Alright, let’s keep it real — starting a website is exciting, but if no one can find it on Google or Bing, it kind of feels like a waste of time, right?
I remember launching my first blog. I thought just publishing my articles was enough. Days passed, then weeks… and still no traffic. Zero. Nada. It was frustrating.
Then I found out something that changed everything:
Google doesn’t always know your website exists unless you tell it.
Let’s talk about how to do that, why it matters, and how you can set it up in just a few minutes.
💭 First Things First — Do You Even Need to Submit It?
Technically speaking, no.
Search engines like Google and Bing have bots that constantly crawl the web. Eventually, they’ll find your website.
But here’s the problem:
“Eventually” can mean weeks… or even months. Especially if your site is new, has no backlinks, and doesn’t have a big social presence.
If you care about getting found faster (and I’m guessing you do), submitting your site manually is the move.
🧩 Step-by-Step: Submitting to Google
Google is the big dog, so let’s start there. Don’t worry — it’s way easier than it sounds.
Step 1: Set Up Google Search Console
Go to Google Search Console.
You’ll need to sign in with your Gmail account.
Step 2: Add Your Website
Click “Add Property,” enter your website’s URL, and choose how you want to verify ownership.
There are a few methods — like uploading a file or adding a small code snippet. If you’re using WordPress, most SEO plugins (like Yoast or RankMath) can help with this.
Step 3: Submit Your Sitemap
This is usually something like yourwebsite.com/sitemap.xml.
Just copy that, paste it into the “Sitemaps” section, and hit submit.
That’s it. You’ve officially told Google, “Hey, my site is live. Please index it.”
🌍 Don’t Forget Bing (Seriously)
Bing isn’t as huge as Google, but it still sends a decent amount of traffic. Plus, it powers other search engines like Yahoo and DuckDuckGo.
How to Submit to Bing:
Go to Bing Webmaster Tools
Add your site and verify it
Submit your sitemap, just like you did with Google
Easy.
⚡ Speed Up Indexing (Tips That Actually Work)
Submitting your site is one thing. Getting indexed fast is another.
Here’s what I’ve done (and what works):
Share your content on social media — even just tweeting out a link can help bots find it.
Link to new posts from your homepage or older blog posts.
Don’t copy-paste content from other websites. Google is smart. It’ll ignore it.
Keep publishing. New websites that post often tend to get indexed more frequently.
Also — this sounds weird, but…
Don’t overthink it. Sometimes, people waste days obsessing over this stuff when all it takes is one good sitemap submission and some patience.
🎯 Final Thoughts — What I Wish I Knew Earlier
I used to think building a website was the hard part.
Nope. The hard part is getting people to find it.
Submitting your website to search engines is the first step toward getting traffic.
And the best part? It’s completely free and takes just a few minutes.
So if you haven’t done it yet, take 10 minutes today and do it. Seriously — you’ll thank yourself later.
Have questions?
Leave a comment or shoot me a DM — I’ve helped a bunch of people do this, and I’d be happy to help you too.
Good luck, and welcome to the web! 🌐