Finally Microsoft has upgraded the Webmaster Tools section of their service and is offering a list of different options available for the users. To get started you will have to access the website – http://www.bing.com/toolbox/webmasters/ and click on the ‘sign in to use webmaster tools’ button.
Next you will have to login to your Live account which may be the @hotmail.com account or @msn.com account and get access to the Bing Webmaster Tools section which is one place through which you can handle your websites easily. A very much recommended tool similar to the Google Webmaster Tools but offered by Microsoft. Enter your website URL like ‘www.amitbhawani.com‘ and proceed with the submission.
Once the website URL is submitted you will be asked to verify the Ownership of the website you are submitting. The ownership verification is compulsory because the website information is provided to only the rightful owners. You can select any of the two available methods available to get started.
Method 1 : Place an XML file on your web server by downloading the BingSiteAuth.xml file and uploading to your web hosting account, following which the file can be accessed at ‘http://amitbhawani.com/BingSiteAuth.xml’. Once its uploaded click on the Verify button.
Method 2 : This is a easier option where in you will be given with a <meta> tag which has to be added in the header section of your blog or website. In case of a blog access the header.php file and add the code just above the </head> tag. Once you have added the same, delete the cache data if you are using plugins like Wp Super Cache and then click on the Verify button. This method is also useful for blogs hosted at Blogger.com because they cannot upload a file, hence you need to click on Design > Edit HTML and add the verification code under the meta-tag section.
Once your website is verified the information and stats would be displayed after 3 days which is the minimum period you need to wait for the statistics. The next step is to submit sitemap to bing for which you will have to click on the ‘Crawl’ link from the top menu and on the ‘Sitemaps’ option to proceed. Once the sitemap is submitted, its verified and the submission date is displayed along with the status of the same.
After a few days you can find traffic data and analyze search query performance over the period of 6 months time. The Index summary is going to offer you information on the total number of pages indexed and stats on the Malware infected and Excluded by robots.txt. This process is useful for bloggers who are looking to get more Traffic from Bing Search Engine and a part of SEO for Bing.
Bing Now displaying content using Microsoft Silver light.