# Search and sharing

Source: https://layerwise.app/docs/deploy/search-and-sharing

Help people find your website on Google, and show a preview when someone shares a link on Instagram, iMessage, or WhatsApp.

Layerwise websites render each page on the server, so Google and link previews read the whole page. New projects include page titles and descriptions, link preview tags, a sitemap at `/sitemap.xml`, and a `/robots.txt` that keeps sign-in and signed-in pages out of search.

## Ask the agent [#ask-the-agent]

- Give the site a name and a one-sentence description, such as "Call the site Bloom Bakery: sourdough and pastries baked daily in Portland." Pages without their own title and description use them.
- Share a photo or graphic for link previews. Instagram, iMessage, WhatsApp, Facebook, and Slack show it when someone sends a link. A 1200 × 630 JPG or PNG works everywhere.
- As you add public pages, the agent gives each one a title and description and adds it to the sitemap. Signed-in and account pages stay out of search.
- For a local business, ask the agent to add your address, hours, and phone number for Google.

To add search and sharing to a project created before it, ask the agent, and it updates the project's setup.

## Make your custom domain the main address [#make-your-custom-domain-the-main-address]

After you [connect a custom domain](./custom-domains), tell the agent, such as "Make bloombakery.com the main address." Google then indexes that domain, and the sitemap and shared links use it. The `layerwise.site` address keeps working.

## Add your site to Google Search Console [#add-your-site-to-google-search-console]

[Google Search Console](https://search.google.com/search-console) shows which searches bring people to your website and lets you ask Google to index it.

1. [Publish your project](./publish).
2. In Search Console, add a property:
   - For a custom domain, choose **Domain**, then add the TXT record Google shows to your DNS provider.
   - For a `layerwise.site` address, choose **URL prefix**, enter the address, and choose **HTML tag**. Send the tag to the agent, publish again, then select **Verify**.
3. Open **Sitemaps**, enter `sitemap.xml`, then select **Submit**.

Google can take a few days to crawl a new website. To see which visits come from Google and Instagram, see [Analytics](./analytics#filter-and-explore).