What is the Google Indexing API?
The Indexing API is a way to quickly and directly let Google know that content has been created, updated, or removed, at a specific URL or set of URLs.
Why is the Indexing API needed for Google Job Search?
Up-to-date Job Listings are good for users
When job seekers put in effort to find a job and apply, it can be very discouraging to discover that the job that they wanted is no longer available. Sometimes, job seekers only discover that the job posting is expired after deciding to apply for the job.
Google have identified that it can be frustrating to job applicants to find and sometimes even waste their time applying for jobs that don't exist anymore.
This is one of the core reasons why Google have tried so hard to keep their jobs platform as up-to-date as possible: encouraging, even requiring job publishers to keep their job portfolio current - by adding, removing and editing jobs in near real-time.
Quick indexing is crucially important in recruitment
The recruitment industry operates incredibly quickly - with job aggregator sites (such as Indeed) crawling the web and partner systems constantly for new jobs to add.
A key aspect of recruitment SEO is that if you want to 'beat the aggregators' you will need to get your job indexed in Google as early as possible.
Google's Indexing API is the tool that can allow this to happen.
Indexing API Quick Guide
A breakdown of the steps you need to get the Indexing API set up. A developer will be required for this.
Step 1: Complete prerequisites
- Create a service account
- Verify site ownership in Search Console
- Get an access token
Step 2: Send requests to Google
You can now complete the following actions as required:
Update a URL
Example:
Send the following HTTP POST request to https://indexing.googleapis.com/v3/urlNotifications:publish endpoint
{
"url": "https://careers.google.com/jobs/google/technical-writer",
"type": "URL_UPDATED"
}Code language: JSON / JSON with Comments (json)Remove a URL
Before you submit a removal request for a URL it should respond with a 404, 410, or have a robots noindex meta tag.
Example:
Send the following HTTP POST request to https://indexing.googleapis.com/v3/urlNotifications:publish endpoint
{
"url": "https://careers.google.com/jobs/google/technical-writer",
"type": "URL_DELETED"
}Code language: JSON / JSON with Comments (json)Get the status of a request
Example:
Send a HTTP GET request to https://indexing.googleapis.com/v3/urlNotifications/metadata endpoint
Code language: HTTP (http)Send batch indexing requests
Step 3: Check, and if necessary request more quota
Can the Indexing API be used for anything other than job postings?
At the time of writing, the Google Indexing API can only be used for pages containing JobPosting structured data, or video-based live-streaming.
It is not recommended by Google to attempt to use the Indexing API for any other type of web-page.
Some site owners have attempted to use the Indexing API anyway.
XML Sitemap
You can request Google checks for updated job listings via sending a GET as follows:
http://www.google.com/ping?sitemap=location_of_xml_sitemap
Code language: HTTP (http)Replace 'location_of_xml_sitemap' with your sitemap URL, for example:
http://www.google.com/ping?sitemap=https://www.searchcandy.uk/sitemap.xmlCode language: HTTP (http)Use of an XML sitemap is sub-optimal compared to using the Google Indexing API.
However there may be situations where it is not possible to implement the Indexing API and a sitemap will have to suffice.
This may result in your jobs being picked up by the aggregator sites first.
It is possible to use both the Indexing API and an XML sitemap though there would be no need to ping Google with the sitemap as the API is superior.
Hosting Requirements
You will need hosting infrastructure that is capable of servicing regular crawls by Google.