W WattCycle

How to Submit Your E-Bike Site to Google & Bing (IndexNow Guide)

Having indexing issues? This guide shows you exactly how to submit your e-bike site to Google and Bing using sitemaps, IndexNow, and URL inspection.

📅 Updated 2026-07-07 ⏱️ 15 min read ✓ Educational guide

Having indexing issues? This guide shows you exactly how to submit your e-bike site to Google and Bing using sitemaps, IndexNow, and URL inspection.

Getting your e-bike website indexed by Google and Bing is critical for organic traffic — but it doesn't happen automatically. You need to actively submit your site, configure sitemaps, use IndexNow for instant indexing, and monitor for crawl errors. This guide walks through the entire process with specific steps for both Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools.

If you're experiencing indexing issues — like only your homepage being indexed while other pages are stuck in 'discovered but not indexed' or showing redirect errors — this guide will help you diagnose and fix the problems.

Prerequisites: Site Preparation →

Google Search Console Setup →

Bing Webmaster Tools Setup →

Fixing the .html Redirect Issue (Critical for Bing) →

IndexNow: Instant Indexing for New/Updated Pages →

Sitemap Best Practices →

Prerequisites: Site Preparation

Before submitting to search engines, verify your site is crawlable:

  1. Sitemap.xml exists and is accessible at /sitemap.xml. Verify at https://wattcycle.pages.dev/sitemap.xml.
  1. Robots.txt allows all crawlers and references the sitemap. Verify at https://wattcycle.pages.dev/robots.txt.
  1. No 'noindex' meta tags on pages you want indexed. Check by viewing page source and searching for 'noindex.'
  1. Canonical URLs are correct and consistent. Each page should have a canonical URL matching its actual URL (no .html extensions if using pretty URLs).
  1. Internal linking is solid. Every page should be reachable from at least one other page via internal links.
  1. Page load speed is acceptable. Google's Core Web Vitals: LCP under 2.5s, CLS under 0.1, INP under 200ms.
  1. Mobile-friendly. Test with Google's Mobile-Friendly Test.
  1. No redirect chains. Each URL should return 200 OK directly, not redirect to another URL.

If any of these fail, fix them BEFORE submitting to search engines. Submitting a broken site can delay indexing.

Google Search Console Setup

Step-by-step Google Search Console setup:

  1. Go to https://search.google.com/search-console and sign in with your Google account.
  1. Add your property: Choose 'URL prefix' and enter https://wattcycle.pages.dev (or your custom domain).
  1. Verify ownership: The easiest method for Cloudflare Pages is the HTML meta tag. Add the verification meta tag to your homepage's <head> section. We've already added this for you: <meta name='google-site-verification' content='ZvL6_Lg4Pn_Uvclt9mrFWpIb6Wnc2eYnfUk_ymDLOhw' />
  1. Submit your sitemap: In Search Console, go to 'Sitemaps' and submit https://wattcycle.pages.dev/sitemap.xml. Google will process it within 24-48 hours.
  1. Request indexing for individual pages: Use 'URL Inspection' tool, enter any URL, and click 'Request Indexing.' This is useful for new or updated pages.
  1. Monitor coverage: Check 'Coverage' report regularly. It shows which pages are indexed, which have errors, and which are excluded.
  1. Fix errors promptly: If Google reports errors (redirects, 404s, server errors), fix them immediately. Errors prevent indexing.
  1. Submit to IndexNow (see below) for instant indexing of new/updated pages.

Bing Webmaster Tools Setup

Step-by-step Bing Webmaster Tools setup:

  1. Go to https://www.bing.com/webmasters and sign in with your Microsoft account.
  1. Add your site: Enter https://wattcycle.pages.dev (or your custom domain).
  1. Verify ownership: Three options:
  1. Submit your sitemap: Go to 'Sitemaps' and submit https://wattcycle.pages.dev/sitemap.xml.
  1. Use URL Inspection: Enter any URL to check its indexing status. If Bing reports 'URL cannot be indexed as it is a redirect,' you have a redirect issue (see the next section).
  1. Submit individual URLs: Use 'Submit URLs' to manually submit up to 10,000 URLs per day.
  1. Use IndexNow: Bing supports IndexNow for instant indexing. See the IndexNow section below.
  1. Monitor 'SEO Reports' and 'Crawl Information' for issues.
  1. Check 'Index Explorer' to see exactly which pages Bing has indexed.

Fixing the .html Redirect Issue (Critical for Bing)

If Bing Webmaster Tools reports 'URL cannot be indexed as it is a redirect,' you have the .html extension redirect issue. This is the most common cause of Bing indexing failures on Cloudflare Pages.

The problem: Cloudflare Pages automatically redirects /page.html to /page (pretty URLs). Bing sees this redirect and refuses to index the .html URL.

The fix: Remove all .html extensions from your internal links and canonical URLs. This way, you link directly to /page (no extension), and Cloudflare Pages serves the file with no redirect.

Specific actions:
1. Change all href='/page.html' to href='/page' in your HTML.
2. Change canonical URLs from '.../page.html' to '.../page'.
3. Update sitemap.xml to use extension-less URLs.
4. Update Open Graph URLs similarly.
5. Verify by testing a URL in Bing Webmaster Tools URL Inspection — it should now show 'URL is indexable.'

After fixing: Use 'Submit URLs' in Bing Webmaster Tools to resubmit your pages. Use IndexNow for instant re-crawling. Most pages should be indexed within 1-2 weeks after the fix.

This site has been updated to use extension-less URLs throughout — no more .html redirect issues.

IndexNow: Instant Indexing for New/Updated Pages

IndexNow is a protocol that lets you notify search engines (Bing, Yandex, Naver) when your site changes, enabling near-instant indexing.

How IndexNow works:
1. Generate an API key (a random string).
2. Host the key at https://yoursite.com/{key}.txt.
3. Submit URLs to https://api.indexnow.org/indexnow with your key.

For WattCycle on Cloudflare Pages:
1. The IndexNow protocol is supported natively by Bing Webmaster Tools.
2. In Bing Webmaster Tools, go to 'IndexNow' and click 'Set up IndexNow.'
3. Bing will generate an API key for you.
4. Host the key file in your site root.
5. Submit URLs via the Bing interface or via API calls.

For automated IndexNow submission:
- Use a CI/CD script that pings IndexNow when you deploy new content.
- WordPress plugins like 'IndexNow' automate this for WP sites.
- For static sites, a simple shell script can submit URLs after each deploy.

IndexNow is especially useful for:
- New pages you want indexed quickly.
- Updated pages you want re-crawled.
- Time-sensitive content (news, promotions).
- Sites that update frequently.

Google does NOT currently support IndexNow — only Bing, Yandex, and Naver do. For Google, use Search Console's 'Request Indexing' feature.

Sitemap Best Practices

Your sitemap.xml is the primary way search engines discover your pages. Best practices:

  1. Include all indexable pages. Every page you want indexed should be in the sitemap.
  1. Use correct URLs. Match your canonical URLs exactly — no .html extensions if using pretty URLs.
  1. Set appropriate lastmod dates. Update lastmod when content changes. Don't fake future dates.
  1. Set changefreq realistically. 'daily' for pages that change often, 'weekly' or 'monthly' for stable content.
  1. Set priority sensibly. Homepage = 1.0, pillar pages = 0.8-0.9, regular pages = 0.6-0.7.
  1. Keep the sitemap under 50,000 URLs and 50MB. If you exceed this, split into multiple sitemaps and use a sitemap index.
  1. Submit to both Google and Bing. Don't assume they'll find it via robots.txt.
  1. Update the sitemap when you add or remove pages. A stale sitemap with 404 URLs hurts crawl efficiency.
  1. Use XML sitemap, not HTML sitemap, for search engine submission. HTML sitemaps are for users.
  1. Verify the sitemap is accessible. Visit /sitemap.xml in your browser — it should return valid XML.

The WattCycle sitemap at /sitemap.xml follows all these best practices.

Monitoring Indexing Status

After submitting, monitor indexing status:

Google Search Console:
- 'Coverage' report shows indexed, excluded, and error URLs.
- 'URL Inspection' tool shows the status of individual URLs.
- 'Sitemaps' report shows sitemap submission status and discovery rate.
- Check weekly for new errors.

Bing Webmaster Tools:
- 'Index Explorer' shows all indexed URLs.
- 'URL Inspection' shows individual URL status.
- 'Sitemaps' shows sitemap status.
- 'SEO Reports' identifies potential issues.
- Check weekly for new errors.

Site: search operator:
- Search 'site:wattcycle.pages.dev' in Google to see all indexed pages.
- Search 'site:wattcycle.pages.dev' in Bing similarly.
- This is a quick way to verify indexing.

Typical indexing timeline:
- Homepage: 1-3 days after submission.
- Other pages: 1-4 weeks after submission.
- Large sites (100+ pages): 2-8 weeks for full indexing.
- If pages aren't indexed after 4 weeks, investigate for errors.

Common reasons pages don't get indexed:
- Redirect issues (fix with extension-less URLs).
- 'noindex' meta tags (remove them).
- robots.txt blocking (allow all crawlers).
- Low quality/duplicate content (improve content).
- Orphan pages with no internal links (add internal links).
- Server errors (fix 5xx errors).
- Slow page speed (optimize Core Web Vitals).

Ongoing SEO Maintenance

SEO is not a one-time task. Ongoing maintenance:

  1. Update content regularly. Fresh content signals to search engines that your site is active. Update existing pages monthly with new information.
  1. Add new pages consistently. A steady stream of new content improves crawl frequency and indexing speed. Aim for 2-4 new pages per month.
  1. Monitor for broken links. Use a link checker tool monthly. Fix or remove broken internal and external links.
  1. Update sitemap when adding pages. Keep sitemap.xml current with all new pages.
  1. Re-submit to IndexNow after updates. Notify Bing of new/updated content for faster indexing.
  1. Monitor Core Web Vitals. Page speed affects rankings. Test monthly with PageSpeed Insights.
  1. Track rankings. Use Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools to track keyword rankings and click-through rates.
  1. Fix crawl errors promptly. Crawl errors prevent indexing. Fix them within 48 hours.
  1. Build internal links. Every new page should link to 4+ existing pages, and existing pages should link to new pages.
  1. Update schema markup. As schema evolves, update your JSON-LD to use the latest Schema.org types.

Following this maintenance routine ensures your e-bike site continues to rank well and index fully in both Google and Bing.

Related Guides