When Microsoft Bing and Yandex introduced IndexNow in October, the question on everyone’s minds was, “what’s Google going to do about it?” Finally, this week, we got our answer. After staying quiet about the rollout, the tech giant confirmed to Search Engine Land (SEL) that it would be adopting the protocol and testing out its benefits to make web crawling more efficient and sustainable.
In case you need a refresher, IndexNow is an open-source protocol that enables site owners to inform search engines of any content updates on their website in real-time. If a web admin submits a URL to signal any content changes, the protocol instantly notifies all participating search engines of said changes. For search engines, it eliminates the need to crawl web pages to see if they’ve been supplemented, deleted or updated in any way.
In Google’s statement to SEL, it said using IndexNow is aligned with its “holistic approach at sustainability.” Google has been pushing for carbon-free initiatives, and it would seem adopting the protocol may lower energy costs for web crawling and ramp up its indexing efficiencies.
However, when asked about it, Google’s John Mueller said on Twitter the test probably won’t be happening anytime soon. He also advised SEOs to focus on existing means of notifying Google of updated content, so don’t get too excited just yet.
Still, with the search engine giant potentially in the mix, it presents exciting opportunities for website owners, who know it can take days, even weeks, for search engines to discover and reflect content updates in their index and search results.
What speedy indexing means ultimately for Google and other search engines is conservation of bandwidth and resources. For you, it means no more waiting and less server load. You get your sites indexed as quickly as possible and have more time to build your traffic. Everyone is happy.
Whichever direction Google decides to go with this, we expect that everyone across the board – SEO specialists, site owners, marketers and content management systems (CMS) – will be waiting to see how IndexNow could shape the future of web crawling and indexing.
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Business Luminaries Convene and Talk Marketing at Zeta Live 2021: Hosted by cloud-based marketing technology Zeta Global, the conference is set to broadcast live from New York on November 16-17. Zeta Live gathers Fortune 500 executives and market leaders for a series of conversations about the current state of marketing and predictions for the future. Sessions will cover discussions on marketing, creativity, personalization and AI over the two-day immersive experience, so be sure to register if you want some inspiration for your marketing campaigns in 2022.