Sitemap

Site Maps

You already know what a site map is, but you also need to understand how to create one as well.  Site maps are similar to a Table of Contents that you might see in a book and even on some web sites.  You will want to use a site map if you have a very large site that has several pages and target links.

The easiest way to develop a site map is to use an HTML unordered list tag.  You can do this in the design view of most websites by selecting the bullet button.  The tag may be employed to create a one-level or multi-level list.  Be sure to use each page in the site and link the page name to it’s appropriate link.  An example may look like this:

Electronics

Computers

Desktop

Laptop

Palm

MP3 Players

CD Players

Televisions

DVD Players

Furniture

Office Furniture

Filing Cabinets

Office Chairs

Desks

Sofas

Chairs

Dining Room Chairs

Recliners

Tables

Coffee Tables

Dining Room Tables

Beds

King

Queen

Regular

Twins

Bunk beds

Each type of electronic and furniture piece would be linked to its appropriate page.  The first level categories would also be linked appropriately.  

Another type of site map may simply be a page with lists of links.  You may include the actual web address in a list format or you may have the name of the page with the words linked to the corresponding page.  

If you have a rather large website, there are several site map software programs available to assist you in the indexing of your site and the building of your site map.

Why is a Site Map Important?

A site map files tells the search engines about all of the pages in a website.  It can also serve as a way of telling the search engines more information about those pages, which ones are important and how often they change.  A site map is particularly helpful if your site has a lot of dynamic content and for pages that are not very easily discovered by following links.  They are also good if you site is new and only has a few links for now.  

Site maps also assist in speeding up the discovery of your website on the ‘net.  This is an important step in the crawling and indexing of your website.  There are many factors that affect the crawling and indexing of a site and a site map can assist you in speeding up that process and it allows you a voice in the process of your site being indexed by the search engines.