We understand the frustration of seeing the message, ‘Your site doesn’t meet our technical requirements.’ It can feel overwhelming when trying to get your first site listed in Google News, like a challenging puzzle that seems impossible to solve.
However, once we figured it out, we experienced how Google News can significantly boost traffic to your site. It’s an effective way to enhance your brand’s credibility without needing extensive technical skills.
In this guide, we will provide a detailed, step-by-step process that we have refined for getting WordPress sites approved. We’ll guide you on how to set everything up properly from the beginning.
This tutorial will cover various topics. Use the links below to navigate through the article quickly:
- Understanding Google News
- Benefits of Submitting Your WordPress Site to Google News
- Criteria for Inclusion in Google News
- How to Create a Google News Sitemap in WordPress
- Steps to Submit Your WordPress Site to Google News
- Common Questions About Google News Submission
- Further Resources for Utilizing Google Services to Boost Traffic
Understanding Google News
Google News, launched by Google in 2002, is one of the largest news aggregation platforms globally. It serves as a powerful discovery engine that gathers, organizes, and showcases news articles from thousands of reputable publishers around the world.
Here’s what sets Google News apart:
- It delivers real-time news updates from the past 30 days.
- Stories are ranked by an algorithm based on their freshness, relevance, and authority.
- Content is accessible in over 125 countries and in multiple languages.
- Publishers are required to adhere to strict quality and technical standards.
- News can be found in both dedicated news sections and regular search results.
You can find Google News content in two primary locations:
1. In Regular Search Results
When you conduct a Google search, news articles often appear at the top of the page under ‘Top stories’. These featured snippets provide maximum visibility for your content, similar to how featured snippets work for standard content.
2. In Dedicated News Sections
You can access the complete Google News experience in two ways:
- Click the ‘More news’ button located under Top stories.
- Select the ‘News’ tab at the top of any Google search results page.
Why should you submit your WordPress site to Google News?
Google News is a highly reliable platform for accessing the latest global news stories.
Having your WordPress site featured in Google News can significantly increase your organic traffic and connect you with new audiences.
Additionally, being included in Google News enhances your brand’s credibility and authority, as your site will appear alongside reputable sources like The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times, indicating that your content is trustworthy and of high quality.
Moreover, being highlighted in Google News can positively affect your WordPress SEO.
This heightened visibility may also lead to other websites linking to your articles as credible sources, which helps establish your site’s authority over time and can improve your overall SEO performance.
Now that we understand the advantages, let’s explore the eligibility criteria for inclusion in Google News.
Eligibility Criteria for Google News Inclusion
As of December 2019, it is no longer necessary to submit your news website to be considered for Google News. Publishers who meet the established criteria are automatically eligible for inclusion in the ‘Top stories’ featured snippet and the News tab of Google search.
The submission process is still available, and it’s beneficial to utilize it. By submitting your WordPress site to Google News, you enhance your chances of being featured.
Before proceeding, it’s crucial to ensure that you comply with Google News policies.
Google has established specific content guidelines that determine whether your content is eligible for inclusion in the Google News section. If your site fails to meet these criteria, it will be denied.
For instance, your content must not contain dangerous, deceptive, or hateful material, nor should it include violence or gore. Additionally, advertisements should not overshadow your content, and you must clearly disclose any sponsored content.
Furthermore, you need to provide clear publication dates, author bylines, and information about the organization or network responsible for the content.
There are additional guidelines that you must adhere to. We advise closely following these content policies to prevent your site from being rejected by Google News.
With that in mind, let’s explore how to create a news sitemap for your WordPress site so that you can submit it to Google News.
How to Create a Google News Sitemap in WordPress
To begin, you must create a Google News sitemap for your website. Once your news sitemap is set up, you can submit your site to Google News.
A sitemap is a file that outlines all the content on your website, helping Google locate new articles and display them in search results. It also enables search engine bots to crawl your site more efficiently and enhances the indexing of your content.
It’s crucial to understand that a Google News sitemap differs from a standard XML sitemap. The Google News Sitemap exclusively contains news articles, allowing the search engine to quickly identify content that should be featured in the news section.
For creating a Google News sitemap, we recommend using All in One SEO (AIOSEO). This is the top WordPress SEO plugin that enables you to optimize your site for search engines without needing expert assistance or technical skills.
In this tutorial, we will use the pro version of AIOSEO, which includes the Google News sitemap along with other powerful features such as a redirection manager and schema markup. While there is a free version of AIOSEO available to help you get started, it does not include the news sitemap functionality.
First, you need to install and activate the AIOSEO plugin. If you require assistance, please refer to our guide on how to install a WordPress plugin.
After activating the plugin, a setup wizard will appear. Click the ‘Let’s Get Started’ button to configure AIOSEO for your website.
Refer to our beginner’s guide for detailed instructions on setting up All in One SEO for WordPress correctly.
Next, navigate to All in One SEO » Sitemaps from your WordPress dashboard, then click on the ‘News Sitemap’ tab.
Then, click the ‘Activate News Sitemap’ button.
Once activated, ensure the ‘Enable Sitemap’ toggle is turned on. You can also preview your news sitemap.
Scroll down to adjust additional settings related to the News sitemap.
For instance, you can enter the Publication Name that will be used in the Google News Publisher Center in the following step. If you leave this blank, AIOSEO will default to your site’s title.
Additionally, you can choose which content types to include in the news sitemap under Post Types.
You can select posts, pages, and events, or check the box for ‘Include All Post Types’. Keep in mind that the Google News Sitemap will feature content published within the last 48 hours.
Next, click on the toggle for ‘Advanced Settings’ to exclude any pages or posts you do not wish to include in the news sitemap.
Once you have made your selections, click the ‘Save Changes’ button.
AIOSEO will now generate a Google News sitemap for your WordPress site.
How to Submit Your WordPress Site to Google News
After your news sitemap is prepared, you can proceed to submit your website to Google News.
First, visit the Google Publisher Center website and log in with your Google account.
How to Add Your WordPress Site to Google News
Once logged in, you will see the ‘Get started with Publisher Center’ page. Click on the ‘Add your publication’ link to proceed. Alternatively, you can enter your website’s URL and click ‘Add’.
A popup window will appear where you can enter the details of your publication.
You will need to provide the URL and name of your WordPress blog, along with selecting its home country and primary language.
After filling in these details, check the box to confirm that your publication is primarily and permanently located in the selected country, then click the ‘Add Publication’ button.
Confirming Ownership of Your WordPress Site
If you haven’t verified your website ownership with Google yet, you’ll need to do that now.
Click the ‘Open Search Console’ link to open the Google Search Console in a new tab. Follow our guide to verify your WordPress site ownership.
After verification, return and click the ‘Check verification’ link, then hit the ‘Finish’ button.
Your publication will be included in the Publisher Center, where you can adjust its settings.
Adjusting Your Google News Publication Settings
Scroll down to the ‘More options’ section and expand ‘Manage your publication and your organization’ by clicking the arrow on the right.
This will reveal three options. Click on the first option, ‘Modify publication settings’.
At the top of the page, you’ll find General settings, including the publication name, country, and language you previously entered. Feel free to modify these as needed.
Next, scroll down and expand the ‘Publication URLs’ section.
Here, you can view the primary URL you entered earlier and add any additional URLs related to your publication.
Google News will utilize these links as sources for its content.
Next, scroll down to the ‘Points of contact’ section. Here, you can provide a contact email address for your publication.
Finally, expand the ‘Visual styles’ section to upload a logo for your publication.
Google News provides several options for adding a logo to your site.
You can upload both a Square logo and a Rectangular logo, as well as custom fonts.
Your uploaded logo and fonts will be saved automatically.
After uploading your logo, click the ‘← Settings’ button at the top to return to the Publisher Center homepage.
Now, there are a few additional settings for Google News that we need to configure.
You can find these by clicking the ‘Open’ button in the Google News box at the top of the page.
This will take you to the Google News configuration page, where you can customize your publication’s basic information and sections.
Click the ‘Edit’ button to set up your site for Google News.
You can now enter the essential information and distribution details for your publication.
Under ‘Basic information’, select a publication category from the dropdown menu.
Scroll down to find the Distribution settings. By default, your content will be accessible in all countries and across various Google products.
You can restrict your site’s visibility to specific regions by selecting and blocking certain countries from the ‘Countries’ dropdown menu. Additionally, you can adjust the Google properties settings using the same dropdown.
Remember to click the ‘Next’ button once you have completed your selections.
Next, you will need to add Sections to Google News, which will be displayed as tabs. Sections help categorize your content within Google News.
For instance, you can include videos, web links, feeds, or create a customized news feed for your site.
To get started, click the ‘+ New section’ button and choose an option. In this tutorial, we will add a Feed.
Enter a Section title, provide the RSS feed URL that Google News will utilize as a content source, and select the audience for this section.
You can usually locate your site’s primary RSS feed by appending /feed/ to your domain name (e.g., www.yourwebsite.com/feed/). If you want to use a specific category, you can add /feed/ to the end of the category URL (e.g., www.yourwebsite.com/category/news/feed/.
After filling in these details, click the ‘Add’ button.
You can create multiple sections to effectively organize your publication in Google News.
Additionally, you can limit access to specific sections of your publication in the Google News app through the ‘Access groups’ settings.
Once you have completed this step, remember to click the ‘Next’ button.
Afterward, you can check for any missing items in the ‘Google News app publishing status’ and test your application.
Simply click the ‘Review’ button for any item to see what information is missing or which requirements you still need to fulfill.
Before you submit your publication, scroll down to the ‘Testing your publication’ section and click the ‘Follow publication’ button. This will add your site to the Favorites in the Google News app.
Next, click the ‘Publish’ button in the ‘Google News app publishing status’ box and agree to the terms of service.
You have successfully submitted your publication for review. The review process may take a few days to several weeks, so keep an eye on your email and the Publisher Center for updates.
Common Questions About Submitting to Google News
Here are answers to some of the most frequently asked questions about getting your WordPress site listed in Google News.
1. How long does it take for Google News to approve my site?
The approval process can take anywhere from a few days to several weeks, depending on various factors. Once you submit your publication through the Google Publisher Center, their team will review it to ensure it complies with all guidelines.
2. Is there a fee for submitting my site to Google News?
No, there is no fee to submit your website or to be included in Google News. The entire process is free for publishers.
3. What type of content performs well on Google News?
Google News prioritizes timely and original content that resonates with its audience.
For instance, an article discussing a recent WordPress software update is considered timely news, while a general guide on ‘how to install WordPress’ is classified as evergreen content. Articles that feature clear authorship, factual accuracy, and proper sourcing tend to achieve the best results.
4. Do I need a specific news sitemap for Google News?
Yes, having a dedicated news sitemap is strongly recommended as it differs from a standard XML sitemap. It allows Google to quickly discover your latest articles, as it only includes content published within the last 48 hours.
Explore Additional Resources for Utilizing Google Services to Boost Your Website Traffic
We hope this guide has helped you understand how to submit your WordPress site to Google News. Utilizing the Publisher Center allows Google to receive clear signals about your site, providing you with greater control over your publication’s presentation and enhancing your chances of being featured.
You might also find these additional guides helpful for leveraging Google services to drive more traffic to your WordPress website:
- Beginner’s Guide: How to Get Your WordPress Site Listed on Google
- Beginner’s Guide: How to Submit Your Website to Search Engines
- How to Request Google to Recrawl URLs of Your WordPress Site
- Setting Up Google Analytics Goals for Your WordPress Site
- Adding Your WordPress Site to Google Search Console
- Effective Tips for Using Google Search Console to Increase Your Website Traffic
- How to Achieve a Google Featured Snippet with Your WordPress Site
- Understanding Google Knowledge Panel: How to Claim It for Your WordPress Site
- Leveraging Google Trends to Enhance SEO and Expand Your Business
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