag Manager
- Step 5: Once verified, submit your sitemap under Indexing → Sitemaps.
2. Submit Individual Pages via URL Inspection
If you have added new pages, you can submit them manually.
- Go to Google Search Console.
- Open the URL Inspection Tool.
- Enter the page URL and click Request Indexing.
B. Bing Search Engine Submission
Bing, owned by Microsoft, powers Yahoo search as well. You can submit your website through Bing Webmaster Tools.
Steps to Submit to Bing:
- Step 1: Visit Bing Webmaster Tools.
- Step 2: Sign in with your Microsoft account.
- Step 3: Click Add a Site and enter your website URL.
- Step 4: Verify site ownership (similar to Google methods).
- Step 5: Submit your sitemap under Sitemaps in Bing Webmaster Tools.
Alternative: If you have already verified your site in Google Search Console, Bing allows automatic import of data.
C. Yahoo Search Engine Submission
Yahoo Search is powered by Bing, so submitting your website to Bing automatically submits it to Yahoo.
D. Other Search Engines
For other search engines, submission methods may vary.
1. Yandex (Russian Search Engine)
- Go to Yandex Webmaster.
- Add your website and verify ownership.
- Submit your sitemap under Indexing → Sitemap Files.
2. Baidu (Chinese Search Engine)
- Register on Baidu Webmaster Tools.
- Verify website ownership.
- Submit your website for indexing.
3. DuckDuckGo, Ecosia & Other Search Engines
DuckDuckGo and Ecosia do not support manual submissions. They rely on Bing, Yahoo, and Google’s indexes.
What are the Best Practices for Search Engine Submission?
A. Create and Submit a Sitemap
A sitemap is an XML file that lists all important pages of a website for search engines.
- Create a sitemap using tools like:
- XML-Sitemaps
- Yoast SEO Plugin (for WordPress)
- Screaming Frog SEO Spider
- Submit the sitemap to:
- Google: Google Search Console → Sitemaps
- Bing: Bing Webmaster Tools → Sitemaps
- Yandex & Baidu: Their respective webmaster tools
B. Optimize Your Robots.txt File
A robots.txt file helps control which parts of your website search engines can crawl. Make sure it is correctly configured.
Example robots.txt:
User-agent: *
Disallow: /private/
Sitemap: https://yourwebsite.com/sitemap.xml
C. Improve Internal Linking
Search engines follow links to discover pages. Strong internal linking helps in indexing pages efficiently.
D. Build Quality Backlinks
Submitting to search engines is helpful, but quality backlinks help search engines discover your site naturally.
E. Submit to Business Directories
List your website on directories like:
- Google My Business
- Bing Places
- Yelp
- Yellow Pages
F. Monitor Indexing Status
Regularly check Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools for:
- Crawl errors
- Indexing issues
- Manual penalties
When Do You Need to Resubmit Your Website?
Search engines automatically re-crawl websites, but you should resubmit if:
- You redesign your website.
- You change the site structure significantly.
- You add a large number of new pages.
- Your site was mistakenly de-indexed.
What are the Common Mistakes in Search Engine Submission?
- Not verifying website ownership → Search engines won’t index your site without verification.
- Submitting a website without a sitemap → Makes it harder for search engines to understand your site.
- Using duplicate or thin content → Can lead to ranking penalties.
- Blocking search engine crawlers → A misconfigured robots.txt file can prevent indexing.
- Not checking for indexing errors → Always monitor Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools.
Conclusion
Search engine submission is a crucial step in ensuring your website gets indexed and appears in search results. While most search engines can find websites automatically, manual submission speeds up the process and provides more control. Using webmaster tools, submitting sitemaps, and monitoring indexing status will help improve visibility and SEO performance.
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