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Search engines (and mature blogs)

  1. tnbits
    Member

    I created a potentially-mature blog, and let WordPress know so they could tag it as mature.

    Since this cuts the blog off from the tag system and stops it coming up in WordPress searches, I decided after a while to make it visible to search engines. When there was no sign of Google finding it for a few days, I submitted the URL of the front page to Google.

    The blog is http://tnbits.wordpress.org/ (nothing particularly "mature" there yet by the way). Google has now found it, but searches like "tnbits wordpress" only return the most recent post (not even the front page; just that post). Searches for the content of that page find it, and searches for anything else on the blog are unsuccessful.

    Here are my questions:

    • Might that mean that only posts since I changed the setting are visible to search engines, and that older ones are still marked not to be indexed?
    • Should I expect that Google will eventually find the other pages?
    • What effect if any does the Mature tag have on what search engines' web crawlers will find?

    Thanks in advance.

  2. tnbits
    Member

    Sorry, that should have been http://tnbits.wordpress.com/

  3. tnbits
    Member

    Also it occurs to me that the individual post pages in the theme I've used don't link to the next and previous posts and the "recent posts" widget appears only on the front page.

  4. thesacredpath
    Member

    Since you just recently changed the setting so search engines could crawl your site, it will take a little while for them to index everything and decide where to put you in their searches (typically 4-6 weeks), and it will take 6 months to a year for you to build up much page rank, which is partly dependent on the number of visitors you get, but also on how many incoming links you get from other blogs.

    Once you open your blog to search engines, all post (new or old) will be found by them.

    The mature setting here does not in anyway effect outside search engines.

    Every time you make a post, wordpress automatically pings all major search engines through pingomatic.

    You might want to go through the verification process using google webmaster tools and also do the same thing over at Bing. The process for Bing is virtually identical to the google procedure.

    http://support.wordpress.com/verifying-with-google-webmaster-tools/

  5. thesacredpath
    Member

    Also, you need to keep posting. The search engines like to see new content. You only have three posts so far.

    What is shown in the sidebar and whether there are next and previous links on the single post pages is theme dependent. the theme you are using does not show the normal widgets on the post pages or other static pages.

  6. tnbits
    Member

    Thanks--I wasn't sure whether being removed from the tag system also removed the links by which search engines would find the posts.

  7. thesacredpath
    Member

    No, the tags are picked up by the search engines as well as the categories. Search engines treat tags and categories exactly the same actually and will use both to help determine where to put you.

  8. tnbits
    Member

    Ah, so it really is just within WordPress that they don't get linked to. Thanks!

  9. thesacredpath
    Member

    That is correct, and you are welcome.

  10. sorteolotto
    Member

    Very interesting this topic. Trying to learn.
    You say: "Also, you need to keep posting. The search engines like to see new content. You only have three posts so far."
    So in order to go to the top in a search, I wonder if you need to place a "new post" or is just enough to modify your blog (adding links, changing old post, or tags o categories.? the search engine react only to new post?
    Thanks

  11. thesacredpath
    Member

    Search engines pay attention to new content and wordpress only notifies them via pings when you publish a new post. Search engines are not pinged when you add links or tags or categories, or make any changes in your sidebar. Search engines are not pinged when you modify a post, and then never look at them to see if you changed them. You are better off making a new post and linking back to the older post from within the newer post rather than changing or adding to a new post. RSS feeds never update older posts either so anyone following your blog will never see the old posts change because they will never know they have changed.

  12. sorteolotto
    Member

    Thanks you very much. I appreciate your detailed info.

  13. thesacredpath
    Member

    You're welcome.

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