User Manual — Auto Open Graph & Sitemap by Moowa® Studios

1. What this plugin does

Auto Open Graph & Sitemap solves two essential requirements without requiring technical or search engine optimization expertise.

Social Sharing (Open Graph): When you share a link to your site on social platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, or WhatsApp, the platform reads hidden metadata called Open Graph tags. The plugin ensures every shared link automatically displays a crisp title, a clear summary, and a suitable preview image.

Site Map (XML Sitemap): The sitemap.xml file is designed for search engines like Google and Bing. It lists the exact set of important pages on your site to help search crawlers locate your content and revisit it regularly.

2. Installation & Where to Find the Plugin

After installing and activating a new WordPress plugin, it is common to search through admin menus trying to locate where it is placed.

Where to find it in WordPress: The plugin has its own dedicated screen located directly under Tools > Auto Open Graph & Sitemap in your WordPress dashboard.

What to do right after activation

The plugin is designed to work right out of the box without requiring complex setups. Two simple steps are recommended:

Set a default sharing image (Tab 1): Select a primary image from your WordPress Media Library. It will be used as a fallback for any shared pages that lack a specific image.
Generate your Sitemap file (Tab 2): Click the Update button to create the physical sitemap.xml file at your site root immediately.

Quick Access: You can also jump directly to settings from your Plugins screen by clicking the Settings link right beneath the plugin name.

3. Tab 1: Open Graph (Social Sharing)

Inside your WordPress dashboard, under Tools > Auto Open Graph & Sitemap, the first tab manages your social media sharing presentation.

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Recommended Settings

Enable Open Graph: Keep the toggle switch set to ON. If another SEO plugin is active on your site, the switch will automatically be disabled to prevent duplicate tags.
Default Site Name: Enter the official name of your site or business.
Default Title: This title is used only if a shared page does not have its own specific title.
Default Description: Write a concise summary of your website. The recommended length is 100 to 300 characters. A built-in counter helps you adjust the length.
Default Image: Select a representative image from your WordPress Media Library. For best results on LinkedIn and Facebook, use a horizontal image of at least 1200 x 630 pixels.
Post Author: Check this box if your site has multiple contributors and you want to display the official author of each blog post when shared.

4. Tab 2: XML Sitemap (SEO Indexation)

The second tab allows you to instruct search engine bots on which content types to index.

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Practical Sitemap Settings Advice

1. Public Static Pages (Recommended: Checked)

Always leave this box checked. It includes your essential pages such as your homepage, about page, services, and contact page. These are the primary pages Google should crawl and index.

2. Blog Posts (Adjust based on your case)

When to include posts: Leave this box checked if your blog is regularly updated with fresh and relevant articles that you want search engines to feature.

When to exclude posts: If your site contains hundreds or thousands of outdated, obsolete posts that no longer offer value to visitors, unchecking this box is recommended. Excluding obsolete posts encourages Google to focus its crawling budget entirely on your core static pages.

3. Blog Categories

When to include categories: Check this box if your blog is organized into a few active, well-structured main categories.

When to exclude categories: If your categories contain very few posts or are unused, uncheck this option to keep crawler focus on primary pages.

4. Tags (Recommended: Unchecked)

It is generally recommended to leave tags unchecked in your sitemap. Tag pages often create hundreds of thin, repetitive pages ("thin content"), diluting search engine crawler attention without providing tangible benefits to site visitors.

The Update Button: Whenever you change settings or publish important new pages, click the Update button to physically regenerate the sitemap.xml file at your site root immediately.

5. Conflict Detection & Peace of Mind

Auto Open Graph & Sitemap is engineered to be self-contained and respectful of your WordPress setup.

If you activate another dedicated SEO plugin (such as Yoast SEO, Rank Math, or SEOPress), our plugin will automatically detect it and gracefully pause output for the corresponding module. There is zero risk of conflict or duplicate metadata on your site.