Site indexing is the process of storing and organizing web pages in search engine databases so they can be retrieved and displayed in search results.
What is site indexing?
It involves robots, known as “crawlers” or “spiders,” which scour the web for new pages and content. Indexed webpages can appear in SERPs (search engine results pages) when a user performs a search query. Search engines use algorithms to determine which indexed pages are most relevant to a given query.
Why is search engine indexing important?
It’s a fundamental part of how search engines work. First they crawl a site and then they add the content to an index. That index is then used to generate the SERP. If a search engine is prevented from indexing a page, then it can’t appear in the search results. Google doesn’t index every page it crawls — they need to be high-quality.
Why does a content strategist need to know about search engine indexing?
Knowing the basics of search engine indexing can help content strategists troubleshoot any issues they may experience with their content. Although indexing is an internal search process beyond their control, content strategists exert some influence through permissions that their site grants. You can use a “noindex” tag to block Google from indexing a page so that it doesn’t appear in search results.