Indexing

Indexing is the process by which search engines like Google store and organize information from web pages so they can appear in SERP. After web crawlers visit and analyze a page, the data is added to the search engine's index, making it searchable.

A page must be indexed to appear in search results. Factors like URL structure, website architecture play a critical role in ensuring proper indexing. For example, a clear URL structure helps search engines understand the hierarchy and relevance of your pages.

To improve indexing, an XML sitemap can guide crawlers to all important pages on your site. Using tools like robots.txt or X-Robots-Tag, you can control which pages get indexed or excluded, ensuring that only relevant content appears in search results.

Proper internal linking within your website architecture helps crawlers discover new pages efficiently. For instance, linking from popular pages to deeper sections ensures those pages are also indexed.

If a page's URL changes, implementing 301 redirects ensures the new page is indexed and retains its link equity, avoiding loss of SEO value. Without proper redirects, the new URL might not be indexed, and the old one could return a "404 error."