The operational decision
Help maintain a discoverable resource library without treating sitemap submission as a ranking guarantee. A law-firm website should help visitors understand the public service scope and choose a clear next step. Marketing copy, buttons and form confirmations all need to match the actual intake and review process.
Prepare the workflow
Include the canonical URLs of intended public resources and remove obsolete entries; compare a sample of listed URLs with their actual page destinations.
Example wording for approval
“The example sitemap lists current public resources. It helps describe the site to search engines but does not guarantee crawling, indexing or search position.”
Worked example
A fictional resource is renamed to a clearer URL, but the sitemap still lists the old address alongside the new one. Review the intended canonical destination and update the sitemap accordingly. Inspect a sample of live pages to ensure the listed URL resolves to the resource users should read. Keep expectations realistic: the file describes public pages to search engines and does not promise indexing or ranking. The editor's evidence is the correct URL set, not an unsupported visibility guarantee.
Handoff record
Record these task-specific fields: resource URL, canonical destination, sitemap entry, editor.
Acceptance check
Choose a retired resource and a new page. The sitemap should omit the retired destination and include the intended current URL without duplicating alternate addresses.
Further reading
Legal intake capacity calculator ↗
Try Ava with your business’s public information ↗