IndexNow (Bing)

What is IndexNow?

IndexNow is an open protocol that allows websites to instantly notify search engines about new or updated content. Unlike traditional crawling where search engines discover content on their own schedule, IndexNow provides immediate notification.

Supported Search Engines

Sight AI uses IndexNow to submit your URLs to Bing. When you submit to Bing via IndexNow, other supporting search engines may also receive the notification.

Benefits

• Instant notification – Bing learns about new content immediately
• Faster indexing – Content can appear in search results within hours
• No rate limits – Submit as many URLs as needed
• Free to use – No cost for using the protocol
• Simple setup – One-time configuration

Setup Instructions

Step 1: Enable IndexNow in Sight AI

1. Go to Integrations in Sight AI
2. Click Bing IndexNow
3. Toggle Enable IndexNow to on

Step 2: Add Verification Key

Sight AI provides an IndexNow API key. You need to verify ownership by hosting the key file:

1. Copy the provided API key
2. Create a text file named [your-key].txt at your site root
3. The file should contain only the API key
4. Verify: https://yoursite.com/[your-key].txt returns the key

WordPress Users

The Sight AI WordPress plugin handles this automatically:

1. Install the Sight AI WordPress plugin
2. The plugin creates the verification file automatically
3. No manual file creation needed

Step 3: Verify Setup

1. Return to Sight AI
2. Click "Verify Setup"
3. Sight AI will check that the key file is accessible
4. Once verified, IndexNow is active

How It Works

Once IndexNow is set up:

1. New URL detected – Sight AI finds a new URL in your sitemap
2. IndexNow ping – Sight AI sends the URL to Bing's IndexNow endpoint
3. Verification – Bing verifies the request using your API key
4. Crawling – Bing crawls and indexes the new content

Automatic Submission

With IndexNow enabled, Sight AI automatically submits:

• New URLs detected in your sitemap
• Articles published through Sight AI
• Updated content (when URLs are re-detected)

No manual action is required after initial setup.

Manual Submission

To manually submit a specific URL:

1. Go to Integrations → Bing IndexNow
2. Click "Submit URL"
3. Enter the URL to submit
4. Click "Submit"

Submission History

View your IndexNow submission history:

• Recent submissions with timestamps
• Submission status (success/failed)
• URLs submitted
• Any error messages

Troubleshooting

Verification Failed

• Check the key file URL is accessible publicly
• Ensure the file contains only the API key
• Verify no caching is preventing access
• Check for trailing whitespace or newlines in the file

Submissions Failing

• Verify the API key file is still accessible
• Check that URLs are valid and accessible
• Ensure URLs are on the verified domain
• Review error messages in submission history

Not Seeing Indexing Results

Remember that IndexNow notifies Bing, but doesn't guarantee immediate indexing:

• Bing may take hours to process notifications
• Low-quality content may not be indexed
• New domains may take longer
• Check Bing Webmaster Tools for more details

Disabling IndexNow

To disable IndexNow:

1. Go to Integrations → Bing IndexNow
2. Toggle Enable IndexNow to off
3. Save changes

You can optionally remove the key file from your server, though it's harmless to leave it.

Next Steps

• Set up Google Search Console
• Configure Google sitemap submission
• Monitor your indexing status