Google Deprecates Sitemap Ping: Focus Shifts to Lastmod Element in Sitemaps Protocol
The Sitemaps Protocol, introduced in 2005, has been a valuable tool for search engines to discover new URLs and schedule crawls. However, to adapt to the changing internet landscape, Google has made updates to the protocol. This article explores the deprecation of the sitemaps “ping” endpoint and the increased emphasis on the lastmod element.
Deprecation of Sitemap Ping
- Unauthenticated sitemap submissions found to be less useful
- Majority of submissions led to spam and low value
- Google, along with other search engines like Bing, deprecating support for sitemaps ping
- The endpoint will cease functioning in 6 months
- Alternative submission methods: robots.txt and Search Console
The Importance of Lastmod Element
- Varying levels of usefulness observed in the lastmod element across websites
- Supported date format and consistency with reality are crucial
- Lastmod used as a signal for scheduling crawls to previously discovered URLs
- Validation of lastmod format using Search Console
- Recommended inclusion of lastmod element for confident pages, exclusion for pages with difficulties in determining last modification
Understanding “Last Significant Modification”
- Last modification refers to significant changes, not minor text or layout updates
- Examples of significant modifications: primary text changes, structured data updates, link revisions
- Unnecessary updates to lastmod for insignificant changes can be avoided
Changefreq and Priority Elements
- Google does not utilize changefreq or priority elements
- Changefreq overlaps conceptually with lastmod
- Priority element subjective and does not accurately reflect page priority based on internal studies
<urlset xmlns="http://www.sitemaps.org/schemas/sitemap/0.9">
<url>
<lastmod>2005-01-01</lastmod>
<loc>http://www.example.com/</loc>
<changefreq>monthly</changefreq>
<priority>0.8</priority>
</url>
</urlset>
Conclusion: Google’s updates to the Sitemaps Protocol aim to improve website optimization by deprecating the sitemap ping endpoint and placing increased importance on the lastmod element. By adhering to supported date formats, ensuring consistency with reality, and understanding the concept of last significant modification, website owners can effectively communicate important information to search engines.
