How To: Set Up A Yahoo! Application ID for XML Sitemap

Welcome to the first in a series of weekly posts we will be writing, on Wednesdays, about WordPress called Wicked WordPress Wednesdays. I hope you will join in on the conversations, find the information useful and possibly subscribe for regular updates. For those of you that use WordPress, you know there are thousands of plugins to chose from that can be added to your site to boost its functionality.

One plugin that I often use for my own sites and my clients is the Google XML-Sitemap. This is an easy to use tool that will generate an XML sitemap for your site and streamline the process of getting your site index by the popular search engines such as Google, Bing, Yahoo and Ask.com. Once you have installed the plugin, the set up process is pretty straight forward, however lately it seems as though a number of people I've talked to have been stumped by this step. Not to worry, I'm happy to help guide them/you through it.

Selecting the search engines you want notified when changes are made to your site is as simple as checking the appropriate box under "Basic Options" of the XML Sitemap settings screen. This isn't exactly the case for Yahoo. Although there are a couple of extra steps involved, it's also pretty easy. Keep reading for instructions. While in your WordPress dashboard, scroll down to the "Settings" section in the sidebar and select "XML Sitemap". You will see the "Basic Options" box.

Step #1 - Check the box that reads Notify Yahoo about updates for your blog

Step #2 - To get a Yahoo application id, click on Request one here!

To proceed with the request for a Yahoo application id, you will need a Yahoo account. If you don't have one, you will need to register for one in order to continue.

You should now be at the Yahoo login screen. Go ahead and log in! After logging in, you will be taken to the Yahoo Developer Registration page. Your Yahoo ID will auto populate in the first field.

Proceed with filling in the rest of the required fields:

• Authentication method: Select Generic, No user authentication required
• Developer/Company Name: I recommend just using your name
• Product name: I would reference the sitemap so it's easy to remember what this id is for
• Contact email: Your email address
• Description of Application: A short description of what the application id will be doing (feel free to use my description)

Click "Continue" and you will be taken to your Yahoo application id. Copy the code and paste it into the box titled "Your Application ID" in your XML Sitemap "Basic Options" settings screen. Save your XML Sitemap options and you're all set to ping Yahoo when you make the next change to your blog/website.

Click "Finished", accept the Yahoo Terms of Service and Voila! Your done! The great thing about the XML Sitemap plugin is that it automatically regenerates the sitemap any time you edit, publish or delete a post so there is no need to manually rebuild it when you make changes. I hope this was helpful. :-)